50 Cent’s tattoos have changed over the years. The large Southside and 50 design across his back is the piece most people recognize first. Older photos show more ink across his arms, including names and religious images.

He later removed many of those arm tattoos for acting work. In 2010, he said covering the ink for film roles took extra time in makeup, and that he planned to keep the large back tattoo.

The giant Southside and 50 back tattoo

The large back piece is the best-known tattoo in his collection. “Southside” crosses his upper back, above a large 50 that takes up much of the space below it.

The word Southside refers to South Jamaica, Queens, where Curtis Jackson grew up. The tattoo ties that place to his stage name.

Heavy black-and-gray shading, broad lettering and large figures fill the back. In early music videos and photos, it was the easiest part of his tattoo collection to recognize.

God Understands Me on his left lower arm

On his left lower arm, the words God Understands Me appear in older photos. The phrase is clear and direct.

It reads as a statement of faith, though the words alone don’t tell us what personal meaning he gives it. Anything more specific would be a guess.

The tattoo was easy to see when he wore sleeveless tops. Older photos show his arms covered with many designs; this is one of the clearer pieces in those images.

The angel tattoo on his left shoulder

An angel tattoo on his left shoulder is another part of the collection. It has the black-and-gray look seen in many of his earlier tattoos.

Set high on the shoulder, the design can disappear under a T-shirt and show when he wears sleeveless clothing. It’s smaller than the back piece, but it adds another figure to the mix.

There’s more religious imagery elsewhere on his body. The Love and Hate tattoo below his stomach, for example, sits between heads of Jesus and the Devil.

Sabrina and the ghetto angel on his right arm

A design on 50 Cent’s right arm includes the name Sabrina, his mother’s name, beside a larger figure described as a ghetto angel.

The lettering and figure share the same section of his arm. The name is part of the larger image, rather than a separate tattoo on its own.

His mother died when he was young, and the Sabrina lettering has been described as a tribute to her.

Love and Hate below his stomach

Below his belly button, the words Love and Hate sit between the heads of Jesus and the Devil. The figures frame the two words and give the design its strong visual contrast.

The tattoo sits low on his abdomen, so it’s usually covered by clothing. It shows most clearly in shirtless photos.

Marquise and Warrior on his right arm

The name Marquise refers to 50 Cent’s son, and the word Warrior appears alongside it on his right arm.

The piece pairs a family name with another word, both worked into a larger arm design. Older photos show this section among the many tattoos that once covered his arm.

The ink ran from his shoulder toward his forearm, so the Marquise and Warrior lettering wasn’t an isolated name tattoo. It sat within a much denser arrangement.

The second 50 tattoo on his left bicep

50 Cent has another 50 tattoo on his left bicep. This one has a detailed frame around the number, unlike the much larger design on his back.

Both tattoos use the number from his stage name. The back piece covers a large area; the bicep design repeats the number on a smaller scale.

Photos taken years apart show different amounts of ink on his arms. Some tattoos visible in earlier pictures were later removed for film roles, so images from different periods don’t show the same collection.

Why did 50 Cent remove some of his arm tattoos?

In 2010, 50 Cent said he had removed some tattoos because film makeup took too long. Makeup artists had to cover the ink before each shoot, which could mean hours of preparation. He described removal as an ongoing process.

At the time, he expected his arms to be tattoo-free and said he planned to keep the large back tattoo. That helps explain why later photos show less ink on his arms while the back piece remained part of his look.

The change took place over time. Older photos show heavy arm coverage; later ones show the collection after some of that ink had been removed.

Here’s a video about the story behind 50 Cent’s famous back tattoo and its artist, Mister Cartoon: