[Tatti] - I still want to own my own
shop one day, so I'm gonna show them
that I know how to bring money into the shop.
This is my time to shine.
[cash register dinging]
- Hello. Mr. Bux that likes to [bleep].
- Get this girl out of here, bro.
Me and this girl had a brief thing.
- Oh, and the [blank] you talked about Spyder's wife
and her [bleep] tummy tuck.
- Easy!
[Bux] - I said what?
- Easy!
- I love you more than my real brother, bro.
Are we cool?
- I don't [bleep] with this [bleep].
Period.
- I'm no longer allowing certain [bleep].
- But that's every tattoo artist's dream
to have their own studio.
- It's either you're going with me
or you're gonna be my competition.
- I feel like I've communicated myself on so many occasions
and I feel like it's not getting noted, bro.
We've gotta be on the same page with Gods of Ink.
I'm gonna have to talk to Ceaser myself.
- I don't hate you, Krystal. I actually [bleep] with you.
I'd have put the money to make a bigger spot.
We make a deal?
- Yeah, I want a bigger spot. Yeah.
- I've got some bad news for y'all.
- Oh, [bleep].
- Yeah, we're closing down 125th.
So the whole squad from 125th
is gonna be in the Brooklyn shop.
- This is like the second baby.
To see this one close, like,
this one hits a little different.
Black Ink is attached to Harlem,
and there's no more Harlem shops.
- ♪ Hey ♪
♪ Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey ♪
♪ Hey, hey, hey ♪
♪ Drop, drop ♪
♪ Hey, hey, hey ♪♪
♪♪
- ♪ Yeah I'm gonna be rich ♪
♪ Go get that money and feel like a fast car ♪
♪ I feel like a NASCAR ♪
♪ I feel like it's nasty, I feel like it's nasty ♪♪
[Tatti] - Can I get two fingers up
if you can hear me, please?
Two fingers up if you can hear me,
two fingers up if you can hear me.
[Spyder] - Huh?
- Now that I have everybody's attention,
I would just like to officially welcome
125th up in the building.
Thank you, thank you.
Okay, thanks for being here.
- Welcome, guys. Welcome, welcome, welcome.
- So let's keep it cool.
You know, like, same vibes as the other night, right?
Everybody had a good time at the-- the roller-skating.
- We sure did, we sure did. - The Puma Production.
- Bro, why didn't nobody warm me about them doughnuts?
[Bux laughing]
[Rok] - Look at Bux.
Bux is gone!
He's not coming to work tomorrow!
[Bux laughing]
- Bux, stop laughing! Oh, my God!
- I can't!
I had three of them.
- Hold on a second.
So when the invitation was sent out that it was
a 4/20 roller-skating party, you needed another warning?
- They just said, "Hey, here come these doughnuts."
I thought they was giving out snacks.
[man] - Oh, yeah, snacks.
[Tatti] - Wow.
- I ate so many doughnuts that I wasn't even able to process
the fact that Ceaser mentioned the merge.
[Ceaser speaking in distorted tone]
Bro, there's mad people in here.
- You tattooing? - Yeah.
- Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait...
- This is gonna be a problem.
Um, there's, like, one, two, three, four, five, six...
Yeah.
Ain't enough booths for everybody to set up,
so where are y'all gonna tattoo at, bro?
- Oh, [bleep], uh...
- Dilemma. - What happened?
- There's not enough booths for as many artists as there is,
and everybody has appointments around the same time.
- Oh, so y'all think I'm in charge?
'Cause I'm really just an AP.
- Wait, so you put your manager role on backburner
to be an apprentice?
- Uh, yes.
- That's why you thought you wasn't supposed to
take care of this situation?
- You thought...
- What do you think is more important: her manager role
or her apprenticeship role?
- The manager role.
- But it's not about us. It's about her.
- But what's the right move for the brand?
[Vanity] - She can help.
Oh, that-- that makes sense.
- Did y'all want me to chime in on the conversation
you guys are having about me?
- Yeah, you're good, you're good--
- Did you want my input? - Since you're here and all.
- Wow!
Since everybody seems to be a little confused
with my role here, allow me to clarify.
Yes, I was the manager at Black Ink: Brooklyn,
but now I am an apprentice.
