ISSUE 3

Supercharged

‘H700’ Corvette C8 Stingray

“Boasting 708 hp, the ‘H700’ Corvette is arguably the best value high-performance supercar in the world.”

• Comprehensive upgrade package includes the supercharger, intercooler, engine tune, lightweight wheels, cat-back exhaust, and optional graphics

• Output boosted to 708 horsepower / 638 lb-ft of torque

• Fits all 2020-2022 Chevrolet C8 Corvette Coupe models

• Limited 3-year / 36,000-mile limited warranty

A place of unrivaled majesty, this secluded sanctuary is enlivened by Cabo’s culture and spirit of adventure. Only a mile from the heart of Cabo, this singular opportunity invites and inspires you to live your legacy. On land long held by one of Mexico’s most prominent families, dreams come to fruition and legendary tales of a life well-lived begin to unfold. Perched upon dramatic dunes, flanked by miles of pristine beaches, and featuring Jack Nicklaus Signature golf, the last of the best of Cabo awaits.

CLUBHOUSE BEACH CLUB SPA POOLS DINING OUTFITTERS HOMES HOMESITES

CULTURE

This is your place for all the gadgets you absolutely must have. p18

THE POUR

We’re talking mezcal and tequila with noted beverage professional Bad Birdy. p26

NESSA BARRETT 70

Nessa Barrett is the epitome of cool. Her songs have a depth you feel in your soul. She’s brave, fearless even, saying things that free her from her inner turmoil while giving us the same gift. With a new record coming and touring plans around the world, it’s about to be the Era of Nessa. Erica Cornwall had the chance to meet her and get to know the girl behind the music.

TATTOO TRAVEL

World-traveling tattoo artist Mat Rule shares some of his favorite spots. p28

STYLE

BJ Betts talks all things Philly and streetwear with Jimmy Gorecki of Standard Issue Tees. p32

the battle is won on the green

When the putt really matters, call on PXG’s new, 100% milled Battle Ready Putters. We optimized absolutely everything on these new putters: ultra-deep CG location, weighting, balance, face pattern, and MOI. All to ensure stability and consistency on every stroke.

JEWELRY

Greg Yuna shares some of his most impressive pieces. p34

ARTIST

Jason Skeldon is blurring the lines between art and reality. p42

PEOPLE

Bailey Spinn revels in the death of romance. p54

PROFILES

Jason Ellis takes a punch, fires a flamethrower and talks about being motivated by fear. p60

FEATURES

From singing to acting to philanthropy, Lady Gaga does it all. p66

FEATURES

Singer Nessa Barrett is on the precipice of taking over the pop world. p70

SCENE / PROFILES

Horitian Tattoo guarantees the most exceptional Japanese-style tattoos around. p76

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Hey there,

Welcome to Inked’s action-packed third issue of 2023! The dog days of summer are behind us and we’re moving into fall. No, really, it’s true, even if it doesn’t feel like it right now. After three months of complaining about how hot it is we will soon be complaining about how cold it is. Humans are never happy, am I right?

The weather may always be irritating, but I know one thing that should make you very happy—the copy of Inked you’re holding in your hand right now. We really out did ourselves this time around, starting out with our cover story featuring the one and only Mother Monster, Lady Gaga! In the feature article, writer Tami Austin focuses on Gaga’s amazing philanthropic works with the Born This Way Foundation, her exploits both in music and on screen, her notable tattoo collection and more.

The always hilarious Jason Ellis is our second feature (and digital cover). In a sprawling conversation with podcast host Sarah Hyland, Ellis talks about how fear motivates him in nearly everything he does, from skating to comedy to podcasting and beyond. One might say Ellis’ true gift is constantly conquering the dread that bubbles up from within.

If there’s a theme to this issue it has to be multi-hyphenates. We’ve got a beautiful photo spread with tattoo artist/model Sarah Elizabeth, a profile of DJ/singer GG Magree focusing on her recent film documenting witchcraft and music recommendations from former USMNT goalkeeper/television analyst Tim Howard. What I’m trying to say is, if you only have one job, there’s no way you were making it into this issue [laughs maniacally].

As always, thanks for hanging out with us.

Charlie Connell Editor in Chief editor@inkedmag.com

PUBLISHER Darrin Austin

VP OF ECOMMERCE Jami Pearlman

CREATIVE DIRECTOR/HEAD OF CONTENT Ian Sami Hajar

EDITOR IN CHIEF Charlie Connell

ART DIRECTOR Toby Thompson

PHOTO/VIDEO DIRECTOR LUNCHBOX

VIDEO EDITORS Sammy Martel, Sarah Lally

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGERS Julia Cancilla / Nicole Martinez, Mina Eren Ozgu

STAFF WRITER Sophia Tan

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Jonny Watson, Jesse James Madre, Erica Cornwall, Tami Austin

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Jason Goodrich, Nate Vogel, Ryan Pfluger, Randall Slavin

ADVERTISING Kristine Mcguire / Meghan Rotolo

MARKETING DESIGNER Jasmin Chawla

LOCATIONS

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Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY, and additional mailing offices.

Postmaster: Send address changes to Inked Magazine, P.O. Box 3000, Denville, NJ 07834.

LISA MARIE

I fell in love with tattoos because of the process and the individuality I felt having permanent artwork.

TATTOO GIRL WINE STORIES

TATTOO GIRL WINE STORIES

Every tattoo may not have a meaning, but every tattoo has a story… and Tattoo Girl Wine pairs so well with them.

Every tattoo may not have a meaning, but every tattoo has a story… and Tattoo Girl Wine pairs so well with them.

91 Points 92 Points 92 Points 93 Points 91 Points

TRENDING TECH DESIGN: Estelon Loudspeakers

Since 2010, Estelon has been providing the most luxurious loudspeakers to those who truly appreciate acoustic excellence. The brilliance of Estelon’s sound reproduction systems is achieved by combining sophisticated engineering with high-quality components. This level of excellence is a goal attempted by many but achieved by only a select few–a fact that inspired Estelon Founder and Chief Designer Alfred Vassilkov to create the Estelon Extreme Limited Edition. Standing at two meters (6’5”) in height and capable of being adjusted to the exact dimensions of its environment, the Extreme Limited Edition combines sculptural elegance with quality and authenticity of performance that are second to none. This exceptional speaker system is produced in strictly limited numbers. Estelon.com

TRENDING DESIGN: Caviar Cyberphone

The Caviar Cyberphone is an Apple iPhone 11 Pro with a rather dramatic Elon Musk inspired fabrication. The design is clearly derived from the geometry of the new Tesla Cybertruck. An angular, titanium panel makes up the back of the device, while the screen itself is cleverly covered by a titanium panel that folds back to serve as a built-in stand. Camera specs remain the same, as does the various storage capacities, and the option for a larger Max version. caviar-phone.ca

TRENDING AIR TAXI:

The Seraph by Vertical Aerospace

With the ability to carry up to 551 lbs of payload, the 12-rotor Seraph is Britain’s leading electric VTOL air taxi candidate. Built to test new technologies for the company’s passenger model, The Seraph features a specialized passive cooling system and customizable design, meaning the aircraft can be scaled up or down, and fitted with wheels or floats to facilitate water landings. vertical-aerospace.com

TRENDING COLLAB:

Bell & Ross x Bollinger Motors

When two men who are passionate about detail—Bruno Belamich, creative director and co-founder of aviation watchmaker Bell & Ross and Robert Bollinger, CEO of electric vehicle innovator Bollinger Motors—share a vision, the results are extraordinary. The Bollinger B1 electric off-road vehicle is to automotive design what the Bell & Ross BR 03 timepiece is to watchmaking: Objects meticulously designed by engineers for extreme thrillseekers. bollingermotors.com

TRENDING ACCESSORY:

Louis Vuitton Soft Trunk Bag

The soft-style equivalent to Louis Vuitton‘s hard travel trunks, but in messenger bag form. The LV Soft Trunk bares the ethos of the fashion house’s Artistic Director Virgil Abloh, touching on the DNA of Nicolas Ghesquière. The 10 new iterations are downright juicy, some of the standouts: Monogram canvas, Monogram-embroidered seethrough mesh, Taiga leather, premium crocodile skin. louisvuitton.com

TRENDING DESIGN: Montblanc High Artistry Pen

The Montblanc High Artistry collection features Taj Mahalinspired writing instruments. All are products of precise stone cutting and setting, enameling, goldwork, and hand engraving. Each pen looks like a traditional Mughal dagger which is an insignia of power in India. The pen cap top looks like the monumental dome of Taj Mahal. montblanc.com

TRENDING TECH

Yamaha YH-5000SE Headphones

Over six years in the making, these headphones feature reimagined Orthodynamic drivers, ingenious acoustics and uncommon comfort by virtue of being one of the lightest, high-end headphones in the world. They also come with high-end accessories, including a solid aluminum headphone stand. usa.yamaha.com

TRENDING ACCESSORY

Fendi x Tiffany Sterling Silver Baguette Collab

Fendi has collaborated with Tiffany & Co. to create a Baguette bag fashioned entirely of sterling silver. The sparkling bag, crafted in Tiffany’s workshop, took four months to create and weighs over five pounds. It is covered with engraved lilies and roses to pay tribute to the flowers of Italy and New York. The Fendi line also includes a series of Baguette bags in the legendary Tiffany blue. fendi.com I tiffany.com

TRENDING COLLABORATION

Aston Martin x Brough Superior: AMB 001 Pro

What do you get when you combine Aston Martin’s legendary design capabilities with the state-of-the-art motorcycle engineering of Brough Superior? The answer is the AMB 001 Pro, the successor to the sold-out AMB 001. The 997cc track only superbike has been produced in a limited-edition of just 88 motorcycles and was inspired by Aston Martin’s no rules track hypercar, the Valkyrie AMR Pro. The new AMB 001 Pro has 25 percent more power than its predecessor and its 225 HP engine’s power-to-weight ratio of 1.28 hp/kg is similar to that of a Formula One® race car. astonmartin.com I Brough-superior-motorcycles.com

TRENDING CONCEPT

Ares S1 Project by Ares Design Factory

Ares’ goal was to create a vehicle that combines the design of a hypercar, the performance of a supercar and the accessibility of a sportscar. The Ares S1 was engineered to ensure the ultimate in aerodynamic performance and stability. It features hand-crafted carbon fiber body panels, a dramatic low-profile silhouette and a forward-sitting cockpit to create an aggressive, but flowing stance. At its heart is a naturally-aspirated V8 directinjection powerplant and an 8-speed dual clutch transmission capable of delivering a maximum of 715hp. Aresdesign.com

TRENDING DESIGN: Teckell Biliardo Collection

Teckell’s pool tables are a sublime synthesis of art and design, high technology and heightened craftsmanship. These one-of-a-kind objects are made to be conversation pieces in your home, stirring up high concept chatter on thinking way outside the box and pushing futuristic materials to their limits. Each table is created using only computer numerical control (CNC) machines which ensure unrivaled precision. Legs made of clear tempered crystal with double-bevel edges. teckell.store

TRENDING DESIGN: The Bowlus Terra Firma Camper

A 26‘ luxury travel trailer that can accommodate sleeping and dining for four, the Bowlus TerraFirma creates a totally immersive experience. It enables adventurers to seek the simplicity and solitude of going off the grid to enjoy the thrill of exploration. This towable trailer is equipped with filtration systems for both water and air, GPS tracking for an added level of security and peace of mind and an integrated Bluetooth brake controller for highly-responsive, smooth braking of the tow vehicle. This camper is pet-friendly, too, and the master bedroom is positively Zen. Bowlus.com

TRENDING ATTRACTION: The Whale in Andenes, Norway

When Danish studio Dorte Mandrup won an international competition to design a viewpoint for whale watching, they clinched it by inspiring learning of both whales and their environment with their unifying concept. The unveiled visuals resemble a massive rock outcrop within the Arctic Circle, blending in with the coastal landscape of Andenes, one of the world’s best spots to observe whales. With panoramic views from its giant curving roof, The Whale is intended to appear as though a giant has lifted up the earth’s crust. An exhibition space, a cafe and shop will also feature in the new facility. Dortemandrup.dk

SPLITTING TIME BETWEEN LOS ANGELES, NEW YORK AND HIS HOMETOWN OF PARIS, GLOBE-TROTTING TATTOO ARTIST MAT RULE IS NEVER IN ONE PLACE FOR VERY LONG. THE LAST TIME HE WAS TATTOOING AT INKED NYC WE GRABBED HIM FOR A COUPLE OF MINUTES TO DISH ON HIS FAVORITE PLACES TO VISIT.

