Tattoo

Touching tribute from Devin Booker to Kobe Bryant ... the Phoenix Suns superstar immortalized an autograph he got from the Mamba with a tattoo on his forearm.

Here's the deal ... back in March 2016, Devin -- a rookie at the time who grew up idolizing Kobe -- played Bryant in one of legend's final NBA games.

And afterward, Kobe had a long talk with the budding All-Star ... and gave him a pair of signed shoes with two messages on them.

One read, "To The Young Gun!" The other? "To Book Be Legendary"

Devin took the advice to heart ... and Tuesday, just over a month after Kobe tragically died in a helicopter crash, he got Bryant's "Be Legendary" autograph tatted on his arm.

"Somethin to live by," Booker said of the ink.

A bunch of NBA guys loved the tribute -- which appears to be Devin's first-ever body art -- with Kobe's former teammate, Matt Barnes, writing, "Killer."

Devin was one of the NBA players hit hardest by Bryant's death ... in the Suns' game against the Grizzlies hours after the chopper accident, he had to fight back tears on the court.

Kobe Bryant's big sister just got a permanent tribute to Kobe and Gianna -- a brand new tattoo with their numbers encircled by a Black Mamba snake.

Sharia Bryant Washington -- the oldest of the Bryant siblings -- hit up tattoo artist Peter Barrios for the work ... and it turned out pretty great.

You can see the numbers 2 and 24 (worn by Gianna and Kobe, respectfully) -- with the Black Mamba snake in the shape of the infinity symbol.

In other words ... Gianna and Kobe forever.

In the past few weeks, a bunch of people who knew Kobe and Gianna have opted for tats -- everyone from LeBron James and Anthony Davis to J.R. Smith and Shareef O'Neal.

Odell Beckham and rapper The Game also got Kobe-inspired body art.

Lamar Odom, who was extremely close with Kobe, told us he's strongly considering a Kobe tat and will likely get one soon.

It's been more than a month since Kobe, Gianna and 7 others passed away in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, Ca.

As we previously reported, Kobe's widow, Vanessa Bryant, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the company that operated the doomed chopper essentially blaming the pilot for the crash.

The Game will pay homage to the late Kobe Bryant everywhere he goes from now on -- the rapper has revealed a new face tattoo in honor of the NBA legend.

Game added to his ink collection on Wednesday with a sideways 8 and Kobe's autograph above his right eyebrow ... which symbolizes "Kobe Forever."

Game -- who is still grappling with the loss of the L.A. icon -- has also planned a song to honor Bryant and has worn his jerseys during his current tour.

The Compton native is no stranger to face tattoos -- he had a butterfly on his left cheek before covering it with an L.A.-inspired piece. He also has a tear drop under his right eye.

Game hit up Dark Ink Gallery in Glasgow ... just hours before his show at O2 Academy.

NBA superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis put permanent art on their bodies in honor of Bryant ... with LBJ getting a snake with Kobe's numbers and "Mamba 4 Life" underneath it.

J.R. Smith, Shareef O'Neal and 2 Chainz have also commissioned Bryant memorials on their bodies.

Post Malone found some more real estate on his face to add some fresh ink ... and this tat celebrates one of his biggest albums.

Posty is showing off a new face tattoo of a slightly-bloodied buzz saw, and we're told the singer got the piece Wednesday night following his concert in Kansas City. Check out the pics, it's pretty sick!!!

If the symbol looks familiar, that's because it's from the artwork for PM's "Beerbongs and Bentleys."

Post had a night to remember in KC. As we reported, he raged his face off with the Super Bowl champion Chiefs backstage, and there was an epic dance party and, of course, beer pong!!!

Hanging with NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce is pretty cool ... and Post also met Paul Rudd!

But, the cherry on top's gotta be that face tat ... a pretty painful cherry though.

Shareef O'Neal is honoring Gianna and Kobe Bryant by tattooing their jerseys on his body ... and the pictures are amazing.

As we previously reported, Shaq's son became VERY close with the Bryants -- he basically viewed Kobe as an uncle.

Shareef has been deeply affected by their deaths and has been searching for ways to pay tribute to the Bryants. He's been posting a lot on social media. He went to the Bryant tribute at Staples Center. And now, he's inking their numbers on his leg.

