Tattoo Nightmares: Miami

male announcer: NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE,

THERE'S NOTHING WORSE THAN A BAD TATTOO.

NOW, THREE ARTISTS HAVE COME TOGETHER

TO TAKE ON MIAMI'S MOST IMPOSSIBLE TATTOO NIGHTMARES.

- MIAMI'S MY HOME. YOU'RE IN MY HOUSE, NOW.

- DON'T LET THIS PRETTY FACE FOOL YOU.

I AM ALL BUSINESS, BABY.

- LOVE ME OR HATE ME, MY WORK ALWAYS SPEAKS FOR ITSELF.

announcer: THEY'RE GOING UP AGAINST

THE MOST INSANE ORIGINAL TATTOOS...

- I WANT A TATTOO IN MY ARMPIT.

SERIOUSLY, THE ARMPIT?

announcer: AND OUTRAGEOUS COVER-UPS.

- WAIT, WHY THE NIPPLE, OUT OF ALL THE PLACES?

CALL 911!

DAMN!

announcer: THIS IS MIAMI.

- WHERE'S NOON? NOONERS IS LATE.

YEAH.

- HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED, LIKE, WHAT NOON DID

IN LIKE, HIGH SCHOOL?

THE ONLY REAL THING I KNOW ABOUT HIM IS THAT HE'S A LADIES' MAN.

HE IS THE BEAUTY IN THIS SHOP.

- THAT REALLY BOOSTS MY SELF-ESTEEM.

YOU'RE THE HAWK.

THAT'S LIKE A TOTALLY DIFFERENT, EDGY BEAUTY.

- YOU HAVEN'T BEEN HERE TEN MINUTES

AND YOU'RE ALREADY DIGGING A HOLE.

REESE BETTER WATCH OUT.

FROM MY YEARS DOWN IN TEXAS RUNNING WITH BIKERS,

TO MY TIME ON INK MASTER, I'VE SEEN IT ALL.

SHE CAN BAT HER EYELASHES ALL SHE WANTS,

BUT SHE CAN'T B.S. THIS GUY

THAT GIRL'S LUCKY SHE'S CUTE, MAN.

- LOOK WHO IT IS, NOONERS. HOW WAS YOUR NIGHT?

- ALL RIGHT. HOW WAS YOUR NIGHT?

- AW. SEE THAT?

A LIL' SUGAR-SHUG

IN THE MORNIN'.

YOU MUST'VE ALWAYS HAD THAT SWAG.

- UH, I GUESS I'VE ALWAYS BEEN KIND OF LIKE, YOU KNOW, A LOVER.

MIAMI'S MY HOME. I LOVE THIS CITY.

BUT AS A NUYORICAN, BORN AND RAISED...

I GUESS LOVE IS JUST IN MY BLOOD, MAN.

HEY, WHAT WERE YOU LIKE IN HIGH SCHOOL?

- PEOPLE WERE ALWAYS LIKE, "SHE'S SO WEIRD...

BUT I DON'T KNOW, I KIND OF LIKE HER."

WHAT YEAR DID YOU GRADUATE?

WHY DO YOU WANT TO KNOW?

- DON'T BE SNOOTY, OKAY? DON'T PULL THAT CALIFORNIA CRAP.

- YOU ALREADY PULLED IT OUT OF ME THIS MORNING.

WHOA!

- REALLY? REALLY, YOU GUYS?

- ONE MORE TIME, BABY. ONE MORE TIME.

YOU GUYS ARE SO IMMATURE.

WHY IS IT THAT EVERYWHERE I WORK, FROM L.A. TO MIAMI,

IT SEEMS LIKE I'M ALWAYS THE ONLY FEMALE IN THE STUDIO.

BUT, HEY, DON'T LET THIS SWEET EXTERIOR FOOL YOU.

I CAN MORE THAN HANDLE MYSELF

AND I ALWAYS KEEP THE BOYS IN LINE.

DON'T DENY IT.

HONEY, YOU WISH.

HOW'S IT GOING?

- HEY. HOW YA DOIN'? - GOOD, I'M LOOKING FOR CLINT.

- HERE I IS. - HOW YA DOIN'? I'M JASON.

- JASON, WHAT BRINGS YOU IN HERE, BUDDY?

- MAN, I GOT A TATTOO OUT OF SOME ANGER,

AND IT IS DESTROYING MY LIFE.

- LET ME SEE IT. WHAT IS IT?

WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?

"GET EFFED"? DAMN!