MILAN, ITALY

When I visit Milan, it’s mostly for the tattoo convention [coming up January 26-28, 2024], and I’ve also got family there. There’s so much food in Milan that I really like. I always go to the same places, all in the area around the major cathedral, the Duomo di Milano. There’s a bunch of fancy shops and restaurants, and even though I’ve been to that spot 20 times, I always end up there. I try to bring friends and family each time I visit. There’s another district, by the river, called Navigli, that’s a really nice area. Italy isn’t that big for nightlife, it’s the kind of place where you go out to dinner, get some ice cream and go outside for a bit to chill.

PARIS, FRANCE

It’s my home, so I’ve got my friends and family. I can’t tell you all the good spots in Paris, there are far too many. There are a few areas that I really like, like Saint-Germain-des-Prés, which is really good for a drink after work. In the 7th arrondissement there are so many art galleries, and underneath the street there’s some food and bars. You can have a drink next to the river with your friends.

SEVASTOPOL, UKRAINE

I haven’t been able to visit for a really long time, since before the war, obviously, but it’s so nice. It’s a bit like Venice, but also really different from Europe in general. I was really impressed by the architecture, especially the Eastern Orthodox churches. The people were a bit cold, but not nearly as much as in Moscow. I loved all the tourist spots.

LONDON, ENGLAND

When it’s not raining, there’s a lot of good stuff to do in London. There’s one place that I go to for a proper tea, Sketch. I love to go to Shoreditch, Brick Lane. The vibe in that area is so cool. I have a few friends who live in London and it’s just a couple hours by train from Paris, so when I go there it’s never for long. I’ll go for a weekend. When you grow up there’s the stereotype that food is bad in London, but in reality it’s amazing. There are so many great spots. I love Indian food, and Brick Lane has tons of amazing restaurants. They all look shady, but they’re fantastic. And the nightlife in London is also very cool.

SHANGHAI, CHINA

I lived in Shanghai for six months. It’s a crazy city [laughs]. This was before I was tattooing, I was working at a nightclub there and it was absolutely nuts. I’ve been all over the world, I’ve visited many countries, but when I got to Shanghai I felt lost. It was the first time ever that I felt like everything was really different. In other cities it’s always the same shops, the same stuff—Nike, adidas, Foot Locker— but there it was completely different. It was really good to feel the culture so strongly.

The City of Brotherly Love will always occupy a special place in Jimmy Gorecki’s heart. So it shouldn’t be surprising that Philly plays an outsized role in the collaborations he’s created at Standard Issue. BJ Betts caught up with Gorecki in order to get some insight into how he has settled into his post-skating career.

BY BJ BETTS

BJ Betts: I guess we should just start from the beginning. Let’s talk about how you grew up.

Jimmy Gorecki: I grew up in Norristown, Pennsylvania, about 20 minutes outside of Philadelphia. I was born in ’82 and lived in Norristown until 2000, when I graduated high school, moved into the city, and started school at Temple University. From about 14 or 15 years old, I would sneak downtown whenever I could. I was enamored with Center City and skateboarding at Love Park. Temple was the only school I even applied to, that’s where I knew I wanted to be at. It was a great time to be in the city of Philadelphia. The skate scene was doing really well. Music was popping. The sports teams were exciting, and I feel like those formative years there built the foundation of everything I like. From fashion to music t aste to tattoos to food… I mean, everything. Those years served as the foundation for who I am today.

How did JSP come about? Were you working on other designs or other clothing before you moved out to LA?

Honestly, JSP just came about from my life after skateboarding. I was just trying to find out what my place in the world was at that point. I skated for some really awesome companies and I met people along the way who would help me with fashion, but I was just trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, man. I wanted to see if I was able to do something that I still really loved, rather than getting a job

and just trying to pay the bills. Fortunately, I met my partner and he has spent his whole life in garment manufacturing, so he’s great on the business back end.

We worked together for a couple of years, then we took a couple of years off. Then he launched Standard Issue on his own and offered me the opportunity to come aboard and help build Standard Issue while simultaneously dropping JSP releases. We’ve been cooking since 2017 and it’s been an awesome six years. I think we have some great things that we’re working on for this year and next year.

When you pick up a hoodie from a brand like Standard Issue, you can tell the person

behind it knows what they like. They picked the best parts out of everything they wore over the years and threw away the worst parts, they just kept what worked and improved the fit of certain things.

It’s always interesting, BJ, so many times we do market research and the quality of our stitching is generally the first thing that comes to mind, it’s always way better than the other stuff we compare it to. Sometimes our fabric may be a little too heavy duty for some people, but to me sweatpants and tees are supposed to be worn and washed, worn and washed.

That’s what keeps the composure of the clothing for so long throughout the care process. Jared put months and months into developing the fit and makeup of the T-shirt. We started developing the sweatpants back in 2012 when we first met, so I know how much work has gone into it. Our sewing team that builds everything, they’re the ones who do the hardest [stuff]. What we do is the easy work, the labor of love they put into sewing and building is amazing. Marketing is the fun part, [that’s] the real artform and skill that goes into every product.

18KT GOLD CUBAN CHAINS

Top: 80ct F color VS1 diamonds

Bottom: 60ct F color VS1 diamonds

RINGS

Left: 18kt white gold 11ct F color VS1 diamonds

Top: 18kt white/rode two tone and white/yellow

Bottom: Two tone - 15cts F color VS1 diamonds

NŸ SOLID GOLD RING

Diamonds in the 2 dots 14kt yellow gold

DIAMOND BAGUETTE RINGS

6.35ct F color vs2

0.35 ct each diamond 18kt white gold

DIAMOND

Rose gold, yellow gold and white gold

14kt 20 inch total 30 carats, 10carts of VS1 D color diamonds , 10carat VS2 canary yellow diamonds & 10carat of baby pink sapphires

DIAMOND BAGUETTE, TENNIS NECKLACE

48.35ct F color vs2 clarity 22inch 18kt white gold

DIAMOND

Top: 22.55ct F color VS2

19 inch yellow gold 14kt

Diamond G pendant yellow gold 14kt

Bottom: Top 22.55ct F color VS2

19 inch yellow gold 14kt

Diamond G pendant yellow gold 14kt

RAINBOW CUBAN NECKLACE

TENNIS NECKLACE

DIAMOND CUBAN LINK BRACELET

9.55ct F color VS2

7.5 inches 14kt white gold

DIAMOND CUBAN LINK NECKLACE

25.40 F color VS2 20 inches 14kt white gold

Music does more than entertain. It transports you to a time, a place. Music evokes joy and pain; hope and sorrow. There is a beauty in the fluidity of a song that can change your mood, for better or worse, depending on where you are at that singular moment in your life. A lyric can remind you of your middle school best friend or that moment you walked into a stadium filled with 60,000 fans at a World Cup game.

When a piece of art hangs on a wall you may look at it several different times and see several different things with each glance. Similarly another person can look at the same piece of art and have a completely different interpretation altogether. Music is no different, music is ART.

With the same open mindedness that I view race or sexual orientation, there is a beauty in not defining or judging. Music, to me, has never needed genres. If the tune hits just right and puts a smile on my face then it is simply just good music!

As you know, I have been wheeling and dealing cars since before I could drive and I always have my finger on the pulse of the market. I want to tell you about three cars of different price points that are great buys and tons of fun for the money— because life is too short to drive boring cars. Be warned, these cars are addictive. Once you get behind the wheel, you’ll never want to get out.

@rrrawlings

The name is Rawlings, Richard Rawlings. Break out your wallets because this car offers it all—power, luxury and looks. It is powered by a 5.9L V12 that makes up to 510 horsepower with a classic deep rumble and an aggressive but timeless look that will turn heads. This generation brought back the DB5 styling we all fell in love with that was missing in the DB6 and DB7, but with a modern twist.

C6 Corvette, 2005–2013 ($25k)

Now before you say, “Ooh, another Corvette,” there is a reason why so many people buy and love these. Every C6 Corvette came equipped with the legendary LS motor, which starts at 400 horsepower. Pair that with a manual transmission and you will be chirping tires everywhere you go. These cars have a huge amount of aftermarket support if you want to make some upgrades along the way. Have another $10k to spare? You can step up to the Z06, which has another 100 horsepower thanks to the 7.0L 427 and is built to race!

Fox Body Mustang, 1979–1993

Ahhh, the good ole 5.0. Looking to break out your old cassette collection and go down memory lane? The Fox Body may be for you! This Mustang was a welcome change from the Mustang II and sorely missed after the SN95 was introduced in 1994. The Fox Body received a facelift in 1987, which gave a more modern look to the interior and exterior. They’ll never be the fastest car around, but when you can pick up a nice driver for around $10k, they are hard to argue against!

($10k)

Aston Martin DB9 V12 Vantage, 2004–2016 ($100k)

ne of the most important tools at an artist’s disposal can’t be found at any supply store or lying around their studio. It’s not something you can buy or sell, either. We’re talking about mythology. A truly innovative artist understands that they can’t just create art, they have to also be art. What would Vincent van Gogh be with both ears? Who would care about a painting of a tomato soup can without getting a peek behind the curtain at Andy Warhol’s famous Factory? The way visual artist Jason Skeldon weaves himself into his work—particularly on social media—is a direct connection to those who came before him.

We spoke to Skeldon about his inspirations, his vivid graffiti car wraps and much more in the interview below.

Do you remember the first time you fell in love with art?

I can’t remember when I first fell in love with art, but I remember when I fell back in love with art. It was during the eight years I was working as a paramedic. I was tired of the job and depressed, so I turned to the one thing that made me happy—painting.

What was your earliest experience with art?

I started making clay sculptures at the age of 5.

What inspires you as an artist?

I’m inspired by pop culture and the challenges we all have. I’m also inspired by Andy Warhol and Banksy.

Can you describe your painting style and tell us about how you developed it?

I was heavily influenced by Warhol and Banksy, with a touch of graffiti. Then I took those influences and evolved them into my own style.

Tell us about the way you blur the line between physical and digital art.

As a new age artist, I believe it’s important to produce work quickly, so that is what I do when I combine digital art with acrylic, spray paints and oil sticks.

On your Instagram feed it’s almost like you’re a main character in your own pieces of art. Why did you decide to put yourself in your digital creations?