Check out the pic ... you can see Gigi's #2 jersey she rocked for her Mamba Academy team. He also added Kobe's #8 and #24, the two numbers he wore with the Lakers.

Of course, LeBron James and Anthony Davis have also inked Kobe tributes on their legs -- both got imagery of a Black Mamba snake with the words, "Mamba 4 Life."

Originally Published -- 6:32 AM PT

LeBron James has a new piece of body art -- a tribute to Kobe Bryant complete with imagery of a Black Mamba.

Both LeBron and Anthony Davis hit up tattoo artist Vanessa Aurelia on Wednesday looking to pay tribute to Kobe with some fresh ink.

Fast-forward to Thursday morning ... when Bron and the Lakers were working out in front of the Lakers facility in El Segundo and gave the media a sneak peek at his new art.

The tat is still under wraps but it appears he's got a black mamba snake with some words underneath. Some people in the office think it reads, "Kobe 4 Life" but it's really hard to tell.

We're told Bron plans to do a big reveal on his Instagram soon -- most likely before he takes the court on Friday when the Lakers take on the Portland Trail Blazers at Staples Center.

Originally Published -- 1/30 1:43 PM PT

Justin Bieber found more real estate on his body to add a new tat, and this one says a lot about where he is right now ... and where he plans on going.

The Biebs really branched out this time, getting a laurel wreath across his collar bone. The 2 branches connect in the area above his chest and below his neck ... nice and symmetrical.

JB flaunted his new ink Thursday outside a gym in L.A. -- one of his buds gave it an up-close inspection.

As for the meaning of the tattoo ... the laurel wreath is known as a symbol of triumph and nobility. There could also be a religious significance -- many view the wreath as a reminder that victory can only be attained by following God.

Justin's obviously been very open about his Christianity, and he's also revealed he's been through a lot recently, including his Lyme disease diagnosis.

He's fought through it, though, and already this year ... he's released a new single and a documentary. The future's looking bright too, with an upcoming album and tour.

Seems like he's feeling pretty triumphant about it.

Justin Bieber has locked down some of music's biggest names to join him on his comeback album, and he's already floating a name for the project that's made a permanent mark on his body ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to JB tell us Travis Scott, Post Malone and Kehlani are among the featured performers on his album ... Bieber's first since he released "Purpose" in 2015. We're told Bieber plans to drop the album by March -- his birthday month -- and the tour starts in May.

Our sources say Justin has completed his parts for the song with Post, but is still waiting on the vocals back from the "Circles" singer.

As for the album name ... we're told a leading candidate is "Forever." Justin recently got the word tatted on his neck and has put album names like "Purpose" and "Believe" on his body before, so it's a signal. But, we're told so far no firm decision on album name has been made.

Justin's single "Yummy" -- produced by 18-year-old Kid Culture -- dropped Friday, his first from the new album, and a very personal 10-part docuseries profiling the singer's life and struggles over the last few years comes out this month.

Justin Bieber's showing off the countless hours of artwork he's accumulated -- all over his body -- in a series of up-close and personal vids.

Bieber just shared the tattoo shots while chillin' poolside with his shirt off ... revealing his ink starting from his colorful Crocs and working his way up his legs to his torso covered in majestic animal art.

He pays extra attention to his arms, flaunting a "Make Em Pay" tat with a couple of six-shooters ... along with some religious symbols and other messages.

JB ends his full-body tour with a focus on JC -- the Jesus tattoo on his left calf.

Interestingly -- Bieber's extreme closeups don't include a good look at the tat he got earlier this month -- a giant bird plastered on the side of his neck ... but he does give a quick glimpse of the new piece.

Demi Lovato added new ink on her bod for the holidays ... and like much of her last year, it's inspirational.

Demi spent most of her Monday getting inked up by Alessandro Capozzi at a private studio in downtown L.A. We are told he started on Demi's tattoo around noon and finished around 8 PM. The finished product? An angel representing the rebirth of the spirit.

Capozzi says he and Demi created the image together. The dark wings represent the bad times but the fading wings represent how Demi's moved forward. The light from within represents the inner strength that's necessary for the change in her life ... and the doves pulling her up symbolize the reach of a higher state of consciousness. Deep stuff.

Justin Bieber's latest ink runs afoul afowl ... he's got a giant bird plastered on his neck.

