San Francisco-based nail artist Sonia “G” Molina honored Eryka Badu, the inspiration behind many of her creative works, in her winning nail portrait. Take a look at Badu and the other famous faces commemorated by this year’s contest participants.

Meet the Winner: For the second year in a row, nail artist Sonia “G” Molina claimed the top spot in our competition with her remarkable portraiture. “I see the contest as the perfect opportunity to pay tribute to people who have inspired me tremendously in life,” says Molina, who submitted three entries this year. “I chose Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, and Nina Simone. Whether I’m sitting in the studio doing nails or painting a wall hanging three stories up on a scaffold, I always need to have the right jams and these three women are a few of my top go-tos. Badu’s socially conscious music feeds my artist’s soul and puts me in that right-brain groove like no other.”

An independent nail tech working in the San Francisco Bay area, Molina has a growing client base in San Francisco’s financial district and also works at various public and private events, as well as doing editorial work. “I do portraiture in many different mediums — from nails to canvas to murals,” she notes.

Earlier this year, she worked on Kipling USA’s spring/summer campaign featuring Gina Rodriguez, star of “Jane the Virgin.” “This fall I’ll be working under renowned artist, activist, and educator Juana Alicia Araiza, founder and director of True Colors Mural Project at Berkeley City College. We will be working with the class to create a mural for San Francisco State’s Project Rebound, which helps formerly incarcerated individuals to transition from prison back into society,” she says.

Check out @gsnailsncreations on Instagram to see more of Molina’s work.