Oh yes, I love this question. I often get asked for advice by younger artists and I always tell them that you must become a brand alongside making cool art. You need to give your collectors something to talk about to their friends.

We’d love to hear about the custom car wraps you’ve created. What sort of unique challenges come up when making art for an automobile?

Car wraps are a blast and get a lot of attention. I started out with hand-painting Lambos and Audi R8s, but the paint doesn’t hold up. So now I mostly do digital car wrap designs of my work. I’ve personally wrapped my own BMW i8 eight times. It gets a lot of attention and helps me build my brand. Plus it doesn’t hurt when you show up at a new collector’s house in a dope whip.

What do you hope people take away from your art?

What do you want them to feel?

Well, it depends on the piece. If it’s something like a Marilyn Monroe or Michael Jordan, it’s not much more than a coolass piece in the house. But if it’s a piece that has meaning, like this one (on the right), it’s different. It basically means you have a bright future, the city is yours and you have so much to look forward to. His future is the airplane he is throwing and the rose in his hand represents the heartaches he might encounter.

Where do you see your art going into the future?

I have the whole city of Tampa telling me I made it, but to me, I feel like I won’t stop until I’m on Mars.

How do you feel about NFTs and is that an avenue you’d ever explore?

I did an NFT and I made great money. Thank God I cashed out before the market crashed. I hope it comes back because I have new ones waiting to be dropped.

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BY CHARLIE CONNELL

It’s a tale as old as time. One minute you’re floating in the pool with your bestie, sipping margaritas, and before you know it you’ve filmed a documentary about witchcraft. Wait… what?

The thought process that led to GG Magree and Vanessa Hudgens’ documentary film “Dead Hot: Season of the Witch” will surely be repeated as Hollywood lore for years to come.

“Vanessa and I moved in together during the pandemic,” Magree explains. “We both got single and thought, ‘OK, great, let’s live out our best single girl life together.’ It was the pandemic so you couldn’t really do anything, so we drank a lot of margaritas in the pool and watched a lot of ‘The Simple Life.’ We’re both super into witchcraft and as everything slowed down, you were almost forced to do shadow work… so we imagined we could do a crossbreed of ‘The Simple Life’ merged with witchcraft, feminine divinity and how to connect to your spiritual self.”

We’re willing to bet that Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie never imagined having this sort of legacy while they were struggling to figure out how to feed hogs back in the early 2000s, but Hollywood is a crazy place.

As “Dead Hot” started to come together, Magree knew that the time had come for a film like this. Not only did she want to make something fun, she wanted to take away some of the taboo that lurks in the perception of witchcraft.

“The thing with witchcraft is that it has such a dark name,” Magree says. “When I tell people that I’m a practicing witch they’re always like, ‘Don’t hex me!’ We wanted to bring that element to life and the best way to do it was to show two best friends going on a spiritual journey. And, you know, I’m a wild witch. I live my life to the full maximum extreme.”

During the height of the pandemic, many of us felt like the world was burning down around us. Magree found solace by focusing her energies inward through the practice of witchcraft.

She cleared the negativity by connecting with her higher self and her spirit guides through meditation and placing trust in her intuition.

“The whole goal with witchcraft is to literally get to your highest self, [the place] where you vibrate the highest,” she explains. “And I think that is such a beautiful thing. What people don’t understand is that witchcraft is led by love. The entire thing is about how you can make yourself the best version of yourself.”

Introspection and intentionality are the keys to witchcraft, but they are necessary components for songwriting as well, so it’s no surprise that a gifted musician like Magree would be allured by both. As a DJ, Magree looked to her earliest musical inspirations while crafting songs. Growing up she listened to a lot of Nirvana, Bush, Parkway Drive and Nine Inch Nails; these bands formed the sonic foundation of Magree’s writing. Later on, she began to explore electro sounds through the Australian bloghouse scene, Chromeo, Teki Latex, the Bloody Beetroots and more. Something beautiful was born when the two worlds collided.

“It’s those hard bass lines that make you want to bounce off the walls, but they also have those crazy synth sounds that are so aggressive, and it’s such a nice mixture with rock music,” she explains. “I’ve always been more into the heavierleaning stuff—punk, rock, hardcore—and the electro-sounding music like dubstep and bass. I’ve never been one for light music [laughs].”

Magree has developed daily rituals for both her spiritual journey and her songwriting. She tries her best to write every single day. While her music sounds anything but light, she usually does her writing with an acoustic guitar. Once she figures out a chord structure she’ll get locked into a flow and the words will come to her. Intuition is key throughout her writing process—if she doesn’t have a song complete within an hour and a half she scraps it and starts over.

“This is probably going to sound a little bit

selfish, but I write for myself,” Magree says of her process. “I write what I love, it’s never to have a hit. It’s never to give people what they want. I know that my music isn’t for everyone—and that’s OK—but the people who do love it really love it.”

In her latest single, “King,” Magree is bridging the gap between witchcraft and songwriting. The song is an exploration of gender and power dynamics within society, delivered over grinding synths.

“Equality is something I’ll spend the rest of my life fighting for, and I wrote ‘King’ because I was just done with people being like, ‘Yes, Queen! Go, Queen!’” she says. “I’m like, ‘No, bitch, I’m a king. There’s no hierarchy for me, there’s no masculine, there’s no feminine—everyone is equal.”

“King” addresses the same issue that ultimately led to witchcraft becoming taboo centuries ago—patriarchy’s fear of powerful women. The prospect of women finding power within themselves has always been met with scorn and suspicion. While a lot has changed since the Salem Witch Trials of the 17th century, similar roots can be found in some of the more regressive laws and actions today.

“Women became healers, women became powerful, and when they became more powerful than men, they just burned them at the stake,” Magree says. “It’s exactly what is happening in the world now, and it makes me so fucking sad. I can never wrap my head around the fact that every single person in this world still does not fight for equality.”

GG Magree planned on spending the pandemic drinking margs and hanging out with her bestie but ended up finding so much more. She looked inward and emerged with a new project, a renewed vigor to write songs, and the urge to fight like hell to make the world a better place. Magree has found the most powerful version of herself, and no one better dare to get in her way.

BY EXPLORING THE WORLD OF WITCHCRAFT, GG MAGREE HAS FOUND A WAY TO ACHIEVE HER BEST SELF

PHOTOS KATHY ROSARIO

MAKEUP & HAIR: SAMANTHA LEPRE

PHOTO ASSISTANT: ASHLEY CONARIO

VIC MENSA’S JOURNEY REVEALS REASONS WHY HIS ART IS BIGGER THAN JUST HIM

BY SOPHIA TAN

PHOTOS BY JASON GOODRICH

The ragtag Chicago kid turned untouchable rapper Vic Mensa has never been one to take his position for granted. While disquieting circumstances colored his upbringing before entering a musical career, they also allowed him to understand the world at a deep level. Now, he proudly uses his wisdom to not only create art that touches millions, but to carry on the Ghanaian roots that raised him. Since Mensa last spoke to Inked, he has dropped a number of projects that have cemented his name in the world of conscious hip hop. Simultaneously, he has continued digging into his core to understand both where he came from and where he’s going. In this era, Mensa is ready to present the freest version of himself to the world.

“The past two years, for me, have been a period of intense self-reflection, adjustment, discipline and patience,” Mensa says. One of the most resounding aspects of Mensa’s character is his disposition that views life in a grand, cosmic sense. His last full-length album, “The Autobiography,” dropped in 2017—over five years ago, which might have some artists scrambling to push out the next big thing, but Mensa wasn’t worried. “I try not to view my journey in the context of days and hours and months and years,” he says. “My path, my purpose, is not success, but the transformation of my entire family from generations of poverty. That’s not beholden to an album cycle or song release or music video— that’s the reason I’m on this planet.”

Fighting for survival in his youth resulted in some deep-seated thought patterns Mensa has had to gradually unlearn. “Growing up in Chicago was America 101 in a lot of ways,” he says. “It was a beautiful, traumatic experience. There are a lot of things I have to work through emotionally and mentally because I come from such a violent environment.” At the same time, Mensa credits his surroundings for influencing his art, along with his “ability to speak truth to power and [his] perspective on affluence and poverty in a significant way.” Though it hasn’t been easy to carry the torch of his forebears, it’s a duty he shoulders proudly. “I’m grateful for having mentors that are from the lineage of The Black Panther Party,” he adds, “for having mentors that are OG gang members and poets and authors. Today, I feel equipped to be the best me I can be and be a champion for my family, even it was difficult as fuck to get here.”

Recently, Mensa has been spending more time in Ghana, building relationships and being with his family. Tuning into his culture has enabled him to create new structures in massive ways, such as holding the Black Star Line Festival this past January. The event, founded by Mensa and Chance the Rapper, was launched in hopes of connecting Black Americans to their African roots through communal cultural celebration. After a successful execution, Mensa reminisces on its euphoric

times. “[We were] just having fun and working with the artists,” he says. “Staying out late and listening to music. Having conversations on the beach, watching the sunrise after being at the club all night, riding motorcycles through the hood.” Mensa, aware of the AfricanAmerican community’s lack of accessibility to their past, simply wishes to share with others the same kinship he’s found. “To have that connection to my ancestry, I gotta know it’s a privilege,” he says. “Because most of my closest friends don’t have that. I believe that knowing where you come from gives you a roadmap to where you wanna go.”

Throughout his career, Mensa has fluctuated through a multitude of musical styles. Most often, his sound takes the form of hard-hitting, conscious hip hop, dancing with elements of trap and R&B. In 2019, he forayed into punk music with the album “93 Punks.” Though this was a bit of an unexpected turn for the artist, Mensa cites he was “just having fun, honestly.” Growing up, the rapper had always listened to rock before hip hop. He loved playing guitar, listening to Green Day, Rage

the truth of Pharrell’s words, Mensa recalls, “I made a dope song, and then never thought about it again.”

In Inked’s last conversation with Mensa, he mentioned his intrigue in scarification, as well as covering up his negative tattoos. At the moment, he’s still in the midst of these endeavors, but not without trying. His favorite artist, Ryan Flaherty—whom Mensa notes is a tattoo purist, for he never clout-chases—is someone the rapper always longs to get tattooed by. However, the tattooer’s mode of booking out months in advance doesn’t always favor Mensa’s schedule. “I don’t even know where I’m going three days from now,” he says. So far, he has gotten a fighter plane on his chest from Flaherty, signifying his birth on D-Day. The pause in tattoo progress is nothing to sweat, though. He’ll always get a chance to sit in that chair, but the past couple of years have seen him changing the world around him as opposed to his appearance. In due time, however, the body modifications are sure to catch up.

Mensa’s intentions behind getting tattoos stems back to his initial lure to art. “I feel like I’m always trying to represent myself through art,” he says. “With tattoos, I’m trying to symbolize something in my life or my ideals. I love art, you know what I mean? That’s expressed through my clothing, my conversations, my actions. My tattoos are just another way.” In terms of his favorite tattoo, Mensa proudly asserts that “it’s always gonna be [his] first one”—a black panther on his shoulder with the words “Free Huey” written above it, an homage to the political activist and co-founder of The Black Panther Party. “It’s just so pure,” he says. “From when I was 16, it was done in a ghetto apartment on the West Side. I’m gonna have a hard time beating that one. You know how people get terrible first tattoos? I got a hard first tattoo.”

