Post Malone’s Four Year Transformation Proves Tattoo Addiction Is Real

'Money Made Me Do It.'

Post Malone’s Four Year Transformation Proves Tattoo Addiction Is Real

Few artists have had Post Malone’s meteoric rise to fame.

The boozy, vibrato-voiced rapper/singer/songwriter is easily one of the most popular musicians in the world. But it wasn’t always this way: after years grinding as a struggling country/grunge artist, the 25-year-old rapper/singer/songwriter (real name Austin Post) only found mainstream success when he transitioned to hip-hop, making it big in 2015 with his single White Iverson.

Since then, Post’s leant more and more into the rapper lifestyle – and that has meant getting plenty of tattoos. Post’s got more than most, too, the now multi-platinum-selling musician boasting one of the most impressive collections of ink in the business. It’s become an essential part of his aesthetic… Which makes it all the more striking to look back on how he looked only a few years ago.

Take these two photos of Post taken less than four years apart (unearthed after a spot of social media digging by DMARGE) which show just how much tattoos can transform the way someone looks. Post Malone’s tattoos are really are something.

L: Post Malone in 2016, before his tattoo addiction took hold. R: Post in 2020, shirtless and showing off his impressive collection of ink. Images: @postmalone

The amount of ink Post’s collected in such a short time is rather confronting. Many have suggested it’s a clear example of ‘tattoo addiction’ writ large. While tattoos aren’t technically addictive, according to the clinical definition of addiction, the adrenaline your body’s stress response produces when you get a tattoo is widely touted as one of the reasons people tend to go back for more.

As this article in Psychology Today relates, “tattoos are like potato chips… you can’t have just one.” Seems Posty likes his chips, then.

While some would argue that he looks a lot better without the tattoos, one thing we can all agree on is that it’s good he lost that Nipsey Hussle-esque haircut that he used to rock back in 2016. In recent years he’s favoured a buzzcut or a Caesar cut, which suits him much better.

RELATED: How To Choose Tattoos That You Won’t Regret When You’re 50

What’s hard to debate is how consistent Post’s been with his tattoos. A common mistake rappers (and just everyday dudes) make when getting tattoos is that they mix and match lots of different art styles, colours and themes, which ends up looking trashy and amateurish. While Post hasn’t exactly shown restraint when it comes to quantity, he certainly has when it comes to style: all of Post Malone’s tattoos are monochromatic and done in a traditional style.

Post at the 63rd Grammy Awards. Image: Getty

Beyond selling millions of records and picking up almost as many tattoos, Post’s 2020 saw him flex his entrepreneurial chops: not only has he launched his own rosé brand, the surprisingly successful Maison No. 9, but he’s also branched out into selling PPE and hand sanitiser as well as launching a number of collaborative Crocs models.

2021 has seen him perform at a virtual concert for the 25th Anniversary of Pokémon celebration, and just last weekend he also performed the title track from his 2019 album Hollywood’s Bleeding at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, draped in full Chrome Hearts.

Apparently, he’s also got an album in the works that we’re likely to see this year, too. We’ll keep you posted on that front. (Get it?)

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