DON'T BEAT AROUND THE BUSH! JUST LET 'EM KNOW HOW YOU FEEL.

- EVERY TIME I LOOK AT MY "GET EFFED" TATTOO,

I THINK ABOUT THE DESTRUCTION OF MY LIFE.

IT JUST MAKES ME THINK OF MY FAILED MARRIAGE.

THE TATTOO GIVES ME NOTHING BUT TROUBLE.

- THAT RIGHT THERE, HAS TO BE TAKEN CARE OF.

THAT'S GOOD.

- I GOTTA COVER UP THIS CRAZY, BLACK SOLID...

I MEAN, YOU MIGHT AS WELL BE GRABBIN' MY ANKLES ON THIS ONE.

SEEMS LIKE THE ONLY GUY AROUND HERE GETTING EFFED IS ME.

FIRST OF ALL, LETTERING IS, BY FAR,

THE HARDEST THING TO COVER BECAUSE WE'RE SO TRAINED

TO RECOGNIZE LETTERS RIGHT AWAY.

WHY DON'T YOU STEP INTO MY OFFICE?

JASON'S TATTOO IS REALLY DIFFICULT

NOT ONLY BECAUSE IT'S LETTERING,

BUT BECAUSE IT'S PROFESSIONALLY DONE.

I'M A 20-YEAR VETERAN, AND IT LOOKS LIKE I DID IT.

IT'S A RARITY THAT I SEE ANYTHING JUST THAT OFFENSIVE,

JUST BLATANTLY OUT THERE LIKE THAT.

WHAT'S THAT LIKE, LIVING WITH THAT THING?

- IT'S ROUGH, MAN. FOR A LONG TIME, MAN,

IT WAS HARD TO FIND A GIRL, YA KNOW.

DATES DIDN'T GO WELL. THEY'D SEE IT.

THEY DIDN'T LIKE IT. CAN'T EVEN GET A JOB.

- I COULDN'T IMAGINE JUST PLANNING MY WARDROBE AND MY DAY

BASED ON A TATTOO LIKE THAT. - YUP.

- WHAT DO YOU GOT IN YOUR THOUGHT PROCESS

AS FAR AS A COVER-UP?

I WAS IN THE MILITARY.

I'D LIKE TO COMMEMORATE THE FALLEN

AND I'D LIKE TO GET A WOMAN CARRYING A WEAPON

AND IN FATIGUES.

I GAVE EVERYTHING TO THE MILITARY

AND I RESPECT ANYBODY WHO HAS EVER DONE THAT.

WOMEN, EVEN MORE SO.

- IT'S GONNA BE A CHALLENGE, THOUGH...

ASKING FOR A PORTRAIT KIND OF STYLE

ON TOP OF OLD ENGLISH LETTERS THAT ARE DONE PROFESSIONALLY?

TELL YOU WHAT.

WHY DON'T WE TAKE A TRIP OVER TO THE STATION?

LET ME SEE WHAT I CAN COME UP WITH.

KINDA STRESSING OUT HERE.

DOING A PORTRAIT-STYLE TATTOO AS A COVER-UP

IS INSANELY HARD AS IT IS.

AND ON TOP OF THAT, ME AND PORTRAITS,

WE GOT A ROCKY PAST.

LAST TIME I TRIED TO ATTEMPT A COLOR PORTRAIT,

I WAS ON INK MASTER.

I BASICALLY BOMBED IT WHEN IT CAME TO THE COLOR PORTRAIT.

THE TATTOO YOU DID, TODAY...

NOT A GOOD REPRESENTATION OF WHAT YOU'RE CAPABLE OF.

- THIS WAS A BIG KICK IN THE ASS.

- YOUR TATTOO IS THE WORST ONE, TODAY.

THERE'S NO MORE ROOM FOR COMEBACKS.

- IT WAS SO ROUGH ON ME THAT I HAVEN'T DONE A PORTRAIT SINCE.

BUT YOU KNOW ME AND I'M NOT ONE TO BACK DOWN FROM A CHALLENGE.

I GOTTA REALLY JUST TAKE MY TIME.

HEY, WHAT'S UP, MAN?

HOW YOU DOING? - HOW'S IT GOIN'?

- I'M GOOD, HOW ARE YOU? WHAT'S YOUR NAME?

- CHY TEA. - CHY TEA!

ONLY IN MIAMI.

SO, WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?

- I WOULD LIKE A TATTOO THAT YOU PROBABLY DON'T WANT

TO BE A PART OF.

