Teeth have fascinated collectors for centuries, from Victorian mourning jewelry to modern oddities displays. As someone who spends way too much money at Oddities & Curiosities conventions, I couldn’t help but laugh when people reacted to Kesha’s collection of teeth like it was the strangest hobby imaginable. For Kesha it’s a way to connect with fans, and she can create jewelry with teeth with meaning in it.
The singer recently opened up about her unusual hobby of collecting teeth during an appearance on Las Culturistas, explaining that it all started because of her fans. Someone offered her their kids’s baby teeth, and she immediately asked if she could have them. Before long, more fans were sending their lost teeth her way, eventually growing her collection to more than 1,000. And for a few fans donating teeth that meant moshing a bit too hard and throwing their teeth on stage.
Rather than letting them sit in a box, Kesha turned many of the teeth into wearable art. She created necklaces, earrings, a belt, and even a crown. Eventually, though, she simply started displaying them in little jars throughout her home. She joked that one reason she enjoys collecting them is because it tends to freak out straight men, but there’s clearly more to it than just the shock factor.
Finding Beauty in the Unusual
What I love most about Kesha’s explanation is that she doesn’t see these teeth as something gross or disposable. She questioned why people would throw them away or flush them down the toilet when they could become something meaningful instead. Honestly, that’s a philosophy you’ll hear from a lot of people in the oddities community. Whether it’s preserved butterflies, animal skulls, antique curiosities, or naturally shed bones, many collectors appreciate giving overlooked objects a second life.
For Kesha, the collection of teeth is also deeply personal. She has said the teeth remind her of the people she loves, and she even keeps her cats’ tiny extracted teeth as mementos. It’s less about collecting something macabre and more about preserving memories in a way that’s uniquely her own.
People are always quick to label unusual collections as weird, but everyone collects something. Some people fill shelves with Funko Pops, others hunt for rare vinyl records, and some of us come home from an oddities convention with a beautiful animal skull or vintage specimen. Kesha’s collection of teeth might seem unusual to the average person, but for anyone who enjoys oddities, antique curiosities, or natural history collections, teeth are simply another fascinating piece of the collecting world. Sometimes the things people call “weird” are just misunderstood.