Against the Machine and Joy Division, so it felt natural to go in that direction. “I don’t feel confined to a single genre, or really subscribe to categorization in general,” he says. “I just make what I feel.”

Additionally, some of his most meaningful work has come from collaborating with artists he truly connects with, such as the one and only Pharrell. “You know when you meet somebody you’ve always wanted to,” he recalls, “and everything just goes right?”

Once while in the studio together, Mensa was undergoing a distressing experience having to do with stolen money and plotting a revenge scheme. Pharrell, able to tell the young prodigy was troubled, gave Mensa what he thought was the “illest advice.” “He told me, ‘You’re lucky for three reasons,’” Mensa says. “One, you’re not the kind of man that calls someone a brother and robs them. Second, this is not gonna tank you. Third, you have the power to let this go.” After internalizing

Though Mensa stands atop a mountain of accomplishments, the rapper still sees it as only the beginning. Garnering success has never just been about enjoying the fruits of his labor. Through every undertaking, he upholds his responsibility to give voice to those without one, and to leave the world in a better place. “I have so many projects,” he says. “Ultimately, I see my future going in an incredibly, unbelievably upward trajectory. I see my music career, following and creative output multiplying by 10. I see my fans multiplying by 100. I see my potency, lyricism, musicality, hooks and production multiplying by 1,000.”

Beyond music, Mensa projects his philanthropic impact to raise into the hundreds of millions of dollars, so that he may continue honoring previous generations and setting the stage for every upcoming one: “That’s just the way I see things.”

BY SOPHIA TAN PHOTOS BY NATE VOGEL

Artistic kids are well aware that some of our most creative ideas can come from isolation. Adam Jouneau, better known as the DJ and producer Habstrakt, grew up in a small town in the south of France where boredom often propelled him towards creativity. In his bedroom, he took to dismantling and reassembling electronics to create sounds. Through the painstaking process, Jouneau cultivated a mentality that would seep into every aspect of his future career. Rarely will he take the easy route—he’d rather start from scratch and get his hands dirty. After years spent soldering wires and bending circuits, sparks inevitably flew and thus emerged the vivid world of Habstrakt.

Jouneau’s experimentation lent itself to a sweeping collage of electronic music intertwining thundering bass house with eccentric dubstep, EDM trap and everything in between. Unlike his music, quiet defined the creator’s upbringing. “I grew up in a place that was very isolated from the rest of the world,” he says. “And it was a blessing because I had all the time and space to really explore and learn things on my own.” Jouneau’s pull towards art also stemmed from watching his family’s musings—his father tinkered with electronics and played guitar and his mother and sisters played piano. More influential, though, was his mother’s job designing plays to tell children’s stories in schools. “She’ll build stages and draw and paint everything,” he says. “One of my earliest memories is my mom being on the phone and drawing with her left hand on a piece of paper. Then she just throws it into the trash, and then there’s me going through the trash and saving it.”

Growing up, Jouneau didn’t have access to the internet or a powerful computer, but that didn’t stop him from producing sounds with whatever he could find. “I started making music when I was 12 or 13,” he says. “A lot of it was on groove boxes, samplers, hardware synthesizers, little machines. My first recordings of music were on cassettes, and I still to this day record my sessions on cassettes.” As much as Jouneau wished he could acquire better tech, being forced to make music from the ground up was an eye-opening experience for him. “A lot of it came from thinking, ‘I would love to have this synthesizer or this machine,’ and then it was like, ‘I can’t afford it.’ So I would just break a radio, solder the speaker to something else, connect two dots and ZAP—that was music for me.”

Jouneau finally got his hands on his first computer at 18 and that changed everything. He quickly learned he wasn’t alone, there were entire communities on MySpace filled with French producers posting and commenting on one another’s music. At the same time, a plethora of new music software flooded the scene, adding more new tools to Jouneau’s arsenal and allowing him to further experiment with his sound. “We couldn’t fit into the other categories,” he says of his contemporaries. “So this one just landed on us, you know? It’s a good community for people who like weird stuff, like to experiment and think a bit outside of the box.”

Jouneau found a groove of working in a kitchen and coming home to make music all night. He’d put out singles without expecting much, but eventually found them getting picked up by radio stations. Soon, he was getting booked for gigs left and right. When Jouneau discovered a video of Skrillex playing one of his songs in 2014, he had an epiphany. “I was like, wow, this is serious,” he recalls. “He’s playing something I made in my parents’ home in my bedroom for 20,000 people, and everyone’s screaming.” Beyond that, he was starting to see that music was taking over his life. “There were layers to it,” he says, “But the first one was having to quit my job because I was playing too many shows.”

Making music his career was something that didn’t occur to Jouneau until he was already established. “Back then, I was just coming from a worker’s mind,” he reflects. “You have to work, you have to pay rent, you have to pay for food, you have to survive in this world. And so work is work, whatever it’s gonna be. So [pursuing music] was like, ‘Oh, I just have a new job.’” Further along the journey, though, is when Jouneau realized his work had more impact than he was giving himself credit for.

“The Skrillex thing showed that the things I see, the things I hear, the things that [I] make people hear, trigger an emotional response in people, and that’s worth any form of financial [gain],” he continues. “It’s just feelings. And I was like, this actually feels great.”

It has been six years since Jouneau moved to LA and embarked on a nonstop journey of self-discovery. Releasing his first album, “Heritage,” in March 2023 changed how he thinks about making music. “I was going from just making singles here and there to working

on a full body of work, delving into a mindset and vision and storytelling through music,” he explains. “I wasn’t really doing that when I was just putting out music made by DJs for DJs.” At the moment, he’s continuing to challenge himself while also digging back into his roots of making art in unconventional ways. His latest rabbit hole is making analog video glitches that can be used as visuals for live shows. “[Creating an album] made me feel like an artist again, not just a DJ producer,” he says. “I think the next step for me is to really accept and embrace that.”

Along with creating irreplicable sensory experiences, Jouneau’s commitment to art also manifests through his tattoo game. Many of his tattoos weren’t prompted by a specific event, and were instead spontaneous impulses that have been captured for life. “Lately I’ve been diving more into the very chaotic, triballyscratchy vibe that has absolutely no meaning,” he says. “It’s kind of hard to plan, so I’ve gotten a lot of freehand stuff lately. I think I had to go through the more traditional, planned pieces and placements before I could dive into [the mindset of], ‘Go off, I have all this space to fill.’”

Don’t mistake that mindset for nonchalance—Jouneau is particular when it comes to what goes on his skin. “An artist, what they do, the way they tattoo, the quality of their work,” he shares, “I’m always linking this to my own vision.” In many cases, he’ll let an artist freehand an original design to strategically weave around his current tattoos. Things may appear disorderly, but there’s a method to the madness. If forced to pick a tattoo that describes this moment of his journey, it’d be the sprawling abstract design on his shoulder. “The amount of detail is absolutely incredible, but it doesn’t mean anything,” he says. “It’s very representative of my music and where I am now—the path is chaotic, yet it all fits into place.”

This next phase of Habstrakt sees him further assuming his artistic identity. “God knows where that’s gonna take me because I’m always learning new things, especially on the technical and production side of it,” he says. “But it’ll definitely be a bigger body of work with a more meaningful vision.” You can trust he’ll always carry with him the modus operandi that has gotten him this far—making what he can with what he has and letting the art speak for itself.

FROM WARPING OLD ELECTRONICS IN HIS BEDROOM TO DJING IN FRONT OF THOUSANDS, HABSTRAKT HAS BUILT HIMSELF FROM THE GROUND UP.

TIKTOK

BAILEY SPINN FIND HER VOICE,

BY SOPHIA TAN

PHOTOS BY JASON GOODRICH

or someone as imaginative as Bailey Spinn, there are few things in this world that would stop her from creating. Stuck in her hometown of Centreville, Virginia, during the COVID-19 lockdown, she took isolation as an opportunity to feed her passions, manifesting an immersive TikTok series inspired by her love for music. Before long, her content had reached millions of people, showing that nothing is impossible when you take a leap of faith. Now, she’s onto the next level. With the release of her first single, she’s blasting a message of empowerment the world needs to hear and building an even deeper relationship with the audience who saw her spark from the very beginning.

“I was always a big music girly and loved content creation,” Spinn recalls. “When I was younger, I’d try to get Instagram followers. I loved singing karaoke and playing a lot of different instruments.” As Spinn grew older, her artistic pursuits evolved with her. “Content creation kind of started as an accident for me, but it helped me build the confidence to move on to an even bigger passion that I’ve had since I was a kid.”

If you’re a TikTok regular, you might be familiar with POV videos, which place the viewer in unthinkable situations—from seeing what your soulmate sees to living in a world full of demons. Spinn, inspired by this subgenre, decided to put her own twist on it. Her series, “Everyday You

Wake Up in a Different Year,” was the first to get her a million views. Inspiration for these clips often came from Spinn’s undying love for music. “I would go and listen to throwback playlists,” she says, “and kind of look for keywords that really spoke to me in the songs, or an idea of something I could use to make a POV.”

The POV skits she recorded for TikTok did more than just connect her to the world during the pandemic—they were slowly becoming her meal ticket. When Spinn kept coming home with new clothes she bought using her small TikTok payouts, her mom had questions. “‘Where are you getting these from?’” Spinn recalls her mom asking. “‘You better not be doing anything inappropriate on the internet for money!’ I was like, ‘No, I’m just making some little videos with an Amazon ring light in my room.’”

Despite the encouragement from a growing number of followers and the money she was bringing in, Spinn ran into the same personal challenge every viral internet personality eventually faces—people overlooking the substance of her content to criticize her personally. “A lot of the time, I’m afraid to show what I really look like head to toe because people are really body shaming on TikTok,” she says. Spinn also received backlash on videos of her song covers, which hit a little closer to home. “They said, ‘This is the worst thing I’ve ever heard. Never sing ever again, delete this video.’”

HELPED

AND NOW SHE’S USING IT TO SING WHAT’S BEEN ON ALL OF OUR MINDS.

Visualizing what critics looked like behind the screen helped Spinn deal with the negativity. “It’s very easy to send something from behind your phone when you’re sitting on your couch,” she says. “I put myself out there every single day, and you have zero videos in your account. You’re hiding from the fact that you’re a hater.” Spinn’s advice? “It’s hard to ignore, but don’t look. Once you post a video, reply to the people who are nice, but don’t sit there going through and through. Don’t try to fight the [haters], there’s no point in giving into them. It’s just people projecting their own insecurities and you don’t have to listen.”

Armed with newfound confidence gained from her success on TikTok, Spinn realized she could pursue her musical dreams. “If I can post myself online every single day,” she says, “what’s stopping me from singing in front of people?” The rest unfolded seamlessly—she met a vocal coach and started playing electric guitar, covering artists like Olivia Rodrigo and Cassadee Pope. Once she started writing her own songs, she honed in on the rock aesthetic and fell in love. “I got a bounce of a song that was so incredible,” she says. “It was really upbeat and reminded me of Avril Lavigne, and I was like, absolutely. This is what I’ve been looking for.”

From that point on, Spinn’s trajectory has soared. She just released her first single, “Romance Is Dead,” an anthem about how dating nowadays is literally the worst. “Nobody will take you out on a real date,” she says, exasperated. “They won’t even pay for the meal. I’ve never gotten a bouquet of flowers. When people always ask me, ‘Why are you single?’ This is why. This is my answer.”