[Spyder] - Tatti, there's more
artists coming in.
You might not have no space after your apprenticeship.
- I decided to take a step down so I could learn about
all of the roles of the tattoo shop,
including being an artist.
However, I can manage with my eyes closed,
so watch me work.
Okay, so we've got Jems over here,
we've got Vanity over here, we've got Spydy over here,
we've got Alex in the back.
That looks nice for you right there.
- Okay.
- And we're good to go. Problem solved.
See? Was that hard?
[man] - Hey!
- Oh, [bleep].
[Rok] - Guess who's back?
- Oh, [bleep]!
- We're back.
- We're back! - We're back.
- Damn, it's looking tight up in here.
- Oh... - Yo.
- How is everything?
- Um, I feel like we-- we came back to, like,
show our faces and say that we're back.
[Alex chuckling]
- So what about Gods of Ink?
- Yeah, right. What's happening with that?
- You wanna tell 'em?
- So we talked to Ceaser at the 4/20 party
and we agreed to be Black Ink: Jersey.
[cheers and applause]
Ahh!
I'm happy we could finally make a deal with Ceaser,
because he finally respected me as a fellow entrepreneur.
And you know I couldn't give up having a bigger shop.
- I personally commend you guys. I think it's a great decision.
[Tatti] - Yeah, I guess.
[Alex laughing]
- You sound salt-- why do you sound salty?
- That's [bleep]. I'm super salty.
This is not about Rok and Krystal.
This is about how Ceaser has been giving me the runaround
as to why I can't open up my own shop for so long...
- If you wanna really do this and say you wanna own a shop,
show me that you really ready for this [bleep].
- I'm trying.
- All right, dude, what do you wanna talk to me about?
- Could I open up a Black Ink: Long Island?
You know the last time we spoke about Black Ink: Long Island...
- Let me think about it. - Think about it.
- The only reason I did the apprenticeship
is to prove to Ceaser that I'm willing to learn
everything there is about the industry
so that next time I talk to him about having my own shop,
he can't say nothing.
Ceaser's constantly overlooking my contribution to this brand.
He makes decisions while being unaware
of how it affects the shop,
and then we-- I mean me...
has to figure out a way on how to fix it.
So, like, where's Ceaser?
Where's Ted? Where's Puma?
I commend y'all.
I feel, like, you know, y'all... y'all did the right thing.
- ♪ Uh-uh and to the sun like ants ♪
♪ Yeah it's summertime with all your friends ♪
♪ Yeah it's summertime with all your friends ♪♪
[Spyder] - Yeah, I like this.
I like the texture on this. This is dope.
- Made it for you. - That's the new sample.
- Yeah, this is the new sample come up.
- Yeah, that's fire, Willy. - Mm-hmm.
- Ooh, it's fancy in here!
[Spyder] - Yo, what's up?
A couple of my homies right here.
- Hey, what's going on, man? - My boy Willy.
- My man Willy.
- You know what I mean? This is my guy Rok right here.
- Oh, what's good?
- There's a lot going on over here.
- Yo, listen, guys and girls. It's a Branded Content affair.
I had the homey Rok and Alex come through
to show 'em what's really going on.
When I'm not slinging ink, I'm slinging thread-- you dig?
- Yo, that's hard.
- Yeah, this ain't out yet, baby.
Yeah, that ain't on the street yet.
- Exclusive?
- This is definitely a sneak preview.
You know what I mean? Word.
"Time to make the doughnuts."
- That's hard.
- Some real sorcery going on here.
You know what I mean? I call it "fashion sorcery."
- Real creative, my boy.
- You're doing a lot of [bleep] big moves.
- Yeah, I like this for you.
- Speaking of businesses, branding.
Gods of Ink, Bayonne Black Ink, Jer-- whatever.
How does it feel being the newest boss at Black Ink, Rok?
[Rok sighing] - This is a big step, bro.
Like, Black Ink got a big name. A lot of people are gonna come.
- You like-- you like Black Ink: Jersey
other than Black Ink: Bayonne?
- I feel like if it's Black Ink: Bayonne,
a lot of people are gonna think this is, like, France.
♪♪
[Spyder] - So what you think?
Somebody gonna make an accident and go to [bleep] France?
