The hashtag #grillzz has more than 3 billion views on Tik Tok! And “grillzz” with two Zs are dental jewelry. The name comes from the American slang “grills”, which could be translated as “chicos”! Gold, silver, or rhinestones: chic jewelry has passed through several mouths in just a few decades: from New York ghettos to hip hop stars like Jay-Z or Joey Starr in France (in the video for “Seine Saint-Denis Style”). Facing the camera, chicos in gold, in 1998 Joey Starr imported the grilzz to France, which today has a few specialized shops, and a star: the French Dolly Cohen who “dressed the teeth” of Beyoncé, Rihanna, and Rosalia! The three creative graces that projected AND the style AND the R’N’B into the future.
Dolly Cohen’s dental jewelry has continued for a year to make the grilzz shine, projecting them outside the codes of hip-hop. Then R’N’B. Moreover, in recent years, more and more female pop stars: Madonna, Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey have worn their chicos jewelry. Without forgetting the chief influencers like Kim Kardashian, Kendall Jenner.
The symbolism therefore evolves: first, the poor people of the ghettos who wore gold teeth because it cost less to install the prosthesis than to repair the tooth, and further still, gold teeth refer to freed slaves or who had got better treatments. Having arrived in the codes of hip-hop culture, grillz have become a sign of belonging, emancipation, and success. Until today they are “accessories” like the others. Or almost.
Above all, it is developing in new generations, who compare dental jewelry to tattoos, and make it a facial signature. Dental personalization at a time when these young people spend hours filming themselves on camera to feed social networks! Only according to the dental surgeons of the famous French Union for Oral Health, cited by Vanity Fairdental jewelry would not really be recommended: cavities, gum disease, and enamel wear are not good!
The simplest thing is to keep your rings after high school, rather than taking them off to put back some rhinestones!
