If you’ve ever felt a little guilty for going out and splurging on a $5 coffee, you can probably feel a little bit of relief if you find out how much money hip hop icons spend on their jewelry. And one of the most prominent rappers in the game right now, Rick Ross, might even blow some of the competition out of the water.

Wearing a solid gold chain studded with diamonds is something that pretty much every musical artist does to flaunt their success and prove their wealth. But Florida-based rapper Rick Ross really takes things to the next level with a $1.5 million chain that he likes to sport often.

Let’s take a look at why this piece costs so much and how you can mimic it for just a tiny, tiny fraction of the cost.

Let’s Face It: The Rick Ross Face Pendant

The $1.5 million chain that Ross wears now started as something a little bit different. A few years back, Ross became somewhat of a meme in popular culture for wearing a $50k pendant of his face.

This self-portrait pendant used pure diamonds colored yellow and black to compose a detailed jewelry version of his face. It was complete with sunglasses, a goatee, and even diamond grills. This thick piece made rounds on the internet and quickly gained a lot of traction as a self-aware way for Ross to exemplify his wealth and success.

With how popular the piece became, Ross decided to take it to the next level. He ordered an even more meta pendant of himself wearinga pendant of his own face.

This pendant features the body of Ross wearing the $50k pendant that made the original meme famous in the first place. It’s a cheeky piece that is truly unlike anything we’ve ever seen. And we’d try to get one for ourselves if it didn’t run a price tag of $1.5 million.

The high price is likely because the piece is gigantic in order to account for all of the details. After all, you can essentially think of it as two pendants in one. The entire thing uses solid gold and real diamonds, so it’s no surprise that it ran at such a high cost. What is surprising is that Ross spent so much, to begin with.

If you have the money, you might as well spend it. But you can also get yourself customized pendants that are just as personal and trendsetting without needing to spend so much.

Looking Deeper Into Rick Ross’ Collection

Ross’ self-portrait pendant is one of the more definitive pieces in his collection. However, it’s not the only one. Let’s take a look at some of his other chains that have cemented him at the top of the hip hop food chain for so long.

MMG Pendant

Rick Ross is a big fan of custom pieces, as we now know. And his custom VOBARA piece is an unforgettable addition to his assortment. This huge, heavy diamond-studded plate hangs around his neck with the letters MMG embroidered on the front. This is a reference to Maybach Music Group, a record label founded by Rick Ross.

It’s a largely sentimental piece that is also quite literally large. While we don’t know the exact price tag, we’d bet he spent a good chunk of money considering its size and weight. And since VOBARA is the same jeweler who has created custom pieces for the likes of Soulja Boy and other prominent artists, this piece definitely exudes an unmatched essence.

Miami Heat Championship Ring

You know you’ve made it to the top when a basketball team gives you an honorary championship ring, and that’s exactly what the Miami Heat did for Ross. Since he’s a Miami-based rapper and a long-time basketball fan, this only made sense for him.

While he probably didn’t need to pay any money to get this ring wrapped around his finger, these rings resell for over $11,000 in general. But if this were to come from Ross himself, the price and value would skyrocket.

How Do You Get a Custom Pendant?

While you might not have much of a reason to get the exact same pendant as Ross, you can still personalize pendants easily and inexpensively. Custom jewelry is one of the best ways to tell a story or symbolize something special without sacrificing your style.

To get a piece as intricate as Rick Ross’ meta self-portrait, you’d need to go to a professional jeweler and drop a good amount of money. However, at 6 Ice, you can customize pendants with ease.

Step One: Pick a Phrase

First, you’ll decide which type of pendant you want. Word pendants let you flaunt a special word or phrase with deep meaning to you, whereas a picture pendant allows you to choose a photo, logo, or another type of image to wear around your neck at all times. You could choose to wear a picture of your own face to pay homage to Ross’ cheeky piece.

While this is where most jewelers will stop giving you the ability to customize, 6 Ice gives you full control. Because after you pick the type of pendant you want, you’ll get to choose how you want it to look by choosing the type of gold you want to use.

Step Two: Pick a Metal

Traditional gold can never go wrong, and it can help to make the words on a word pendant pop against darker-colored clothing. White gold, on the other hand, has luminance and prestige that makes it appropriate for every occasion; it’s perfect as the border for a picture pendant.

Step Three: Pick a Chain

Finally, you need to pick a matching chain to actually be able to wear your piece. You’ll want to go with a thinner chain around 3 mm in width so that the pendant can hang from it. We recommend choosing the same color chain as the gold you picked for the pendant itself. Yet, there's something enchanting about mixing and matching metals to show off your confidence.

The Face of the Jewelry Industry

Rick Ross is one of the most well-known rappers in the game, and to show off how prominent he is, Ross got a custom self-portrait pendant of his own face. But once this pendant became a meme, he took it to the next level by getting a custom pendant of himself wearing a pendant of his own face. And the kicker? This giant diamond-studded rock cost over $1.5 million.

It’s a cheeky, meta piece of jewelry that only Rick Ross would be able to wear, and when it’s paired with his Miami Heat Championship Ring or his MMG pendant, it’s obvious that Ross has the money to spare on his appearances.

However, you don’t need to drop a million bucks to look like a million bucks. 6 Ice lets you make custom jewelry from the ground up so you can have full control over the look, appearance, and overall cost of your piece.

Plus, with its lifetime guarantee, you can have confidence in its quality and worry about the important things – like which bracelet you’re going to wear to match it.

Sources:

Properties of gold | Open University

Is There a Difference Between Natural and Laboratory-Grown Diamonds? | Gemological Institute of America

Platinum vs. White Gold vs. Yellow Gold vs. Rose Gold | The Diamond Pro

NBA championship rings: how much they're worth, what they're made of and who gets one | AS.com