I IF I CAN POST MYSELF ONLINE EVERY

DAY, WHAT’S STOPPING ME FROM SINGING IN FRONT OF PEOPLE?

Spinn didn’t hold anything back with her first tattoo, going straight for one on her hand. The tattoo is of a rose, which represents her middle name and family. Spinn’s approach to tattoos is one that isn’t afraid to make mistakes. Materializing her journey of self-discovery in real time, she already had dozens of tattoos by the time she found a style she wanted to stick with—ethereal items like cherubs, keys and crosses in black ink. “I’m just gonna cover [the old ones] up, you know, get another tattoo,” she says nonchalantly. “It just gives me a reason to get more pieces.”

Another of Spinn’s hand tattoos sports a set of angel numbers, “222.” “I’m very obsessed with angel numbers,” she says. “And then when I said I was gonna drop out and move to LA, literally every single day afterwards, multiple times a day, I started seeing 222. On license plates, on alarm clocks, on my phone. When I looked it up, it said, ‘you are making a correct decision in life.’”

It’s clear that the girl-from-the-suburbs-turned-TikToksensation won’t have a problem keeping her fans around. She’s built a platform on being herself, and her music is only an extension of that. Two years ago Bailey Spinn would never have expected to go from making comedic skits in her bedroom to emulating one of the singers who set her heart on fire, but with her unflinching drive, there was really no other way it could go. If you keep your eyes on her, you might find that her next POV is right on center stage.

SINGLE

Can you start off by telling us a little bit about who you are and what you do? I’m originally from Wisconsin, but I currently live in Arizona. I’m very goofy, I love to travel and I have two pups. I’m a full-time tattoo artist—find me on Instagram at @ sarah_elizabeth_tattoos.

What drew you to tattooing? I’ve always loved art, drawing and painting. It took me a while to get into tattooing. I actually went to medical college right out of high school, but art has always been a passion of mine. Tattoos have also always interested me.

What’s life like as a tattooed model? I have been a tattooed model for about 10 years now. It has been so much fun. I absolutely love creating art with photographers and networking with other models and photographers.

Did people’s opinions of you change after you became heavily tattooed? For the people who don’t know me, absolutely. But for the friends I’ve had since before the tattoos, they treat me exactly the same. My appearance has changed, but my soul never will.

How did you feel after getting your chest blacked out? What made you decide to do it? Getting my chest blacked out was very painful. I did it all in one session, I do not recommend that to anyone. It was basically a triple cover-up.

What was your journey to becoming a tattoo artist? I would say there were some obstacles. Apprenticeships are not easy, especially mine. I was very broke at the time and it was a lot of commuting to get to the shop. I was living in Chicago when I started, the shop was an hour outside downtown and I had no car. The experience was very humbling overall.

How would you describe your tattoo style? I would describe my tattoo style as surrealism, black-and-grey realism, geometric and blackwork. I really love combining styles and creating interesting, unique pieces! I’m always trying to come up with something new, fresh and different. Making my own creative masterpiece is satisfying.

Did you experiment with other styles before landing on your current specialty? I actually started out doing traditional and neo-traditional tattoos in full color.

Where do you get most of your artistic inspiration? For me, that’s a loaded question. Because I can find inspiration not only just from other artists, but also from everyday life—such as photography, nature, Instagram… I could keep listing things. I get inspired by life around me.

What has been the most rewarding part of being a tattoo artist and model? The most rewarding thing about being a tattoo artist, honestly, is that it truly gave me a purpose in life. I feel blessed to be able to create art as my career and be able to share it with others, making connections with people and [helping] them feel confident and having an amazing experience. The most rewarding thing about being a tattooed model is probably being blessed with amazing opportunities like this one. Also, just networking and making connections with other people in the industry and just having fun!

If your tattoo career dissolved into thin air today, what do you think you’d be doing next? Oh wow, that would be a nightmare if my career disappeared! I suppose I never thought about that because tattooing truly is my life. I would probably be a makeup artist, another one of my passions.

I CAN FIND INSPIRATION NOT ONLY JUST FROM OTHER ARTISTS, BUT ALSO FROM EVERYDAY LIFE.

PHOTOGRAPHER: JEN ROSENSTEIN

DIGITECH / PHOTO ASSIST: JOSH FOGEL

PHOTO ASSIST: RYAN PAVLOVICH

INTERVIEWER: SARAH ROSE HYLAND

JASON ELLIS MANAGEMENT : BREANNA WEBB

HOONIGANS CREW:

BRIAN SCOTTO (PUNCH TO JASON ELLIS)

VIN ANTRA (DRIVER)

KODY GREEN (DRIVER)

ZAC MERTENS

RICHARD BURKHARDT

ANGELO ROSATO

JOSH OHANA

JARED PERRY

Whether he’s standing on the lip of an enormous vert ramp or sitting across from Ozzy Osbourne ready to interview the rock legend, Jason Ellis always appears to be perfectly poised and ready to rock. But inside? Abject terror. Ellis has learned to use the fear to his advantage, relishing every time he’s able to vanquish that particular nemesis. And if we were to check the scorecard, it looks like he’s undefeated thus far.

In between racing cars, shooting a flamethrower and getting punched in the face at our photoshoot, Ellis chatted with Sarah Hyland of the “Not Cool” podcast to walk us through his extraordinary life.

You’re known as a pro skateboarder, MMA fighter, motocrosser, podcaster, comedian, author… is there anything I’m missing? I’d like to own a chihuahua farm. There’s also a lady who swims with tiger sharks, I want to swim with that lady and the tiger sharks. But that’s about it.

I’m glad you got that in there, I was going to leave it out. I’d like to be in a movie where The Rock kills me. That would be cool.

I’m going to ask you a couple of questions, and I’m going to start with skateboarding. Yeah, I did that. I still do that. Poorly [laughs].

You’ll be hosting the X Games coming up with your buddy Tony Hawk.. I am. And with Selema [Masekela]...

Absolutely! You also have a podcast with Tony called “Hawk vs. Wolf,” how did that come about and did it change your friendship at all? No, it wouldn’t change our friendship, that’s why we did the show together. I love the show, I want it to be successful, and Tony wants to have a successful podcast. He’s obviously very successful at being a skateboarder, but he cares about the show and that’s why wanted to do it. He used to have a show on Sirius where he asked me to be his co-host. But then after 10, 15 years… a long time… he got dropped by them. A few years later, I got dropped by them. When they dropped me he called me and said, “Hey, man, you want to do a show together again?” I asked to drive down to

meet him because I just wanted to see him face-to-face and say, “You’re not doing this to help me because I got fired from Sirius, right?” He’s like, “How dare you?! I’m doing this because I think we can do a good show.” Deal, let’s do it.

What a great story, that’s awesome. And we did it in the same room where we used to do it 20 years ago.

So lots of history together. We do the show and then we skate. Or we skate and then we do the show. Most of the time we skate just the two of us… and I don’t know how much longer I can skateboard. He doesn’t know how much longer he can skateboard, so every time we skateboard we’re like, “This could be the last time we skateboard, I love you, man.” It’s emotional. A lot of the tricks we do, it could be the last time we ever do them for the rest of our lives.

Is that because skateboarding obviously takes a toll on your body? That, and we were really good! We’re still pretty good, but the things we want to do, if you do them wrong in your 50s, it’s just hard to stay alive. I don’t know how many times I can go to the hospital before I die. Just from broken bones… if I was going to break my arm, and then my leg, and then my arm for the next 20 years, I think I’d rather die. When you’re old and you break your arm, it sucks so much worse.

What’s something you’ve learned from skateboarding that you’ve been able to carry with you all of these years? The number one thing is that if you love something enough, you can do anything. If you’re passionate, nothing can stop you. I was not a natural athlete, I wasn’t a good skateboarder. I started skating with two twin brothers—one was a chubby kid and one was an obese kid—and they were both better than me for the first three years. I was bad. Because I loved it, I went every day and I couldn’t stop thinking about skateboarding. Then one day I learned something like 10 tricks in an hour. All of a sudden I was better than everybody, it was like I was touched by something… it was a freak thing. I wasn’t that good. And then I learned so many things in an hour. The owner of the skate shop came down and watched me the next day, then he sponsored me. All of a sudden I’m talking about getting an airfare and going to America. When I was a little kid there was no such thing as a pro skateboarder born in Australia. I was looking to become the first person to do that.

You’re known for big verts, were you ever terrified of them and how did you get past that? I’m terrified constantly. I’m in constant terror, but I’m also offended by that terror. I feel like the terror is trying to pick a fight with me or belittle me, and I don’t run from anything. I’ll take anything on. That’s what fills me up. I like when I’m terrified and then I beat it. Skateboarding has always scared me. With skating, the penalty really hurts, which reminds you how great it is when you pull it off. And then you just defeated that. I became obsessed with that idea—it was the same with comedy—if something scares me I just throw myself into it because if something scares me and I conquer it, it’s very satisfying.

So you like things that get you to the edge of death? My favorite thing in skateboarding was when I would do a really big air, and when you’re pretty good you go really high and you can tell if you’re going to land low or if you’re going to land close to the coping. If you land too close to the coping and your wheels clip, then you just headbutt the flat and you’re out. I’d usually wake up with a broken arm or something, it’s pretty bad. I’d sometimes be in a contest and be like, “Oh! It’s gonna be one of those!” And I’d get into a little ball, hear my wheels bonk on the coping and I’d somehow make it, then I would have this really dumb grin across the flat because I knew that I got away with one.

I’m glad you’re alive. Me too! I didn’t realize how much more fun I was going to have when I got older.

PROBABLY EVERYTHING WILL BE TATTOOED BEFORE I DIE.

I’m going to switch gears a little. Obviously, you’re doing podcasting, you had a show on Sirius Radio, you have a couple of podcasts now. How did you find your legs as an interviewer? I used my honesty. I always start out my interviews by saying stuff about myself that you probably wouldn’t say to a stranger. The kind of stories where you don’t look good. I let my guard down and share a piece of me that I’m willing to risk their opinion about. Not all the time, but most of the time they see that and they want to engage with the conversation by also opening up. I don’t think I did that on purpose, I think I accidentally did it. I’ve always tried to be a people-pleaser, I’ve always tried to get attention and have people like me. And now it was my job where if you get this person to talk, people are going to be happy. And the person who is here is going to be happy. I put a lot of pressure on myself. It’s weird, I don’t rehearse, I don’t practice, I don’t run things through my head, I just stress the living shit out of myself up until the interview starts. I find that works, unfortunately [laughs].

What a great tactic [laughs]. Do you have a favorite interview?

The best interview I’ve ever done is probably not my favorite. I interviewed a Russian Special Olympian, she had no legs, her hands were pretty much gone, and she grew up in an orphanage. Just the hardest story a human being could have and now she’s an Olympian. I once again didn’t do any research on her, we just spoke and I tapped into her pain and I did an interview where I felt I did really good. Afterwards Tony texted me, which he never does, and said, “The interview you just did was amazing.”

But the best interview to me was when we had Ozzy Osbourne on the show, and Ozzy likes me and thinks I’m funny! We started talking about the movie “Shutter Island,” Ozzy is kind of like me and I didn’t realize it, but I walked into “Shutter Island” late and didn’t realize what was going on. So we started talking about how that movie sucks and he’s like, “There are people dead, I don’t know if they’re dead, but all of a sudden they’re alive and he’s not real. Then all of a sudden he’s real, what’s going on?!” And I was like, “That’s what I was thinking!” Then we bro’d down and every time I saw him he would say hello to me. Ozzy Osbourne knows who I am! So that’s the greatest interview I ever did.

