Please translate before she gets tattoed...

[Itgetsthehoseagain]

Posting on AIBU because I know the traffic is good and I'm not sure where else to post
DD's intentions are to get the attached characters tattooed. I don't have a problem at all with the tattoo - she just wants to be absolutely sure that her choice isn't going to cause problems.
We have no idea what the characters mean, but we do know that they are from the Gorillaz (band) "Dare" artwork. I think that they might be Japanese, but they are horizontal rather than vertical so I'm wondering if it's the artist's interpretation of Japanese characters. I can't find much online at all.
Could anybody translate, please? in advance for thanks!

[quote me4real]@MyHairNeedsASnip Do you know what it means now and is the meaning ok?[/quote]
I've no idea 🤷🏻‍♀️ I don't notice it any more because it's hidden by my sagging boobs 😌 it could mean something awful. It was very much 'of its time' with no meaning other than everyone was having them and they were cheap. I've since learned my lesson and everything else I have was properly considered.

If it artwork of a band she loves, then why does it matter what it says? It will say "Gorrilaz" to any fellow Gorillaz fan.

Years ago a friend wanted a tattoo of a Chinese phrase and she was planning to bring a dictionary to the tattoo studio. Since the studio was very close to a lot of Chinese businesses, including cultural institutes, I suggested we see if we could find someone who could draw it out a bit more artistically. We found a woman who did calligraphy and for £5 she drew out the phrase. This was then copied precisely by the tattoo artist.

Appreciate your daughter is probably not going for a traditional calligraphy-style tattoo here, but I’d really recommend finding someone who has the skill and understanding of Japanese writing in order to render it properly. As others have said, the proportions are off here quite apart from anything else!

A small sprig of Lily of the Valley on my right leg, just above my ankle. In memory of my best friend who died in May

I’m covered in tattoos and love them. They can also be easily hidden so no biggie. They all remind me of certain times in my life so mean a lot. I have the name of my deceased grandparent tattooed on me in kryptonian

@Unfashionable

I always assume that tattoos of Asian characters which the wearers claim mean some inspiring idea actually translate as ‘I am a gullible twat’ or ‘use by 13th March’.

I have a tattoo of a Chinese character on my hip which I got for £5 when I was 18.

More than ten years later, I was having an EMCS, and the surgeon asked me what it meant. I told him it meant "I was an idiot when I was 18 and I should've listened to my mother"!

Some really nasty replies on here.

If it's album artwork then of course it's not cultural appropriation or stupid or terrible.

I think it will look really nice.

Common choice for fans of Gorillaz, it's super cool op. Even if she does regret it later so what?

This always reminds me of a story my brother told me about uni in the 90’s. Some tube was showing off his Chinese tattoo saying ‘this jeans honour, truth, bravery and family!’ The Chinese guy nearby said ‘It’ Cantonese and actually says ‘a fool and his money are easily parted!’ As he stormed off in a huff my brother asked ‘does it really mean that that?’ The Chines student said ‘no idea, I was born and brought up in Glasgow I don’t speak or read Cantonese but that was worth it!’

That made me laugh, we must be from the same era... a walk in tattoo for a fiver 🤣 I used to tell people mine said "I am fucking brilliant" when I was youthful and skinny enough to have it on show in a crop top.

Oops I tried to reply to Greebol but my button didn't work...

My OH lived in Japan and says it reads “wanna see my tits?”

I think it is his way of saying don’t be so stupid.

What young person today is enough into Gorillaz to get a tattoo from their album artwork? Or even knows much about album artwork? And every younger person I know is hyper-focussed on things like cultural appropriation and would hesitate even to use a traditional design from another country, let alone using actual characters they can't read. Am assuming this is actually for you (or another older person), in which case i think it's a doubly bad idea.

If you love Gorillaz, get a picture of one of them or something else, not a random set of very badly written kanji.

My dd is 12 and loves Gorillaz. The 90s/ 00s are the in thing. I was into all things Mod as a teen in the 90s. It doesn't really matter. Part of being young is doing daft stuff like getting a tattoo. Lighten up people

I like it OP both the meaning and the reason behind it. All you need is a competent calligrapher. Hope it brings your DD joy.

@ACPC even using the word daft shows how out of touch you are.

I agree about the issues with calligraphy. Imagine someone getting a tattoo written in English but instead of neat fancy writing, it's written in bad wonky writing.

I lived in Japan for a while and so learnt some Kanji but was never that great and haven't practised in ages and even I can see mistakes when people have shown me their tattoos. Also, I see there's a Chinese and Japanese speaker who's confirmed it's the same meaning in both languages but it's good if you're getting kanji characters to check the meaning in both as they can occasionally have different meanings.

[quote Ohshittt]@picklemewalnuts I thought that was you translating it 😂🤦‍♀️[/quote]
Me too ha

@ACPC ok….maybe some anger management…..

Funny story, we got a colleagues translated... I can't remember what he thought it said but apparently it translated to "hands".

I'm not angry @Forstarters, just enjoying calling you out for being DAFT

@omgthepain

Whatever it is it's bloody awful

You think the Japanese written language is bloody awful?  On what grounds apart from your own ignorance and xenophobia @omgthepain ?

Meh. I have two that are meant to mean friendship and love, done when I was 17. I don't regret them, they're just there
I also have a Harry Potter quote, Buffy quote and Maya Angelou tattooed on me plus a big back piece with a line from a slam poem. I still love them all and it's not apparent I have any tattoos when I'm dressed

@NotMyCat

Meh. I have two that are meant to mean friendship and love, done when I was 17. I don't regret them, they're just there I also have a Harry Potter quote, Buffy quote and Maya Angelou tattooed on me plus a big back piece with a line from a slam poem. I still love them all and it's not apparent I have any tattoos when I'm dressed

Not you, but I can see some anti-JK Rowling people now highly regretting a Harry Potter tattoo.

I guess if Damon Albarn etc. in the future has an opinion the OP’s daughter find offensive (such as racist / transphobic etc.) she might be embarrassed.