Rapper Ernia spotted wearing a Rolex

Italian rapper Ernia surfaced wearing a Rolex Daytona reference 116520 during the elaborate rollout of his latest album 'Io non ho paura,' a campaign that unfolded across continents and included a backstage documentary produced in collaboration with Esse Magazine. The watch is visible throughout promotional material, a quietly confident choice that fits the understated tone of the project.

The Rolex Daytona ref. 116520 represents a watershed moment in the model's history. Introduced at Baselworld 2000, it was the first Daytona to house Rolex's own calibre 4130 — a column-wheel, vertical-clutch chronograph movement with a 72-hour power reserve built entirely in-house. That movement replaced the Zenith El Primero ébauche that had powered the preceding 16520, and it remains in service in updated form today. The 40mm oyster case in 904L stainless steel, screw-down pushers, and bi-directional bezel lock continued the Daytona's racing tool-watch lineage. The white dial variant features subsidiary dials in black, a combination known among collectors as the 'panda' configuration.

The 116520 ran in production from 2000 to 2016, when Rolex replaced it with the ceramic-bezel 116500LN. That transition immediately elevated the 116520 to discontinuation premium status. Steel-cased Daytonas have historically been the hardest references to obtain at retail, and the 116520 inherited that scarcity narrative fully. The white-dial version in particular draws consistent collector demand, regarded as the cleaner, more legible expression compared to the black-dial sibling.

Ernia — born Davide Mattei, one of the most respected lyricists in Italian hip-hop — has built a reputation for meticulous craft, a quality the Daytona reflects back in kind. The 116520 is not a watch that announces itself loudly; its appeal is technical and historical rather than decorative, which aligns with an artist known for precision over spectacle.

On the grey market, the steel Rolex Daytona 116520 in white dial commands a substantial premium over its original retail price of roughly $11,550. Current secondary market values for clean examples with original papers sit firmly above $20,000, with especially well-preserved or full-set examples pushing higher. It is, by any measure, one of the most recognisable and tradeable references in modern watchmaking.