No. Let $a,b,c,d$ be complex numbers of modulus $1$, chosen so that $a\neq c$, $b\neq d$, and $ab^*\neq cd^*$. Form the column vectors $v=(1,a,b)^T$ and $w=(1,c,d)^T$. Then the matrix
$$
vv^* +ww^*=\begin{pmatrix} 2 & a^*+c^* & b^*+d^* \\ a+c & 2 & ab^*+cd^* \\ b+d & a^*b+c^*d & 2 \end{pmatrix}
$$
has rank two, but all the off-diagonal entries have modulus strictly less than $2$.