What’s one thing you’ve learned about yourself through interviewing others? That I’m fragile. I’ve found that out in other ways, too. It’s not what I realize about myself as much as what I realize about them. They’re the same as we are, they’re insecure. Even these kings, where everything they touch turns to gold, I’ve seen them pull back and go, “Ohh,” worried about the way they look. I’ve seen people who are feared, dangerous people, come in and they open up. There’s a nice person in there! Everybody’s full of shit. Tough people, all the rock gods… we’re all just terrified little children.

What was your first tattoo? Metallica. Hanky Panky did it in Amsterdam. He rolled up a newspaper and said, “If you move, I’m going to hit you with this.” I remember thinking, man, tattoos must really hurt! It was on the side of my leg and I didn’t even feel it. I must have a high pain threshold because it didn’t seem to bother me at all.

Do you have any weird stories about one of your tattoos? I got my butthole tattooed. I got a love heart, stick and poke, done by my ex wife. The bit where God sewed you up, getting a stick and poke there, that’s a sensation. I don’t recommend everybody try it.

Any tattoos you regret? I had some women, but I don’t regret it. That was a fun time. I’ve got names on me. My last wife, I don’t even think I’m going to take it off, it’s like, remember that. Don’t forget. Don’t marry anybody, you’re not very good at it.

Where do you see your tattoo collection going from here? Are you done? Do you have spots you need to fill? I want to have one tattoo, so it’s not finished. I just need it all to be attached. And then when I get really old and my face is starting to come off, I’ll tattoo my face. I actually want to wear a gold mask like the guy from Flash Gordon. I want to wear that, with a robe and a hoodie so you can’t see how old I am. But probably everything will be tattooed before I die.

IGNITING PASSION AND INSPIRING CHANGE THROUGH ART, PHILANTHROPY, AND EMPOWERMENT

BY TAMI AUSTIN PHOTOGRAPHY BY RYAN PFLUGER

When it comes to pushing the boundaries of artistry and self-expression, only a few names shine as brightly as Lady Gaga. With a voice that resonates deeply, a fashion sense that pushes boundaries, and an unwavering commitment to advocacy, Gaga has solidified her position as a true pop culture icon and an unparalleled source of inspiration. Through her captivating tattoos, compassionate endeavors, and remarkable philanthropy, she embodies the transformative power of compassion and the imperative to utilize one’s platform for positive change.

Ink That Tells a Tale: Lady Gaga’s Tattoo Odyssey

In a world where tattoos have become a mainstream form of expression, Lady Gaga stands out with her fearless display of body art. From red carpets to performances and social media, she fearlessly exhibits her inked masterpieces, allowing fans and the world to appreciate the artistry behind each one. Gaga states on her Instagram, “Tattoos are a girl’s best friend.” These visible and meaningful tattoos have played a vital role in breaking down the stigma associated with body art, inspiring countless individuals to embrace tattoos as legitimate and powerful forms of self-expression.

In an article published on Women’s Health Magazine, up until 2011, Lady Gaga’s entire collection of tattoos resided exclusively on the left side of her body. Gaga revealed the intriguing reason behind this artistic choice during an engaging conversation with Marissa Mayer at Google. She recounted her father’s request: “He wanted me to retain a semblance of normalcy on one side. That’s why all my tattoos are confined to my left side.”

One of Gaga’s most prominent and striking tattoos is a delicate rose adorning her left hip, paying homage to her debut album, “The Fame.” Once stated on PageSix.com, Gaga, with a mischievous smile, once quipped, “Every time I perform, those roses remind me of where it all started – my roots in music.” Gaga vocalizes her belief in love’s healing and unifying power, and this tattoo serves as a constant reminder of that philosophy. Adjacent to

the rose on her thigh, a graceful unicorn graces her skin, with her memorable lyrics, “Born This Way.” This tattoo represents purity, magic, and imagination—a testament to Gaga’s unwavering dedication to defying expectations and pushing the boundaries of possibility. As she expressed on PageSix.com, “They are, in essence, a mythical creature. The unicorn is born magical and it’s not the unicorn’s fault and it doesn’t make it any more or less special or any less unique, but it can’t help that it was born with that magic.”

A notable tattoo on Gaga’s left arm bears the inscription “Little Monsters,” an endearing term she affectionately uses to refer to her dedicated fan base. This permanent tribute symbolizes the unwavering love and support she receives from her fans, who play a pivotal role in her extraordinary career. In addition to her testament to her fanbase, Gaga dedicated a fan-inspired ink under her left underarm, “Monster Paw” done by tattoo artist, Eric Gonzalez. To complete the Monster Theme, Gaga got inscribed in lace detail on her ribcage to the armpit - “Mother Monster.”

However, Gaga’s tattoos are not limited to expressions of personal significance. They also pay homage to those who have profoundly impacted her life. Getting her late aunt’s signature in a tribute tattoo, “Joanne,” graces her left forearm—a poignant reminder of the profound influence her aunt’s spirit has had on her artistic journey and personal growth. Furthermore, a German quote adorns her left arm, translating to “In the deepest hour of the night, confess to yourself that you

would die if you were forbidden to write. And look deep into your heart where it spreads its roots, the answer, and ask yourself, must I write?” This powerful inscription symbolizes Gaga’s unwavering devotion to her craft, her fans, and the transformative power of love in all its forms. Through her music and performances, Gaga strives to create an atmosphere of acceptance and compassion, emphasizing the importance of self-love and embracing one’s uniqueness.

As we delved into some of Lady Gaga’s inked legacy, which embodies a symphony of art, activism, and self-expression. Her over 24 tattoos only express the boundless creativity and unwavering determination, she has leveraged her fame to make the world a better place through philanthropy.

The Philanthropic Enigma: Lady Gaga’s Heart of Gold

Beyond her artistic endeavors, Lady Gaga is a paragon of philanthropy, utilizing her platform to effect positive change. As the visionary behind the Born This Way Foundation, Gaga has dedicated herself to promoting mental health and empowering young people to forge a world defined by kindness and bravery. Inspired by her own battles with mental health, she established the foundation in 2012, providing invaluable resources, support, and safe spaces for individuals facing similar challenges.

The Born This Way Foundation spearheads transformative initiatives, including the Channel Kindness project, which empowers young individuals to share their stories of compassion and inspire others. Additionally, the foundation developed the Teen Mental Health First Aid program,

equipping high school students with the knowledge and skills necessary to support the mental well-being of their peers.

Gaga’s philanthropic endeavors extend beyond mental health advocacy.

In response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, she joined forces with the esteemed Global Citizen organization to curate the groundbreaking “One World: Together at Home” virtual concert. This historic event raised funds for the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund, providing vital support to

an exemplary role model for many.

Film Journey: Lady Gaga’s Silver Screen Career Continues

Lady Gaga’s boundless talents extend beyond the realm of music and entertainment. With her recent confirmation as Harley Quinn in Todd Phillips’ highly-anticipated DC sequel, Joker: Folie à Deux , Gaga continues to broaden her artistic horizons on the silver screen. Building upon her breakthrough role in 2018’s A Star Is Born alongside Bradley Cooper and her captivating portrayal of Patrizia Reggiani in 2021’s House of Gucci, Gaga proves time and again that her influence transcends boundaries.

Gaga’s Empire of Empowerment: Paving a Better Tomorrow

frontline healthcare workers and bolstering global efforts to combat the virus. The concert not only united some of the world’s most prominent stars but also served as a testament to the collective strength and resilience of humanity.

Moreover, Lady Gaga fervently advocates for equality, using her influential voice to denounce discrimination and support organizations such as GLAAD, the Trevor Project, and the Elton John AIDS Foundation. Her genuine commitment to inclusivity and social justice has garnered a devoted following and established her as

Prepare to be inspired as Lady Gaga kindles your passion and urges you to embrace the power of love, vulnerability, and self-acceptance through her art. Witness the tangible impact of her philanthropic endeavors as she touches countless lives and reshapes the world for the better. Gaga’s unwavering commitment to mental health, kindness, and equality serves as an indomitable inspiration, calling upon us all to utilize our unique talents and platforms to uplift others. As she continues to captivate audiences worldwide, Lady Gaga remains an unwavering beacon of creativity, compassion, and empowerment, forever igniting the flame of inspiration within us all.

The unicorn is born magical and it’s not the unicorn’s fault and it doesn’t make it any more or less special or any less unique, but it can’t help that it was born with that magic.

BY ERICA CORNWALL

PHOTOS BY RANDALL SLAVIN

HAIR: ANTOINE MARTINEZ

MAKE UP: DARIAN DARLING

CASTING/PRODUCER: ERICA CORNWALL SPECIAL THANKS TO WARNER RECORDS

Nessa Barrett is the epitome of cool. Her songs have a depth you feel in your soul. She’s brave, fearless even, saying things that free her from her inner turmoil while giving us the same gift. She says it like it is, like we all probably should, but may never be able to. Her ability to show such vulnerability—to anyone let alone publicly—is astonishing. Her bravery gives us hope that maybe someday we could be so honest with ourselves and others. Nessa is the best friend we all want, the kind who tattooed her best friend’s name on her body, and yet with all this depth, she’s also light, playful, funny and warm.

Nessa’s been through a lot, she ran away from home at just 17 years old and ended up making music with Travis Barker before she was even 21. This girl is on fire yet remains unjaded and committed to making music that we can dance to and feel into our feelings with. Her warmth is only matched by her beauty, yet she’s approachable, and won’t hold back to tell it like it is. Oh, and she has 56 tattoos, making her a true Inked girl. Most recently she had “13” tattooed on her neck for the number of tracks on her debut album, “young forever,” which earned over 1 billion streams.

With a new record coming and summer touring plans around the world, it’s about to be the Era of Nessa. We had a chance to meet her and get to know the girl behind the music.

You have many great tattoos; can you tell us about your first one and why you chose it? Which is your favorite? Do you have plans for more? Script saying “Heavy Soul.” I got it when I was 17 and chose it because the words were pretty, and I was going through a lot at that time. “Cooper” is my favorite—I got it in honor of my best friend. I love that I have him as a part of me always. I don’t currently have plans for any more in this moment, but I am pretty impulsive, so if I think of an idea tomorrow, I’ll probably get it!

Would you ever have a tattoo removed? No, I don’t think so. No matter what, they all have some sort of meaning to me!

You were only in your teens when you began your career in music, when did you decide to pursue music professionally and how did you get support? I grew up singing & songwriting. When I came out to LA and knew I actually had a chance, I decided to pursue it professionally. I was 17 and had an amazing support system, my manager Bree and Warner Records.

You openly share details about a difficult childhood, have you been able to forgive those who weren’t the way you wished them to be through music? Music is a form of therapy, so when I’m writing music, I’m learning more about myself. And going to hypnotherapy has helped with inner child work, so I’m at a place where I found peace and wish nothing but the best for the people of my past.

Warner signed you during the pandemic via Zoom, how did that happen? Were you surprised? I met my label while I was in the studio for the first time, so they’ve been invested since the beginning. To have that meeting virtually was so surreal, but also hard to process because it wasn’t in person.

When did you start working on your debut album “young forever”? How were you able to organize your thoughts and art? I started working when I was 17 and it took 16 months to write. Every life experience that happened within those years I made into a song, and I was constantly working with my producer Evan Blair, so we were able to just make art then organize it later.

