If Shaq Wants to Sparkle, Let Him Sparkle!
I give about $1,000 because I know my feet stink, I know they’re ugly. – Shaq
Shaquille O’Neal just revealed his self-care routine, which includes getting his nails done and spending a significant amount on pedicures.
Join our Telegram channel for instant updates! 👊
Shaq’s little glittery pedicures are just one example of athletes embracing their feminine side. This is part of a larger trend of male athletes boldly expressing themselves in nontraditional ways.
In an episode of his podcast, The Big Podcast with Shaq, the retired NBA star revealed that he spends around $1,000 on pedicures and enjoys getting creative designs and sparkles on his toenails.
“I give about $1,000 because I know my feet stink, I know they’re ugly, and I like to paint them,” Shaq explained to listeners. “I paint that sh*t because it’s ugly and I want it to look pretty,” he revealed on an episode of his podcast.
View this post on Instagram
He went on to explain how this all started with his mom, Lucille O’Neal. “True story—one time I had a toenail that was torn off, and I wasn’t going to play in the game,” he said, insinuating that his mom was surprised he’d let that keep him from competing.
“I was like, I tore my toenail off, so she did something, and then she put, like, some red polish on the thing, and I had 40 that game. So I was like, you know what, I’m just going to start painting my toenails.”
MY SISTER DID SHAQ’S PEDICURE LMAOOO pic.twitter.com/ovXHAIrTfH
— yilong ma (@typenathan) October 3, 2018
$1k is an insane amount of money to get your toes done. However, I completely get it. Handling feet, unless you have a foot fetish, seems like a terrible task. I usually over-tip, too. Besides, Shaq’s net worth is $500 million. That’s pocket change for him.
Yes to More Men With Painted Nails!
It’s just lovely to witness a veteran athlete like Shaq openly discuss his personal self-care choices that defy traditional gender norms. We’re seeing more of this trend, with male athletes experimenting with self-care and fashion, embracing nontraditional forms of self-expression like painting their nails.
Last year, another NBA player, Jalen Green of the Houston Rockets, was brought on to Machine Gun Kelly’s nail polish brand, Un/Dn Laqr, after being seen at several NBA games sporting black nails.
Jalen Green has acquired an equity stake in Machine Gun Kelly’s nail polish brand @UNDNLAQR 💅
While the stake is undisclosed, Green becomes the brand’s first-ever ambassador and will launch his own collection this year.
(via @wwd) pic.twitter.com/fyay9kpg2D
— Sports Business Journal (@SBJ) February 16, 2023
It’s not just the NBA, either. In March, the NFL’s top draft pick, Caleb Williams, was the source of controversy in celebrity news when he was captured in a video supporting his fellow USC athletes at the NCAA Tournament wearing pink nail polish and lip gloss.
View this post on Instagram
Ultimately, it is refreshing to see male athletes straying from the arbitrary lines society has drawn around how men are supposed to look and behave.
And to all the haters: I hate to break it to you, but the ladies love this. There is something incredibly attractive about a man who can be strong and masculine, while also being open to embracing and exploring his feminine side. Just as men go wild over a woman who knows her way around a car or carries a tool belt, there is an undeniable beauty in someone who can seamlessly balance femininity and masculinity within themselves.
Comments (0)