Selena Gomez Unveils Tattoo Commemorating Her Kidney Transplant Surgery
Selena Gomez continues to be an inspiration when it comes to significant tattoos, and her latest ink adventure is no exception.
Upon the release of her new album Rare, Sel shared some BTS pics from the title track’s music video. In one shot, you can make out a series of numbers on the back of the singer-songwriter’s upper right arm, seemingly signifying a date in June 2017. As noted by Page Six, the tatt represents the date that Selena had a kidney transplant surgery in order to treat the lupus that she was battling at the time.
In a December 2019 interview with Capital FM, Sel confirmed the meaning behind her arm tattoo, revealing that she got the ink along with her good friend, Francia Raisa, who served as the kidney donor for her surgery.
Selena and Francia have been open about the process of undergoing surgery together, with both stars speaking candidly about the challenges and ultimate positive outcome of the experience. “I just really hope that we can help somebody,” Selena said in an October 2017 Today interview. “I don't think what we went through was easy, I don't think it was fun. I just hope this inspires people to feel good and to know that there are really good people in the world.”
Given that, it makes sense for Selena and Francia to want to commemorate their surgery in a permanent way — especially since Selena has a host of other significant tatts. The singer has matching “#1” tattoos with BFF Courtney Barry, along with coordinating arrows with bestie and collaborator, Julia Michaels. She even has matching semicolon tattoos with some of the 13 Reasons Why cast members as a nod to Project Semicolon, an organization dedicated to the prevention of suicide. We love how Sel continues to use her body as a canvas with which to tell her most personal stories — and we can’t wait to see what other meaningful ink she gets in the future.
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Originally Appeared on Teen Vogue