- Yo, bro, they was like, "Yo, Rihanna moved to Bayonne."
Everybody in my city went crazy.
They're like, "Yo, Rihanna up in Bayonne."
No, [bleep], she in France.
- What the [bleep]?
- Yo, you know she ain't coming to Jersey.
- But-- all right, so are y'all and Cease partners,
or is, like, Cease the boss?
- To be honest, man, I don't even know.
Really, I've gotta just wait
'til that paperwork's in front of me.
Basically, I wasn't even expecting
the deal to go down that night.
But I'm feeling blessed 'cause for a while there,
I didn't think there was gonna be a future
with us and Black Ink.
So when we shook hands, I was excited.
I'm just hoping that this contract is official,
and I just hope the [bleep] goes good in the end.
- Nah, I'm sure it will, I'm sure it will.
You're Gucci, I'm Gucci, we all Gucci.
♪♪
- ♪ One two show 'em what you got ♪
♪ Three four I'ma drop it like it's hot ♪
♪ Getting money piling up my stacks ♪♪
- This is crazy.
So nobody knows how to sanitize,
nobody knows how to [bleep] clean.
- Oh, there it goes.
Hey, Tatti. Good morning.
It's nice and cool in here and...
- It's clean. - ...quiet.
- Super clean, right? - I like the level of silence.
- Just [bleep] wait on it
because it's a [bleep] madhouse in here.
- That's how it's been?
- What?
Between Brooklyn and 125th, it's, like...
- How many people is in here? Like, 22?
- Bro, it's like we've got so many bodies in here right now
that it's hella messy.
So I've been here for an hour, cleaning.
You should've seen this place. It's crazy.
Not for nothing, I'm the AP right now, but, like...
I feel like I'm managing too.
[Puma] - What the hell did me and Ted
just walk into?
Ceaser's down in Atlanta,
and we just came to check out the employees
to see what was going on.
And we did not expect to hear that the shop
is in complete chaos.
- We have no stations.
We're losing clients because the scheduling is a disaster.
[Puma] - Yeah, we know this whole
merger thing happened pretty fast,
but we thought Ceaser had a whole game plan,
but it's looking like he didn't.
- It's just not fair right now. I feel some type of way.
- I get it.
This could have been handled way better,
but we appreciate you being the...
...whatever you wanna call it that you do.
[Ted chuckling]
I don't wanna give you a title.
I feel like the title's, like, [bleep] it all up.
- I don't even think it's about the titles for me anymore.
I just feel like, "How much longer do I have to wait
"to keep talking to Ceaser about
"opening up a Black Ink: Long Island
and how much longer am I gonna get a runaround?"
Like, do you guys know anything?
Like, is it happening or is it not?
Because I'm just really looking for an answer.
- I don't know what that man be thinking.
- Can you just, like,
put yourself in my shoes for a second?
Like, it feels like Rok and Krystal are being rewarded
for breaking the rules,
and here I am, literally, just trying to see what we're doing
and what comes next to be a part of Black Ink
and it just feels like... games.
- When it comes to Tatti, like, I totally tune out.
Like, there's some type of weird history there,
so I'd rather just pay her no mind.
But overall, she has a point
when it comes to Rok and Krystal.
I'm kind of questioning egghead's decision
when it comes to that one.
- I've been loyal, I haven't [bleep] done no [bleeps]
to nobody, to the brand.
- Eh...
[Ted chuckling]
- I mean, we could say
the same thing about you, if that's the case.
- I know I have.
But yours is just a...
- Like what?
- We're gonna-- yeah, what a load, Tatti.
We'll just leave it all alone.
I [bleep] with Tatti,
so I'm gonna have to keep it a buck with her.
She's been in some legal troubles these past few years.
- I got arrested.
I've got some, like, real charges being held against me.
I'm facing some felony charges.
- You know how much time that comes with, right?
- I mean, an eight felony is like, what, seven to 15 years?
- As a business owner, I totally understand Ceaser seeing her
as a liability.
'Cause who wants to deal with the federales and [bleep]?
- The flagship shop that this [bleep] is supposed to be
the blueprint, we're just, like,
gonna keep throwing bodies in here
and making it messy and losing money
because we don't want to get organized
because the apprentice was the manager
is asking for a conversation from the boss
so that we could figure out the direction we're heading in?
