If you’re like me, you might be a little sick of the name Kardashian.  Imagine, then, being engaged and having that name permanently inked onto your body on a discreet area that nevertheless can be seen by your new boo.  That is the thought that is crossing my mind as I sit in a lounge area in the Laser & Surgery Center of New York, where The Real talk show co-host Adrienne Bailon is catching up with her PR team and some of the medical staff, showing them the sparkly engagement ring on her finger.


Adrienne is there to have a second treatment to remove the tattoo of her ex.   Fortunately the tattoo has not been an issue for her fiancé who “never really complained about it,” she says.  Many of her friends wondered why it had taken her so long, but the engagement put her on a mission to finally get it completely removed.

Back in 2009, Adrienne ended a two year relationship with Rob Kardashian, the son of Robert Kardashian and Kris Jenner and brother of Kim and all those others sisters whose names begin with K.  Then in 2013 she went public with her decision to remove the tattoo.  “It’s not a small tattoo.  It’s an area this big,” she makes a big square with her hands. “It’s a full 10 letter last name. It is not small.” 

“But why?” I’m nearly laughing, because I’m probably the only person in the United States that didn’t know Adrienne had Robert A Kardashian tattooed on her butt.  The full name?  “You couldn’t just put Rob?”  I ask.   “I know,” she says giving me a look that suggests that she's heard that question more than once.

  She was about 25 years old at the time, she explains,  “and the crazy thing is when you’re that young, and, I think, my first love… I had never been in love before. I felt like he was getting it done and his [tattoo] was way bigger on his chest.  So I was like, the least I could do was put a smaller version on my backside.  I am grateful for where I chose it to be.   It’s very discreet.  Even in a bathing suit you can’t see it. “

Adrienne has no idea whether Rob still has her name tattooed on his chest, but she is now engaged to Lenny Santiago, Roc Nation’s Senior Vice President of Artist Management, who popped the question at dinner by presenting her with a box of carrots.  (The actual carats look much better!)   

"I feel like now that I’m engaged, I especially don’t want to be married with someone else’s name still on my body. I don’t want to have children and have them say 'Mom why does it say this say this on your butt?' So it’s perfect timing.

"The great thing is I think that we’re both super mature about it," she continues.  "He is older than me.  We came into the relationship knowing obviously we both had had previous lives before knowing each other. He had children and I had a tattoo.  I think we could figure it out.  It’s just a tattoo when you look at it that way.”

Still, in the back of her mind, she had an inkling (pun intended) that getting a tattoo wasn't something to take lightly.  “You want to hear the oddest thing ever?" she starts, as a thought suddenly occurs to her,  "I called my mother before getting it [the tattoo] done and I was like ‘Mom, don’t worry, you can get things laser removed now.  I already had a plan B.  Just in case this doesn’t work out,  you can get this removed.  But I never knew, crazy enough, that not all lasers are created equal and that some people have gone through an excruciating [procedure] like 20 times worse than the actual tattoo.

“You’ve got to get it done right," she says, "and I think I’ve waited this long because I wanted it done right. I didn’t want to go from having someone’s name on my body to having a third degree burn version of someone’s name on my body.  I’ve had friends who’ve had laser tattoo removal and it actually looks like they were branded with whatever was on their body. Funny enough, my fiancé’s sister had her ex-boyfriend’s name tattooed on her thigh.  It now looks like someone just burned the name [onto her skin].  It actually looks like a burn because it was not done correctly."

Adrienne had already tried unsuccessfully to have the tattoo removed. "I had actually done two prior treatments with another machine and saw no difference.   It literally looked like nothing different had happened.  I had gone through two treatments and at that point I think I felt a little defeated.  It was extremely painful.  I felt my flesh burning. Super painful.  It felt like rubber bands were being snapped on my skin repeatedly.  So I saw no results and I didn’t want to go back. I think for me what would also be like further embarrassment is that it’s a celebrity name, a household name at this point.  It’s just like, ‘Wait, you have what on your butt?”

Because of her previous experience, Adrienne was hesitant about trying a different laser called PicoSure.  “All that pain and no results! I was like, ‘this is so dumb.  As long as no one sees my butt we’re going to be OK,’ and then I did [PicoSure] and it was such a huge change from just one session that was 60 seconds.  No pain. Sign me up. I want to go back for the second time.”

PicoSure is safe to use on skin of color, including black skin which can easily be damaged by laser treatments, causing hyperpigmentation and other problems. It's also used to treat benign pigmented lesions, acne scars, wrinkles and stretch marks.  "That’s also a big thing as well, when I was looking for a laser.  I have olive skin color and didn’t want to have bad laser tattoo removal results in which I might be better off with the name," she adds, "but in this case it’s been amazing—only one treatment and I can’t even make out what it says."

It will probably take two more laser treatments (more like touch-ups) to clear the area, and in case you’re wondering, Adrienne says she is “never getting another tattoo.”

See the before and after photos >>