Famous Diamonds to be Sold at Auction for Charity

All of us love to hear of celebrities’ efforts to support multiple charities. We also love diamonds, so an upcoming auction may be your chance to own a sparkly bauble touched by the rich and famous. “Hip-Hop Crown Jewels” is the name of the auction to take place in New York, and has already been moved back to take place in March of 2009 versus October of 2008 due to widespread interest. Many notable pieces with interesting stories to tell will help support charity and fill some music historians’ hearts with joy. Hip-hop artists are known for notoriously big jewelry to show off their “bling”, and with good reason.

The obsession with diamonds and gold began when rappers refused to be taken advantage of by recording companies, much like they believed past generations of black musicians were. The acquisition of these jewels represented a conquered dream and rise in society for most artists in the past decade. A notable hip-hop jewel story holds that rapper Ghostface Killah demanded his recording company give him the funds they were reserving for marketing expenses, then purchased a 14 carat diamond and gold eagle pendant, which he wore on his wrist on a matching bracelet. Media and fan reports thus ensued, and it is generally agreed that his ploy worked to give him a place in music history, in addition to conversation and comment worldwide. Here we’ll discuss some of the pieces slated to hit the auction block next year.

Missy Elliott is fronting her gold and diamond turntable ring, and yes, you guessed it – it looks just like a rapper’s turntable. All pieces are completely removable, and sit on a diamond cluster cocktail ring. This piece is estimated to bring $8,000 to $12,000. She also plans to donate a black diamond Jesus pendant that was given to her by Kanye West, as both artists often refer to the religious icon in their lyrics.

MC Lyte, as another member of the first generation of female rappers, is gifting a gold ring fashioned in a mushroom shape, and topped with an image of Nefertiti. The matching necklace is also slated to go to sale. Lyte states that the very first female rappers considered their “bling” to be a reincarnation of African queens and their jewelry style.

The late Tupac Shakur‘s ring of diamond and rubies shaped like a crown will be included in the historical sale also. This is the infamous ring he supposedly wore when he was killed in a Las Vegas drive-by shooting in1996. Only 25 years old at the time of his death, Tupac commissioned this ring a few months prior to symbolize his unprecedented success at that time. A possibly conservative selling price of $10,000 to $20,000 will take this ring with 10 carats of rubies and pav́e diamond detail home. The inscription “Pac & Dada 1996″ was added to commemorate his love affair with Kidada, Quincy Jones’s daughter.

Jay-Z wore a diamond pendant in the shape of a star on the cover of L’uomo Vogue, and plans to add it to the auction block.

Biz Markie gave his black and white diamond pendants, shaped like a cassette and pair of headphones, as a token from the earliest diamond-clad hip-hop generations.

Sean Diddy Combs ponied up his platinum bracelet set with princess and round cut diamonds.

Pharrell Williams offered up a white gold link necklace, valued at $250,000, and adorned with an entire rainbow of colored diamonds.

Notorious B.I.G. owned a luxurious diamond bezel watch that he purchased when he first “made it” in the industry. The late artist’s piece will be donated to the charity auction.

Lil’ Jon is donating a 13 pound pendant blanketed in 3,756 diamonds that screams “Crunk Ain’t Dead”. This pendant went down in history as the Guinness World Record holder for the world’s largest diamond pendant.

50 Cent is slated to put his diamond link bracelet under the hammer, and Slick Rick is donating his infamous eye patch that is encrusted with multiple colors of diamonds. Other artists expected to donate their “bling” to the cause include Alicia Keys, Birdman, Busta Rhymes, Cam’ron, Damon Dash, Eminem, Freekey Zekey, Gnarls Barkley, Ja Rule, Jerome James, Mary J. Blige, Nas, Remy Ma, Rihanna, Swizz Beatz, VERBAL, and Yaki Kadafi.

Many auction experts and jewelry appraisers believe the sale will create a new collection category genre. The auction is expected to highlight the story of how “bling” displaced name brand sneakers and sideways baseball caps as the signature calls of hip-hop artists and rappers alike. Funds will be distributed to charities originated and funded by hip-hop artists, in addition to creating expansion opportunities for the hip-hop archives of hip-hop historical memorabilia. The unprecedented sale of 70 items is expected to bring over $3 million in proceeds.

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