You know what? This is crazy to me.
This is super [bleep] crazy to me.
This makes no sense to me.
Y'all good, right? Y'all can handle the shop?
I'm gonna go get some coffee,
and I'm praying that when I get back,
you've got some new information.
Even before this merger,
I was already putting six and seven days a week
at Black Ink as an AP,
and I am so overwhelmed,
I am physically and mentally exhausted.
You guys got it under control. You can handle it.
[Puma sighing]
- Here are your contracts, y'all.
- Now, what's the difference between
Black Ink and Black Inc.?
- What?
- To lose Spyder as a friend, that [bleep] hurt, bro.
This whole situation has got me messed up mentally.
And then to know that it's something
that I ain't really been saying.
- Where the [bleep] is Tatti?
- She played hooky to go to the beach.
- Oh, this [bleep] pissed me off now.
♪♪
- Y'all good, right? Y'all can handle the shop?
I'm gonna go get some coffee,
and I'm praying that when I get back,
you've got some new information.
You guys got it under control. You can handle it.
- What the [bleep] was that?
- What the [bleep] is wrong with her?
- She's tripping.
Because it's like she's complaining about her positions,
but these are the positions she asked for.
- If you want to own and operate a Black Ink
and two of 'em are put into one shop
because of unfortunate circumstances, handle it.
And then sit him down and say,
"Look what I did over there when..."
You know what I'm saying?
- But at the same time, I kind of get where she's coming from.
You know, having all these people in this shop now,
you've got two different boroughs in one shop, you know?
It's a lot going on.
I don't really think that Ceaser thought this whole
125th/Brooklyn merger thing all the way through.
And he definitely didn't communicate it with me and Ted.
'Cause if he did, we probably would have pulled up
on the first day, before we knew
the battle royale was about to [bleep] go down.
If she's flipping like that,
then how is everybody else feeling?
- We need to bring everybody together
and show some type of control or appreciation or something.
- A little party.
- No party. Nothing to do with party.
How about we have a meeting first?
- Okay.
- How about we have a meeting first?
See where everybody--
- See how they feel.
- If you call it a meeting, it's more professional.
People come in a little less hotheaded.
We can't let this spiral out of control anymore.
The faster we figure out where everybody else's
headspace is at, the faster we can figure out what's going on
while Ceaser's gone.
- All right, I'm gonna send a group text now.
"Mandatory meeting."
Boom, sent.
All right.
Everybody knows, it's in the group chat.
- And we know who's gonna take the credit for it.
- Per usual. - [Ted chuckling]
[horn honking]
♪♪
[man grunting]
[man] - Punch me like you mean it.
Go ahead.
[man grunting]
[Alex] - Oh, [bleep].
- [man grunting] - [Bux groaning]
- Oh, no! No, Bux, no!
Fight back!
Fight back, my [bleep]. What's going on?
You in here getting your ass whupped?
- Real-real talk.
I've been having a rough couple of weeks
ever since shorty pulled up at the shop.
- You tried to play me.
That [bleep] ain't happening no more.
I'm about to air you out, mother[bleep].
- This whole situation has got me messed up mentally.
And usually I go talk out things with Spyder
but right now that's not an option.
I can't do that.
So I invited Alex here to chop things up, literally.
♪♪
- Fighting stance.
A reverse punch.
[man grunting]
Come on, let's go.
[man grunting]
Uh... right.
[Alex grunting and chuckling]
- My elbow!
[man laughing]
- That-- that's how I'm feeling right now
'cause, sensei, that's my tattooing arm.
Like, Bux, next time, let's just, like,
meet up for coffee or something.
This is what you be doing on your--
- This is my version of equanimity.
- Okay.
- I come here, you know, I relieve stress.
Teaching me a lot of patience.
When I need clearance, I come here.
- I love that for you, my [bleep].
Like, for real, for real.
So, like, the situation that happened at the shop--
- Oh, man, I already--
- Like, with shorty, like, who is she?
Where does she-- why-- why was she even there, bro, like...
- Bro, I ain't gonna front.
She was a client at the shop, started chopping it up with her.
I had drawn up this rose here.