The Biebs unveiled his new neck tattoo as he was leaving church Wednesday night with his wife, Hailey. As you can see ... there's a bird on the left side of his neck with its head facing his Adam's apple, appearing set for flight across Justin's throat.

Hard to tell what kind of bird it is, but it makes a nice addition to all the other animal artwork on his body. As you may know, Bieber has a giant bear tattoo on his chest across from a giant lion tattoo... and an eagle with its wings stretched is inked across his abs.

Justin teased his fans on Instagram about the new tat, saying he got a new one and asked if they wanted to see it ... but he's yet to share a shot of the final product himself.

Unclear if JB was inspired by "Portlandia" while deciding what to permanently add to his neck ... but he definitely put a bird on it!

Wanna see a walking work of art?? Just check out Cody Garbrandt's fresh ink ... 'cause the UFC star is giving TMZ Sports the breakdown on his new tattoo!!

Of course, No Love is no stranger to the needle -- he's got tats on his neck, chest and arms ... and now his back is fully covered with an epic gladiator-esque image!!

Cody tells us the whole process lasted about 25 hours ... so yeah, tat artist Nic Westfall at the Skull Museum is one patient cat.

Cody says the most painful part of the process was when Westfall got to his lower back, because he recently had stem cell treatment.

But, the craziest thing about this -- Cody says it didn't cost him a PENNY to get done ... the dude got the hookup because it's basically an ad for the artist whenever he fights in the Octagon!

We also talked UFC with the former champ ... and he says he'd be down to face off against Henry Cejudo .... after he got called out by Triple C!!

Danielle Bregoli's strained relationship with her mother is arguably what made her famous -- or infamous -- but she's turning over a new leaf by tatting Mom's name on her neck!!!

Bhad Bhabie was strolling through LAX Friday afternoon when a pap caught a glimpse of the new ink -- and she revealed Barbara Ann's name is permanently branded on her neck.

As you can see ... Danielle got the tatt done in black cursive, and it stretches across a good chunk of skin. Sounds like the homage to Mom is pretty fresh too.

Aaron Carter is dedicating some serious real estate on his neck for the king of the jungle -- not that he's trying to save face or anything. He already inked that up.

Anywho, tattoo artist Nadia Katherine tells TMZ ... she recently met Aaron through a friend who happened to be the opening act for Aaron's concert in Nova Scotia, Canada. We're told Nadia and Aaron met backstage and when he found out what she does, he jumped at the chance to get a new piece.

We're told Aaron came in Monday for a nearly 4-hour sesh to the get the roaring lion on the right side of his neck.

The tattoo artist responsible for inking up almost the entire side of Aaron Carter's face claims he tried to talk him out of it, but the singer insisted ... and he actually wanted more.

Herchell Carrasco -- known as RockRollG -- tells TMZ ... he booked a tat session with Carter at his home Friday for $3k, but nothing really went according to plan. Herchell says he thought he was going to be adding more art to Aaron's torso -- there was no talk of a face tattoo -- but once Carter got the idea for Medusa ... everything snowballed.

Carrasco tells us Aaron knew he had experience doing face tattoos -- including some on Tekashi 6ix9ine's forehead shortly before he was arrested -- so Aaron got revved up for him to tat up his mug too ... RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE.

Herchell says he and Aaron settled for the side of the face, and he even tried to talk him out of that ... but he says Carter knew what he wanted and ultimately, it's up to the client what they want to do.

Carrasco adds, "Before I tattoo anyone, I take into consideration their mental state ... in Aaron’s case, I assessed the situation and I genuinely felt he was in a good place mentally to get tattooed."

We're told they initially used Rihanna's 2013 Medusa-inspired cover photo for GQ magazine as a guide for a stencil drawing, but then Aaron wanted the pic as his actual tattoo ... so Carrasco reluctantly obliged.

He tells us he did the large tattoo but Aaron wasn't satisfied -- he also wanted "Love" inked under his eye ... because he told Carrasco that's his brand right now.

A shirtless Philadelphia fan showed off the most incredible belly button tat ever during the Eagles-Packers game Thursday night ... and WE CAN NOT STOP STARING!!!

The ink is glorious ... it's a drawing of the Phillies' famous mascot, Phillie Phanatic, and because it fits so perfectly on the guy's stomach -- it's entrancing.

The face of the Phanatic lines up with the man's belly button ... which means where the mascot's nose goes, there's nothing but a black hole.

It's seriously hilarious.