Ariana Grande fell prey to the oldest tattoo fail in the book: she got a kanji tattoo. With incorrect Japanese characters.
The pop star paid tribute to her single “7 Rings” by getting the characters 七輪 tattooed on the palm of her hand. This roughly translates to “7 rounds” or “7 wheels,” in Chinese, but social media immediately pointed out that the Japanese Kanji translation is “shichirin,” which is a small Japanese-style charcoal grill.
Grande posted, then quickly deleted a picture of her new tattoo to Instagram. You can see it via her official Japanese Twitter:
【Instagramより】
アリアナがまた日本語のタトゥーを追加！今度はなんと漢字で「七輪」?
「みんなこれは私の手じゃないって思っているみたいだけど、本当に私の手よ?」とコメントしています。
「七つの指輪」を略して「七輪」かな??とても気に入っているよう?#アリアナ pic.twitter.com/wR55jgu7FU— アリアナ・グランデ JP公式 (@ariana_japan) January 30, 2019
The pop star’s record-breaking music video for ‘7 Rings’ featured the correct Japanese translation of “7 Rings”: 七つの指輪. Separately, the kanji character 七 means “seven,” and 輪 means “hoop”/”circle”/”ring.” But when put together, 七輪 (shichirin) just means “small charcoal grill.”
Ariana Grande’s new tattoo “七輪” means Japanese style bbq grill, not 7 rings. ? If you want to know about 七輪, just google “SHICHIRIN” pic.twitter.com/HuQM2EwI62
— *amo* (@hey__amo) January 30, 2019
Grande later addressed the tattoo on Twitter, admitting that she’d left off most of the characters because “it hurt like f*ck” and she “wouldn’t have lasted another symbol.”
“It still looks tight,” wrote the pop star, adding that she’s a “huge fan of tiny bbq grills.”
Ariana Grande clarifies that she left out some letters off her tattoo because the pain was intolerable and says she’s a huge fan of tiny bbq grills which is one of the things her tattoo translates to! pic.twitter.com/SC1z4SSefW
— Pop Alarms ? (@PopAlarms) January 30, 2019
For many, Grande’s insistence that the tattoo “still looks tight” reinforced the idea that culture and language is a disposable aesthetic to the pop star.
this is why we should stop using culture/language as an aesthetic lol
— chittaphon ❄️ (@ramennshaw) January 30, 2019
Another reason why I can't listen to Ariana Grande's music: language is an aesthetic in her world. Also, the top of your foot is more painful & I've still seen people get a full color tat there so that's the worst excuse I've heard for getting a half assed crappy tattoo but okay. pic.twitter.com/mSMSMxLahd
— Lynn is too broke to be an ELF bye bye ??? (@RyeowooksThighs) January 30, 2019
Ariana grande not caring that her tattoo means bbq grill just proves she views kanji as an aesthetic and the people that still defend that 4’9 little bratz doll r literally digging the grave for her
— ? (@leoyolk) January 30, 2019
I used to love Ariana Grande and I think a part of me always will but I can’t get with the cultural appropriation from 7 rings and now this bbq “7 rings” tattoo. Like it’s okay to like another culture but idk her interest in Japan (and Japanese) is very ignorant to me.
— not seeing exo?? (@Channievv) January 30, 2019
ariana grande really got a tattoo in japanese that says “portable grill” instead of “seven rings” and is playing it off by saying “it still looks tight”…. she literally just admitted to only seeing japanese as an aesthetic pic.twitter.com/rIAM1nOMeB
— SOUCHAN IS HOME @ i7 au ? (@floorb6) January 30, 2019
lmao at ariana grande pretending like her tattoo was just “too painful” and saying she purposely got a badly translated tattoo instead of admitting that she‘s just a white chick that cant understand Chinese or Japanese
— ? (@brimstonebitch) January 30, 2019
ariana grande’s tattoo means bbq in japanese not 7 rings this is karma at its finest sksjsjhdd
— sav? (@ameIiesIacroix) January 30, 2019
Though others just reveled in the ultimate schadenfreude.
I'M SCREAMING did ariana grande really tattoo the japanese kanji of bbq grill on her hand SIS…. ?
— bria? (@idkbria) January 30, 2019
kris wu seeing ariana grande get the wrong tattoo pic.twitter.com/ZElxS9Vga2
— l*n* (@taeyten) January 30, 2019
ariana grande after the translator lies to her and tattoos japanese barbecue on her finger pic.twitter.com/L2KUYtAs5T
— pinned (@jinsO_Oul) January 30, 2019
Ariana Grande pretending to be happy with her new Japanese tattoo that she thought meant « 7 rings » but found out that it actually means « bbq grill » pic.twitter.com/BhG402myfI
— that nigga Kyungsoo (@frdegama) January 30, 2019
Grande literally has folks in Japan operating a Twitter account for her—next time, it would behoove her to send shoot them a text to double check her translations.