That's the lip as the stem.
We took it a little further than we were supposed to.
- Okay.
- So, you know, one thing lead to another,
I told her I didn't wanna be with her no more,
and I guess she tried to hurt me where
she knows she can hurt me the most.
And now Spyder mad at me.
I-- she just [bleep] my world up, bro.
So that's why I've gotta come here.
- All right, so I spoke to Spyder at the 4/20 event.
Everything good with you and Bux?
- We're too tight for you just to be, like,
telling mother[bleep] that's not in our circle...
- Yeah.
- ...a bunch of privileged information.
- He just doesn't understand why him and wifey
was brought into the whole situation-- you feel me?
And that [bleep] is just like betrayal by best friend.
- Yeah.
You know, Spyder brought me into the tattoo game, bro.
I had nothing, bro.
And to lose Spyder as a friend, that [bleep] hurt, bro.
And then to know that it's something
that I ain't really been saying.
Like, some fabricated [bleep] from shorty
because she mad I ain't trying to be with her.
I've never had a conversation about Spyder's wife,
Spyder's wife's tummy tuck, or even Spyder.
On God, that never happened.
I don't even know. Honestly, I don't know.
[Alex sighing] - Well, I can say this--
you can't let some random chick ruin an extended friendship.
Spyder means more to you than she does.
- Fact, bro.
- So in any which way that you can make it right with him,
you have to do it, bro.
- I've been trying to call him.
He ain't picking up my calls, bro.
- You have to figure out any and every little thing
that you can do to get Spyder to--
at least to be somewhat what you would call "cordial,"
for a lack of better words.
You feel me?
I don't know what the truth is in this situation,
but what I do know is I really, really hate seeing
two friends being split apart.
And when everything was going on with my Donna drama,
it was these knuckleheads in the shop that, you know,
they tried to be there for me as much as possible.
So it's only right that I extend that same motion back too.
- I'm gonna work on that, bro, because, like I told you,
I ain't trying to lose Spyder as friends, bro.
I can't-- I can't just let it linger
'cause it's gonna eat me up inside.
- It's a lot. - Man, it's a lot, man.
- It's a lot.
[Puma] - Don't spill that [bleep]
on you, Spyder.
[man] - Three, two... one.
- Oh, [bleep].
- Let's blow something else up.
- No, that [bleep] scared me! Ha!
- This is maybe one of the
kind of off-the-rocker moves you've done.
It seems like Ceaser's the one kind of [bleep] up.
- Huh?! Word, that's how we feeling?
- Yes. After that [bleep], yes.
♪♪
- ♪ On top, on top ♪ - ♪ We gonna end up on top ♪
- ♪ On top ♪
- ♪ We gonna end up on top, we gonna end up on top ♪
♪ We gonna end up on top ♪♪
- When the [bleep] did this [bleep] turn into Wu-Tang Clan?
[man] - Yeah, word.
- I'm just trying to put the whole clan together.
- Oh, yeah.
You've got RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard,
Spyder, "B" Slayer.
[all laughing]
- Nah, but how's everything been?
Everybody's been cool, it's been...
- It's been cool. - ...a nice Black Ink family?
- Yeah, how has that been
working with the stations, like...
[Bux] - Bro, it's frustrating.
[Spyder] - We're like sardines in here.
- Yeah, it's like... one, two...
[Ted] - Is this everybody?
No, there's more.
- Missing a few. - Where the [bleep] is Tatti at?
[Alex] - Uh, if I'm not--
if I'm not mistaken, an apprentice
is supposed to be here every day, right?
- I mean, [bleep], this was a mandatory meeting and [bleep].
- I'm gonna call her.
[Puma] - Where the hell
is Tatti at, man?
The whole reason why we called this meeting
is because of her.
And now she's too bothered to show up?
This ain't professional, man.
- I think she's playing hooky.
- She is not picking up.
[Spyder] - Oh, [bleep]!
Hey!
- One... Wu-Tang Clan ain't nothing to [bleep] with.
- Oh, [bleep], you've got the whole crew.
[all laughing]
Where the [bleep] is Tatti?
[Bux] - It's a beautiful day outside.
I'm thinking she played hooky to go to the beach.
- All right.
Nah, for real, where the [bleep] Tatti?
