One of the hottest names in television, Maya Jama has been stunning fans with her insane sense of style and enchanting red carpet looks for several years now. Ever since making her Love Island debut in January, fans can't wait to see Maya's wardrobe for her first ever summer series, ahead of series ten launching on Monday night (June 5).
As with most fashionistas, Maya's style has changed as trends have come and gone, but what a lot of fans may not know is that the star once had several piercings on her face and body, and even has a couple of tattoos. Whilst Maya often flashes glimpses of her enviable figure with her show-stealing looks, she tends to keep her tattoos covered up.
Although they are rarely seen by the public eye, Maya has shown off her ink in Instagram snaps and at events in the past. In November 2021, the 28-year-old Bristolian bombshell wowed in a daring red ballgown as she attended the Fashion Awards, with the backless ensemble exposing tattooed initials on her side.
Spelling out the initials "RG" in swirling text, the rarely-seen tattoo has a heartbreaking story behind it. The initials correspond with those of Maya's ex-boyfriend, Rico Gordon, who was shot dead after finding himself in the wrong place at the wrong time in July 2011.
16-year-old Maya was on the phone to Rico, who was from London, as the nightmare unfolded. Rico had called his girlfriend to get directions to her house became caught in the crossfire of a gunfight between two Bristol gangs on Stapleton Road after St Paul's Carnival.
Speaking about her boyfriend's death, Maya once recalled: "That's the worst thing that's ever happened to me. It was unreal - the sort of thing that happens in films.
"The experience gave me so much motivation to push with my career. At the time, work was the only thing that made me happy, so I just kept on going with it. Bad things happen, but you've got to try to make good things out of that tough situation. That's what it taught me."
Elsewhere on her body, Maya has a script tattoo that runs vertically down her hip. When translated from Arabic, the tattoo reads: "Love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching".
As for piercings, Maya opened up about her previously high pain threshold during an interview with Stylist magazine five years ago. She told the publication: "I had my tongue pierced, all up my ears, my nose I've had pierced about 17 times.
"I've had my belly button pierced twice. But that was when I was younger and I loved piercings and tattoos. I haven't done anything that hurts for ages."
Ahead of slow-mo strutting into the Spanish Love Island villa next week, Maya has confessed that she knows there's pressure on her as fans of the show prepare for series ten. It will be the first time Maya has hosted a summer series of the show after it was announced she was taking on Laura Whitmore's old job in late 2022.
Speaking to reporters in Majorca ahead of the show's return, Maya said getting to host the summer series feels "special", especially given the celebrity fans it has including Hollywood stars Margot Robbie, Tobey Maguire and Amy Schumer. "It's special," she said, looking ahead to the new series on ITV2.
"I feel now (after) the first one, I've got it and we've done it, all the nerves are gone a bit and now I'm ready to go."
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