Watch Paparazzi

Rapper Sfera Ebbasta spotted wearing Audemars Piguet

On the occasion of his 30th birthday, Italian trap pioneer Sfera Ebbasta was spotted wearing a statement timepiece that matches his trajectory — understated in silhouette, formidable in execution. The watch in question is the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar ref. 26579CB, the black ceramic iteration of one of AP's most mechanically ambitious icons.

The 26579CB measures 41mm in black ceramic, a material AP adopted for the Royal Oak family to add scratch resistance and a stealthier aesthetic than the classic stainless steel ref. 5202ST or white gold variants. Powering the watch is the Calibre 5134, a self-winding movement beating at 19,800 vph with a 40-hour power reserve. The perpetual calendar module displays day, date, month, and leap year via an integrated layout on the signature Grande Tapisserie dial — in this reference rendered in a dark, smoked tone that plays seamlessly against the ceramic case. The mechanism correctly tracks calendar irregularities through February 2100 without requiring manual correction.

The Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar has a layered history within the AP manufacture. Gerald Genta's original Royal Oak skeleton of 1972 gave birth to a complication lineage that culminated in perpetual calendar iterations first introduced in the 1980s. The ceramic ref. 26579CB, part of AP's more recent material exploration, carries that legacy while appealing to collectors who prize technical depth paired with contemporary finishing. On the secondary market, the ceramic configuration commands a premium precisely because of its limited production volumes relative to steel or gold references.

Sfera Ebbasta — who has collaborated with Steve Aoki and Rvssian and consistently dominated Italian and European charts — has long positioned luxury watches as central to his public image. Turning 30 while wearing a perpetual calendar, a complication literally engineered to account for the passage of decades and centuries, reads as quietly fitting.

At retail, the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar ref. 26579CB sits above the six-figure threshold in most markets. Grey-market demand for ceramic AP complications has remained robust, with authenticated examples trading at or above retail — a reflection of both AP's tight distribution policy and enduring collector appetite for the Royal Oak family at its most technically serious.