- Nah, for real, I don't know.
- We called, she-- she didn't pick up.
- Oh, this [bleep] pissed me off now.
- I tell you what, I'm glad I ain't Tatti right now
'cause once Cease get mad at you,
he could get petty as [bleep].
- Well, we're gonna talk about that later.
Yo, listen, the shop merger was not easy at all.
And I wasn't even here and y'all handled it, yo.
I mean, that [bleep] came at a--
a time we didn't even expect.
I wanna thank y'all for holding that [bleep] down.
You know what I mean?
I got a little special thing in the backyard for y'all
I want y'all to see.
Come on, follow me. Yeah, follow me.
[Spyder] - What you got for us, boss man?
- Ah, this is a good old classic Ceaser move.
Swoops in and takes all the credit
after me and Ted did all the work
putting this whole meeting together.
[Bux] - Wow.
- You got food?
- And he catered it?
Ceaser must be up to something.
And I'm not gonna lie, I'm a little worried.
- I've got a few announcements. You know what I mean?
I didn't bring y'all just out here
just to bring y'all out here.
Now, as y'all see, Rok and Krystal,
they're back in the-- in the mix of everything.
You know what I mean?
- Hey, guys. - You know--
- It's good to be back. - Welcome back.
[Ceaser] - Wait.
Before we do all the clapping, let's just make it official.
You feel me?
I brought the paperwork so we can all...
- Oh, my God! - [bleep].
- Are we graduating?
- Not yet.
Y'all graduating to being bosses.
Here are your contracts, y'all.
[cheers and applause]
- It's a big step right here.
- It basically says the-- the basic [bleep].
We splitting ownership 33% across the board.
Black Ink of course is my name
so I'm leasing that [bleep] out to y'all,
and we're changing the whole name of-- of Gods of Ink
to Black Ink.
The pen is in there.
- Oh, wow!
- Y'all ready to sign? Just sign it up.
- I've gotta read it right now?
I wasn't the fastest reader in school.
- Rok-- Rok, you can read, right?
- The thing is it was comprehension
that was real tough in school.
- What in "The Cat in the Hat" are you talking about, Rok?
What the [bleep] do you mean, reading isn't your strong suit?
Stop playing.
- Now, what's the difference between
Black Ink and Black Inc.?
- What?
- I-N-K, I-N-C.
- It's "incorporated," Rok.
- You see? - I'm not the lawyer!
- You read, you read it!
[Puma] - Don't let him read
that [bleep], Krystal.
- I love my Rok, but I'm glad to have Ceaser around
because Rok don't know what he's doing,
and I've been carrying a lot of this [bleep] on my own.
- We got this. - Now y'all see.
- Yeah, I got this.
[all laughing]
- Krystal, God bless you, Krystal, God bless you.
- Everybody is having the "hee-hee-ha-has"
but what's really funny is that I've got a Black Ink shop
and they better calm that down
before they start working for me.
- Yo, man, wait, hold on, Ceaser, yo.
Yo, man, can we-- can we talk and have a conversation
real quick while they figure this out--
[Young Bae] - Oh, my God!
[Ceaser] - You know what?
Yeah, let's talk.
Let them talk real quick.
That [bleep] might take them a century, bro.
[bleep].
- Ceaser's been really big on us taking the brand serious
and going so hard for the brand.
But right now it seems like Ceaser's the one
kind of [bleep] up.
Are you sure this is a good idea?
For the ten years that we've been doing this,
this is maybe one of the...
kind of off-the-rocker moves you've done.
♪♪
First, Ceaser closes down 125th Street without any plans
of dealing with the consequences,
and now he's over here dealing with JJ Rockhead,
who doesn't have a [bleep] clue what the hell is going on.
- You just made Rok a business partner
in your 50 state/city franchise of Black Ink.
- I didn't really think he was that dumb.
- I think that we should get to know everybody
a little bit more
before you start giving them shops and [bleep].
- You know what, Puma?
After that bull[bleep] over there, I'm on your side.
We do need to do something, yeah.
'Cause you [bleep] losing your [bleep] mind.
All right, so, Rok, we've come to the decision
that you're no longer part of Black Ink anymore.
- Yo, what?