Your music speaks to heartache, mental health and accountability, tell us more about this? For me, music is very real and I can only be my most authentic self/the real me when I express myself through music. The main struggles in my life have been mental health and heartache, so I always wanted to be the person who I needed growing up to not feel alone.

What advice do you have for others struggling with a difficult life at home, abuse and depression? The biggest thing is that nothing is ever forever, even though it feels like it. All this pain will only make you stronger and help you create a better future for yourself. I used to be so hard on myself and on how people treated me, but I’ve learned through the years that those who get hurt the most have the kindest hearts.

You were only 17 when you ran away from home and moved to LA, how did you establish yourself? I’ve had independence since I was young and I’m the type of person who always knows what I want. I’ve always been good at taking care of myself, especially when I’ve had no one else.

“When I’m able to put my feelings into songs and people are able to relate to me, it helps,” you previously said about your music. Do you feel like music helps you stay balanced? One hundred percent. My music helps me so much while I’m writing in the moment, but when it’s finally out in the world, I get to hear and recognize how much people relate to it. It really keeps me grounded.

You’ve so bravely and vulnerably shared the struggles you have, what do you think makes your generation struggle most? I think everyone struggles and ours is not afraid to be vocal/open about it. It’s become less taboo to say you struggle and luckily more people are bringing awareness around it. There are a few aspects like social media and social standards that have additionally affected struggles for Gen Z.

What’s some music you’re currently loving? I’ve been diving back into old school music like Nancy Sinatra, The Eagles, Amy Winehouse, Prince, Portishead and Lana del Rey.

With music festival season upon us, which are you excited about and who are you most excited to see? Frank Ocean at Coachella & I’m also playing some of the same festivals as Billie Eilish in Europe and I’m so excited to see her again. [Editor’s Note: This interview was conducted in early March prior to Coachella]

Describe to us your fashion style and who, if anyone, inspires you? I wear what I want to wear—edgy, free, slay.

What is your favorite thing about LA? What is a must-do? The people I have got to meet and have been with me since day one. Like any city really, just exploring something new and different is always an eye-opening experience.

Travis Barker produced a song of yours, featuring jxdn, how was that experience? One of my first songs I released was “la di die,” produced by Travis Barker. He was such a cool person to work with in the studio. I remember the days when I would sing, “I Miss You” by Blink in my bedroom when I got home from school. To go from that, to actually being in the studio with him, and him being behind me during our performances playing the drums, was insane.

Tell us about your new song, “american jesus,” and what’s next for you in music or other plans? “american jesus” was one of the first songs I wrote for my new project that’s coming out so soon. I struggle with BPD and people who struggle with that, or any other mental health issue, may relate to giving their significant others a God-like complex at first and “american jesus” is a poetic, romantic way of showing that. I’ve been working on a lot of songs since the beginning of this year and I’m excited for them to all come out because it feels like a new era and chapter in my life.

Now that your music has reached over 1 billion streams what do you hope will be next? I just want to keep making more music and tour the world.

FOR ME, MUSIC IS VERY REAL AND I CAN ONLY BE MY MOST AUTHENTIC SELF/THE REAL ME WHEN I EXPRESS MYSELF THROUGH MUSIC.

It takes power to notice when something is missing in the world, and even more to become the one to create it. For tattooer Zhenjia “Tian” Du, that missing piece was a Chinese-owned tattoo shop in Houston. In 2019, he opened Horitian Tattoo and created an environment for new tattooers to find belonging in ways he had never been able to. Specializing in Japanese-style tattoos, Horitian Tattoo possesses a full roster of passionate artists committed to lifting each other up and striving for excellence. Du took a minute to chat with us about founding his shop and what makes it stand out among the rest.

Can you introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about who you are? I graduated from an art school in China and have been in the tattoo industry for 14 years. Due to the lack of support for tattoo culture among Asians, I decided to come to Los Angeles in 2011. However, my first job was as a waiter in a Chinese restaurant. I persevered until one day, a customer from the United States

came in and his tattoos caught my attention. I discovered he was a tattoo artist. He told me how to get licensed and the process of tattooing in the United States. Afterward, I moved to Houston to start my tattooing career.

When I arrived in the city, there wasn’t a single Chinese tattoo shop, not even a Chinese tattoo artist. I felt very lonely at that time, and I had to do everything by myself in my rented apartment. I was unwilling to ask for help from my family because I was born in a small village in China, and my parents are ordinary workers. I reduced my meals from three to two per day, eating packets of inexpensive instant noodles just to get by. But I never gave up; persevering was the only thing I could do.

Later, I took on part-time jobs painting murals, which allowed more people to get to know me. The number of clients seeking tattoos from me gradually increased, and eventually, I attracted many young people with dreams who wanted to learn tattooing. Finally, I had my own tattoo shop. I wanted a group of

people with a passion for tattoos to work together, draw, tattoo and discuss techniques, no longer feeling lonely. When I was down and out, I didn’t receive encouragement or help, but in my shop, I am always willing to extend a helping hand to those who have gone through similar experiences.

How did you come up with the name for your shop? “Hori” represents the Japanese traditional style of tattooing, and it is followed by my own name, “Tian.” Many tattoo artists specializing in Japanese traditional style use names like “horixxx.” I hope that everyone can accept and appreciate our Asian tattoo style and culture.

What’s the tattoo scene like in Houston? Houston is well suited for tattoos because the city experiences very little cold weather, and people often expose more of their skin. Moreover, the people living here tend to be straightforward, open-minded, sincere and

courageous. They are unafraid to express their individuality and attitude towards life.

Tell us about the journey of finding your tattoo style. Before settling on a specific tattoo style, I experimented with various styles. However, in the end, I chose the Asian traditional style. Growing up in Asia, I was exposed to predominantly Asian-style tattoos and immersed in Asian culture. Therefore, this style has always been my greatest passion.

How would you describe the overall vibe and atmosphere of Horitian? We maintain a clean and hygienic environment within our shop, and every tattoo artist takes their clients’ skin very seriously. We have talented tattoo artists from various places, each with their own expertise in different tattoo styles. Whatever style of tattoo our customers desire, we strive to create a perfect representation on their skin.

What makes Horitian stand out amongst other

tattoo shops in the area? The Horitian Tattoo studio stands out because it is one of the few local establishments that specialize in professional Japanese traditional style tattoos. Additionally, the tattoo artists in this studio excel in other style domains as well. Regardless of the style you desire, you can expect to receive exquisite artwork here.

What do you think brought all of the artists at Horitian Tattoo together? Every tattoo artist here is extremely friendly and passionate about the art of tattooing. They are willing to dedicate their entire lives to the craft and hold themselves to high standards, constantly striving for improvement and innovation.

What’s coming up for Horitian Tattoo? In the future, we will strive to bring you more exquisite artwork and expand our presence with additional branches, aiming to provide our customers with the best experience and service possible.

Julia Penza

@juliapenza.tattoo

BY JESSE JAMES MADRE

Julia Penza discovered her artistic style of hyperrealism early in life as a child in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia. Her grandmother was a professional artist and inspiration for as long as she can remember. Drawing on the wallpaper in her childhood room, Penza continued to hone her artistic skills throughout her life. Though her path to becoming a tattoo artist wasn’t one she predicted, the pandemic shifted her plans and forced her to pivot. Three years into the game, she is showing her natural ability like a seasoned vet, creating lifelike images that seem to animate themselves on the skin of her clients. We caught up with Penza to see how a former aircraft production manager found her way into the world of tattooing.

What got you into tattooing? I was led by a combination of events and chance. I never aspired to be a tattoo artist. I was afraid that the tattoo industry would force me to get a tattoo. I had opened an art school three weeks before the pandemic and had to shut it down. It was a difficult time. I accidentally replied to an ad without very much detail that required an artist. It turned out to be a tattoo shop that was looking for an apprentice. I didn’t think it would work out but I went to the interview anyway and the owner of the shop thought my portfolio was good and that I could be a good tattooist. This inspired me a lot and I decided to study.

So you have no tattoos? I have zero tattoos on my body, but tattoos are in my heart. This is a question I get asked frequently. At first, I was embarrassed, most tattoo artists have tattoos. But it’s [not] neces sary. The professionalism of a tattoo artist should be indicated by their portfolio, not by the tattoos made by another person.

Most people take years to find their style and hone it, but you’ve seemed to find yours right out of the gate. Your tattoos have stunning depth and movement to them. What inspired this attention to lifelike detail? I have been drawing since childhood. My grandmother was an artist, and though she didn’t give me lessons, I learned from her paintings, just looking at them for hours and trying to recreate what I analyzed. I considered every detail and studied colors, proportions, light and shadow. By the age of 14, I was painting portraits in realism, which is still my favorite style.

How’d you link up Dave Bautista and John Kural at DC Society Ink?

One day I got a message on Facebook from John Kural. He said that he and his partner, actor Dave Bautista, were opening a tattoo parlor in Tampa and were looking for tattoo artists. At first I thought, “Who is Dave Bautista?” I opened the internet and was surprised [to see] that this is the hero Drax from one of my favorite films, “Guardians of the Galaxy.” I said I was interested. But I was skeptical about the proposal, since the second thought was that they were scammers. After three months, I still got an interview

So, since January 2022, I have been working at the DC Society Ink Studio.

How has the move to tattooing enriched your life? The tattoo industry has become a platform for real art. Good artists can show their professionalism and still make good money. Participation in conventions and guest spots make work diverse. In general, I am grateful for all the experiences and people in my life who brought me to the current moment.

Three years in and you seem to have quite a grip on your craft. What would you like to accomplish in the future as far as your art and career? I want to grow, personally. I want to be a professional in my field and share my experience with others. I am very satisfied with my current position. I gained a lot of experience in a new field. I have opportunities for self-realization and development. In 10 years, I think I will still be doing tattoos. I like to share ideas and teach.

victoria lee

@victorialeetattoo

BY JONNY WATSON

Victoria Lee was drawn to art from a very young age, but the idea of becoming a tattoo artist wasn’t even on her radar. Lee grew up in Beijing at a time when tattoos were still considered to be heavily taboo. On top of that, information and equipment were scarce. After a family tragedy, Lee considered getting a portrait tattoo to honor her grandfather, and during her research for an artist a new and fascinating world was revealed. At that moment she knew exactly what she wanted to do with her life and hasn’t looked back since.

Can you introduce yourself and tell us a little about who you are?

Hi! I am Victoria Lee. I am a tattooer focused on hyperrealism. I started tattooing nine years ago. I am based in Beijing. I will start traveling at the end of this year.

When did you first become interested in art? When I was little, I tried different things, including a wide variety of sports and musical instruments. Art was the only thing that kept me immersed, and soon I found that I’m very good at painting. When I was 4, I could draw sketches that surpassed my peers. I thought maybe I have some talent for art, so I went to art school. When I was 18, I took the college entrance examination and I ranked first place among more than 600,000 art candidates.

When did you first become interested in tattooing? I’ve always loved tattoo culture, but what really got me interested in tattoos was my grandpa who died in a car accident. I was raised by my grandpa, so I wanted to get a portrait tattoo in his honor. This way my grandpa will stay with me forever in another way. But in China around 2008, it was difficult to find a realistic tattoo artist, especially one who could do portraits. Most tattoo artists mainly focused on Asian-style tattoos. So I started trying to follow some tattoo artists on Instagram, and I saw a very different tattoo world. Deeply attracted, I decided to become a tattoo artist.