- SO WHERE'S THIS DIFFICULT AREA YOU'VE GOT?

- I WANT IT RIGHT FROM HERE, TO HERE.

- YOUR ELBOW. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

THIS IS LIKE, ONE OF THE MOST PAINFUL AREAS

TO GET TATTOOED.

- I KNOW, WHEN I WENT TO OTHER TATTOO PLACES,

NOBODY WANTED TO EVEN TOUCH THE ELBOW.

EVERYBODY WAS SCARED.

SO, I CAME TO TATTOO NIGHTMARES TO GET IT DONE.

THEY'RE MY LAST HOPE.

- AND YOU ARE A BONY MAN. WE GOT A BONY ELBOW RIGHT HERE.

YOU'RE NOT MAKING IT EASY ON A GIRL.

- THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE TATTOO NIGHTMARES, SO LIKE--

- HA HA. WHOA! HEY, I'M JUST GIVING YOU THE PROBLEM.

IT DOESN'T MEAN I WON'T TAKE IT. - OH, FOR SURE.

- DOESN'T MEAN I WON'T DO IT. - OKAY, OKAY.

- THE ELBOW IS REALLY DIFFICULT TO TATTOO

BECAUSE OF THE LOOSE SKIN, IT'S IN A BONY AREA,

YOU HAVE A LOT OF STRETCHING, AND YOU REALLY CAN'T EVEN GET

A LOT OF SUBSTANTIAL ART ON THERE.

WHAT ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT GETTING?

- WELL, I'M AN ARTIST. - OH, AWESOME, OKAY.

- SO I HAVE TWO OF MY CHARACTERS

SPRAY PAINTING... - OKAY!

ON A WYNWOOD SIGN.

- WHAT'S WYNWOOD? IS THAT LIKE A--

- WYNWOOD IS THE ART DISTRICT OF MIAMI.

CAN I SEE YOUR CHARACTERS?

- YEAH. FOR SURE, FOR SURE.

THIS IS BUCK T.

I'M A FULL-TIME ARTIST. A PROFESSIONAL ARTIST.

I WANT THIS TATTOO ON MY ELBOW BECAUSE THE CONTRAST

AND THE TEXTURE IN MY ARM WILL BRING OUT THE BEST IN THE PIECE.

- ARE YOU SURE? - FOR SURE.

YEAH. MM-HMM. - THAT ELBOW, MAN.

'CAUSE LIKE, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT BONES, GOTTA BEAR WITH IT.

- YEAH, IT'S GONNA BE A REAL NIGHTMARE.

- IT'S GONNA BE A REAL NIGHTMARE--FOR THE BOTH OF US--

FOR YOU AND FOR ME.

BUT YOU KNOW WHAT, IF YOU'RE DOWN, I'M DOWN.

- LET'S DO THIS. - YEAH?

- YEAH, YUP. - YOU READY?

MY BIG BREAK IN THE ART WORLD CAME AS A FINE ARTIST

IN OIL PAINTINGS, BUT GRAFFITI ART IS WAY DIFFERENT.

SO, I'M PRETTY NERVOUS ABOUT THIS.

- I'M FAMILIAR WITH THESE WYNWOOD CATS.

YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SAYIN'? I MEAN, LIKE THAT AND--

- OH, YEAH, DUH! YOU ARE FROM HERE.

SO AM I DOING HIM JUSTICE OR WHAT? WHAT AM I DOING?

- I LIKE IT. YOU CALLED ON YOUR INNER-HOOD

FOR THAT ONE. I JUST HOPE HE CAN TAKE

GETTIN' BLASTED ON THE ELBOW LIKE THAT.

YEAH, HE WAS LIKE,

OH, WELL, I THOUGHT THAT THIS WAS TATTOO NIGHTMARES

AND I THOUGHT THAT YOU GUYS WERE THE BEST OF THE BEST.

- OH, GET OUT OF HERE! HE TRIED YOU, MAN?

- I WAS LIKE, "WHAT?" - IF YOU NEED ANY HELP,

IF HE TRIES YOU AGAIN-- - OH, YEAH.

- JUST LET ME KNOW. - I WILL.

- GOOD LUCK. - YEAH, I'MA NEED IT.

- HI, HOW YOU DOIN'? - NO WORRIES.

GOOD TO MEET YOU! I'M LOURDES. - GOOD TO MEET YOU, TOO.

- SO, WHAT'S GOIN' ON HERE, MAMA?