Gunna shows off his crazy jewelry collection

Fashion influencer and rapper, Gunna, gave GQ an exclusive look into his impressive jewelry collection for their YouTube series, On the Rocks.

Hailing from Atlanta, Gunna rose to fame in the rap scene, known for his "drip" ethos, titling his 2018 debut album Drip Season, followed by his second album Drip or Drown in 2019, and a series of high-profile collabs and singles, such as Drip Harder. In the same vein, he begins with an educational breakdown of the word "drip," which he describes as "what you wear, how you wear your clothes or something you do/how you do it, like you can 'drip on the beat'." After the educational moment, Gunna continued to boast about his own jewelry drip, starting with his first chain, his namesake, which cost a quarter of a million dollars. He then went on to show the many faces of his watches, including a Rolex given to him by rapper Young Thug as a birthday gift.

The interview continued with another word breakdown, but this time for the term "slime" which was used in his description of his custom-made snake jewelry. Gunna flashed another custom-made set of three stacked Cuban link bracelets, each having a word that spells out "drip or drown".

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Gunna's jewelry style: what characterizes it

What stands out in this collection is a taste for narrative pieces. A first chain bearing his name, custom-made snake-shaped jewelry, three Cuban link bracelets that together form a phrase: every object carries an intention, not just volume.

Technically, this shifts the focus. On a figurative or lettered piece of jewelry, the question is no longer the link but how the stones fit an irregular shape. A snake, a letter, a sculpted outline require settings of varying sizes, therefore a much finer setting work than a flat surface.

The watch follows the same logic. On a wrist, the dial and the bracelet offer two very different surfaces, and the way the stones are held there determines both the brilliance and the solidity of the whole.

How to get this look

The style of narrative pieces relies on a rule inverse to that of classic chains: here, the legibility of the pattern takes precedence over volume. A figurative pendant that is too small becomes illegible from a meter away, a pendant that is too large becomes a mass without detail.

For composed sets, like three bracelets that form a phrase, the consistency of the setting matters more than the consistency of size. Three pieces set in the same way read like a family, even if their widths differ slightly.

• A figurative pattern reads well from 3.5 cm in height; below that, the details are lost.
• On a set of several bracelets, keep the same type of setting from one piece to the other.
• A highly set piece should be worn with sober clothing: the pattern must remain the only busy element.
• On a watch, ensure the setting of the bezel does not prevent reading the time.
• For daily wear, prefer a protected setting rather than a raised setting that snags on fabrics.

Prong, bezel, pavé, invisible: how the setting changes the brilliance

The setting is the way the metal holds the stone. It determines three things: the amount of light that reaches the stone, the strength of the hold, and the ease of maintenance. No technique is superior to the others in absolute terms; each serves a purpose.

The prong setting holds the stone with a few tips of metal. It is the technique that leaves the most surface area free, therefore the one that gives the most fire to an isolated stone. In return, the prongs protrude, snag on clothing threads, and can deform over time.

The bezel setting surrounds the stone with a continuous band of metal. The stone is protected all around, making it the most robust choice for jewelry worn every day. Light then enters only from the top, so the sparkle is softer and more contained.

Pavé multiplies small stones set side by side, each held by tiny grains of metal. The sought-after effect is an entirely brilliant surface, without any visible interruption. It is the typical technique of hip-hop pieces, precisely because it transforms a volume into a sheet of light.

The invisible setting, finally, lodges calibrated stones in rails, with no visible metal on the surface. The result is a very pure geometric surface, but the technique requires stones cut with extreme precision and remains more delicate to repair.

In practice, a complex piece often combines several techniques: a pavé on large surfaces, a bezel setting on exposed areas, and possibly a few prongs for the central stone. It is this mix that makes the difference between jewelry that shines and jewelry that lasts over time.

Emir ICE pieces in this spirit

Four pieces that illustrate the major families of setting, from the entirely pavé surface to the ring with a more protective hold.

YELLOW GOLD TENNIS PAVÉ CHAIN - 10MM YELLOW GOLD DIAMOND BAND RING WHITE GOLD DIAMOND SIGNET RING YELLOW GOLD DIAMOND SQUARE EARRING

Three mistakes to avoid

• Judging set jewelry in a studio photo. Grazing light makes any surface shine; look instead at the regularity of the housings.
• Wearing prong settings daily. The tips snag on threads and eventually lift, with the risk of losing a stone.
• Cleaning pavé with a hard brush. The holding grains are tiny: a brush that is too firm wears them down and unseats the stones.

To go further

Our comprehensive guide to American rapper jewelry reviews all the families — chains, pendants, grillz, watches, glasses — and remains the reference to read before getting started.

To delve deeper into the technique, the article pros and cons of invisible setting details the most delicate case. See also how to recognize a real natural diamond, our method for choosing the perfect diamond necklace, and how to choose the perfect watch if the wrist interests you as much as the neck.

On the catalog side, discover our diamond rings and our selection of diamond watches.

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