What was the tattoo scene like in Beijing as you were growing up? How has it changed over the years? The tattoo scene in Beijing has changed very quickly in the past 20 years. When I was young, people with tattoos would be considered bad people. The price of a tattoo was very low and you hardly saw people with

tattoos on the street. By 2010, with the development of social media, you saw more and more influencers and celebrities posting their tattoos, making tattoos really popular. But very few tattoo artists could do good work—if you wanted good work you didn’t have many artists to choose from, so the price of tattoos has become very high. In 2015, a full back piece made by the top artist could cost $200,000. Now, there are more than 500,000 tattoo artists here in China. There are many young artists with different styles emerging, and the prices have become more reasonable. Most people’s perception of tattoos has also changed, as tattoos are no longer associated with bad guys or gangsters.

How did you start tattooing? I started tattooing in the summer of 2014. At that time, the internet was not so developed, and everyone’s posts were mainly in the form of pictures and text, so you couldn’t watch a lot of good tattoo artists’ online seminars on social media. In China, if you are trying to start learning to tattoo, you need to find a master, like how you [would] want to learn kung fu from a master. My teacher is Xiangwei Meng, he currently works in LA at Jess Yen’s tattoo studio.

How did you come to find your current style? What drew you to color realism? In the beginning, I just did the most common realistic tattoos. After that, I gradually added my own understanding, I wanted it to be more like a photo on top of regular realistic tattoos. I wanted a clearer black-and-grey relationship, more accurate facial structure, richer light tones. After I made sure that my healed work met my requirements I started trying color realism. But in fact, there are very few colorful realistic tattooers in China. Another factor is that the equipment gap makes it more difficult for me to make realistic tattoos. I am very grateful that I was lucky enough to be selected by the top tattoo supply companies in the world to get sponsorships, that gave me a lot of confidence. I have done hundreds of color realistic works in the past few years. What attracts me most to colorful realistic tattoos is that you can use different colors to express the emotions of the reference. Another factor is that I really enjoy making family tattoos. In China, many people think that black-and-grey represents the relatives who have passed away, which is why it was important for me to try to do color.

What is the most difficult aspect of working in realism? I think it’s the accuracy. My style is hyperrealism, so I want my work to look extremely like the reference after it’s healed. With the development of cartridge machines, inks and aftercare products, we can make tattoos more and more accurate. But the skin is never a canvas—the skin is not flat, you need to try to avoid pattern deformation due to muscles and joints. And the same pigment appears differently on each person.

What are some tattoo motifs you’ll never get sick of doing? I think I will never get sick of making family portraits. First of all, I think they are very interesting because every client will provide you with a different reference and some are very fun and unique. If the reference of the tattoo is a newborn or a lover, I will feel honored to share their joy or emotion. If the reference of the tattoo is a lost relative, I am also very happy to help the people who still deeply love them. It is very important that I can feel that the world is still full of love during the process of tattooing.

What do you think you’d be doing if you weren’t a tattoo artist? In college I majored in environmental art design. The only job I had before becoming a tattoo artist was a fashion designer, so if I weren’t a tattooist, I’d probably start my own clothing brand. But I think I’d rather be a tattooer because you can buy a lot of clothes, and you can change them every day. But everyone’s skin is limited, and you can only have limited tattoos on limited skin. The number of tattoos that each tattoo artist can make in his career is also limited. So for me, every tattoo is super limited edition.

pablo frias

@pablo frias.tattoo

BY JONNY WATSON

All it takes is a quick glance at his work to understand that Pablo Frías’ mind works a little differently than most. His tattoos are vibrant and frenetic, combining images that are familiar in unfamiliar ways. Every piece is a pop culture mash-up you didn’t know you’d been yearning to see until the very moment you lay eyes upon it. We spoke with the Argentinian-born tattooer who calls NYC his home these days about his start in the industry, the thought process behind his work and much more.

When did you first become interested in art? I became interested in art as a child. When I’d walk back from school, l would pass a local tattoo shop, look in the window and see the guys working. I never went in, but I would watch them and fantasize that one day I would be a tattoo artist. When I was around 15, my older friends started getting tattoos and I was able to see it up close and sought the possibility.

How did you start tattooing? Did you have an apprenticeship? I started investigating on my own how to tattoo, then l got a job at a tattoo shop. I started doing lines and shades and simple stuff. l was able to watch other tattoo artists and also watched tutorials. Little by little I just started learning. I wasn’t perfect at the beginning, but I tried my best to become better and learn the trade.

How would you describe your signature style? How long did it take you to find it? I would just describe it as the result of all the years of designing and creating tattoos. I developed the style by mixing different things like realism, cartoons and graphic letters.

I started with new school, then l did realism, and little by little, I started uniting all these factors trying to find my own style. I don’t really think my style is my final signature because the truth is that with art you never stop learning and every day you are able to learn new things to develop your craft.

Your tattoos are insanely vibrant! What attracts you to such bright colors? What are some of the challenges in making tattoos that are so bright? Do you worry about longevity? I just like the vibrant outcome. To get the result l try my best to inject the color correctly, be patient and leave a solid base. Also adding the right amount of black to make the tattoo last longer. There are challenges, but you have to face them as they come, understanding the process and the timing, being careful to saturate the areas without damaging the skin.

Your tattoos also have an interesting balance between realistic elements, lettering and cartoonish illustration. How do you create this balance? Does it vary based on the subject matter? Explaining how to create a balance is not easy. It just happens, l guess. Sometimes l use the idea from the client and put all the elements together that I use to create my style, and I start with a picture or a character that l like. It can be a movie character or an iconic image—l just move them around and create the elements to establish my style

What are some tattoo motifs you’ll never get sick of doing? Hopefully I will never be sick of doing my 3D designs of images from the ’90s, l have a lot of fun making portraits from that era.

What are some tattoo motifs you’d be happy to never do again? Regular commercial tattoos never made me happy. l started my career doing quotes and infinity symbols, and l really hope l don’t have to do them again [laughs].

What is the strangest pop culture mash-up you’ve done so far? All my tattoos are unique to every client, but if l had to pick one to be strange l would pick the one from the movie “Fight Club.” l mixed a character from “Rick and Morty” who reminded me of the duality of the main character played by Brad Pitt. That one is one of my favorites!

Where do you see your art going in the future? Do you work in any mediums other than tattooing? I picture my future increasing my knowledge in this artistic medium, and consequently I’ll continue to travel all over the world, meeting many amazing artists. l can keep learning about this industry l love so much. I always draw on paper with color pencils, but lately l have been interested in graffiti art, reproducing my colorful designs on walls with spray cans and different mediums.

What do you think you’d be doing if you weren’t a tattoo artist? Most likely If l wasn’t a tattoo artist, l would be a dentist [laughs]. I really like that it was the [original] plan [laughs].

Arbel

BY JONNY WATSON

Think back to when you got your very first tattoo and answer this question truthfully—were you afraid to tell your mom about it? Despite being more mainstream than ever before, getting tattooed is still an act of rebellion for many of us, and breaking the news to mom is never easy. Los Angeles-based tattoo artist Arbel had a different experience than most: It was her mother who pushed her to explore tattooing. And we’re glad she did. In only four years working as a pro, Arbel has created a style that is uniquely her own.

When did you first become interested in art? Growing up, I was always fascinated with art, although I didn’t feel as drawn to it until I was in high school. My intention was never to become a tattoo artist, I genuinely liked the process of drawing and painting and decided to start taking it more seriously. I decided pretty quickly that I wasn’t interested in going to a traditional university, and my parents let me start homeschooling in order to invest more time into practicing and exploring different mediums. My first goal was to sell fine art and create a name for myself in that world.

What made you want to become a tattooer? My first apprenticeship was actually for a painter. I would literally paint his paintings for him as he continued to take commissions and have galleries. This made me realize how much passion can be taken out of fine art when you make it a career. The apprenticeship only lasted a few weeks and I went back to focusing on my own pieces. Then my mom actually suggested I consider tattooing as an additional job while I built my reputation as a fine artist. She thought it was a good way to make enough money practically so I wouldn’t have to worry about whether or not my art was being sold. I felt pretty indifferent about it at first but thought there was no reason why I shouldn’t try it out.

How did you start tattooing? Did you have another apprenticeship? I was still in high school and, it sounds lame, but my mom actually helped me find an apprenticeship program where you pay the shop a fee and they take you on and teach you the fundamentals of tattooing. About halfway through my time being there, I realized that the entire structure of that program wasn’t respected in the community, and that it was mostly catered to getting the shop more money and not encouraging beginning artists to be independent—there wasn’t much space for growth or individuality. Even though it wasn’t ideal, I figured I should just finish it and get my license through the shop. Three years later, when I was just about to turn 19, I finally started tattooing on skin. From there I got a job at a new shop that let me challenge myself more and shortly after that I started working in my own studio.

Your style is very recognizable. There are levels of black-andgrey realism but also stippling and dot work. How do you describe your style? Now that I’ve been tattooing for about four years, I’ve developed a style I would describe as a more illustrative black-and-grey realism that is sometimes mixed with abstract elements. In the past, I never knew what to say when people asked me what my style was. I hear a lot from my clients that my tattoos tend to look like drawings rather than realistic photos, which I never noticed myself, but it does make sense considering my background before tattooing.

What is the most difficult aspect of working in your style? I feel pretty confident in my technical skill when it comes to tattooing, although I think what is most challenging is finding new and creative ways to execute my style in designs that aren’t so traditional and overdone.

Also, creating a realistic face is super important. When I do any tattoo involving a human subject, I try to do the face before anything else. I think it’s vital to capture the expression as well as the accurate proportions and shadows. How well a face is done will determine how realistic a drawing will actually look.

A lot of your more recent work includes thick line illustrations alongside the realism. Can you tell us where this inspiration came from and why you think it’s effective in your art? I recently started experimenting with abstract bold lines to contrast with my very detailed work. I had done this a few times before when I was focusing on traditional art. You can see it in some of my framed art pieces which included realistic portraits I drew, then I did an abstract version of it blasted over. When I remembered those pieces, I decided to try to incorporate it into my tattoos and see how it translated. People started to really gravitate towards those pieces and I really enjoy working with the compositions, so I try to throw that into my designs whenever I can.

You seem to be drawn to the Old West and cowboys. Why do you think that is? I genuinely love the aesthetic of the Old West, especially when there are horses incorporated into the piece! The old western style stuck because it was some of the first tattoos I shared using the abstract line work style and people really gravitated towards it.

What inspires you? I tend to try and not look too often at other artists with a similar style as me so I can keep on my own path and try to stay as original to myself as I can. From time to time I stumble upon some really creative new styles done by artists around the world, and I think that keeps me inspired to continue to grow with my own designs.

My main inspiration comes from vintage illustrations, photography and other references I pull together to create new designs. I find that with vintage references I love the clothing much more and the lighting is super appealing to me.

Where do you see your art going in the future? Tattooing has been a great way for me to create a name and platform for myself, although in the future I hope I go back to my roots in fine art. I want to start selling big pieces of artwork and create paintings for my clients. I think that is the direction I would have pursued, even if I never tattooed. I’ve also started to work on designing some clothes, they should be coming out in the next few months and I’m very excited to see where that goes! I would say my goal in the future is to be considered as more of an established and well-rounded artist, not just a tattoo artist.