♪♪
- I think that we should get to know everybody
a little bit more
before you start giving them shops and [bleep].
- You know what, Puma?
After that bull[bleep] over there, I'm on your side.
We do need to do something, yeah.
'Cause you [bleep] losing your [bleep] mind.
♪♪
I always assume Cease knows what he's doing
when it comes to the tattoo shop,
but right now I'm questioning that
because he's slipping,
thinking Rok should be in any type of position,
especially ownership.
- So what you suggesting?
- Maybe a bootcamp. Work these mother[bleep].
- You might need a [bleep] bootcamp or something.
- Huh?! Word, that's how we feeling?
- Yes. After that [bleep], yes.
- 'Cause you've forgotten how to connect with your employees.
'Cause if you connected with your employees,
maybe you would figure out that Rok...
- Is dumb as a rock.
Oh...
- This is not like the old days when we only had a few shops
and we knew everybody inside and out.
These days, we have so many shops in so many cities
with so many employees,
it's kind of hard to keep track of all of them.
On some real [bleep], bro, we've gotta figure this [bleep] out
to make sure everybody's at least up to
Black Ink standard, bro.
Like, you don't be around them.
They do work in the shop. Like, you know what I'm saying?
They are the employees
but we don't [bleep] know them like that.
We don't be around them, bro.
Like, we just literally found out he's a [bleep] airhead.
- All right, all right, I didn't think about that.
All right, okay. So we'll do a little bootcamp.
- I'm really excited about Ceaser wanting to do
this whole bootcamp thing,
because everybody needs a reset right now
with all the changes that's been going on in the shop
and actually get back to the fundamentals
of the whole Black Ink brand.
And maybe-- just [bleep] maybe
Ceaser won't come up with all these rash-ass decisions
he's been coming up with lately.
[Ceaser] - That's what we're gonna do--
a trip.
- A trip?!
- Yeah, 'cause we've got to get this-- this [bleep] in order.
- Where? - A trip where, bro?
- We'll go to one of our other shops, Orlando.
- Florida?!
- Yeah, we'll go down to Florida.
There's mad open space.
We put them all to the test.
- I like Ceaser's thinking.
When it comes to Orlando, it's definitely our first shop
that we opened outside of New York
and it's taught us a lot about running an empire.
So it's a good place to teach everybody the Black Ink way
and see who's truly boss material.
- All right, hold on.
You've still got a shop out here
and you still got mad people.
Were you gonna pick everybody with us?
- No, we take some of them. You know what I mean?
Mother[bleep] that we think have potential,
then we leave the rest.
- Okay.
I feel a lot better going out of town now
that we're leaving a few artists behind
to keep the shop flowing.
'Cause, you know, we are a business, by the way.
- All right, so, Rok,
after a long deliberation over there,
we've come to the decision that we have to sacrifice you.
- What?
- And you're no longer part of Black Ink anymore.
- Yo, what? - But we're keeping Krystal.
- Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, we're partners, we're partners.
If she stays, I stay.
- She didn't say that.
She's looking at you like you is [bleep] crazy too.
[all laughing]
- You're not gonna say nothing? Uh...
- No. - Oh, why...
- Don't worry, Rok, we're just [bleep] with you, Rok.
- Yeah, I know, I know.
- But you've got 48 hours to look over your paperwork.
Now, um, I've got a little surprise for y'all.
[Young Bae] - Is it a good one or bad one?
- What? More?
- I'm taking y'all on a trip.
- Okay. - Okay.
- We're about to go to Orlando to my Orlando shop
and teach y'all the Black Ink way.
Y'all are our younger crops, you feel me?
Y'all are our younger generation
that we have to pass it down next generation.
We all need to get familiar with Black Ink from the ground up.
We've gotta teach y'all a couple things.
Everybody's not going, though. You feel me?
I'm only taking certain people.
I hate to say it, 125th crew,
y'all gonna have to stay behind, hold it down.
But, Vanity, I've gotta take you with me
because you'll be running [bleep] uptown with me
and you've gotta learn everything too.
- Thank you. Sorry.
- The only person that's definitely not going is Tatti.
- Why?
- If she can take off for a mandatory meeting,
then she don't need to go down there.
- But you don't know what happened to her.
- I don't.
I don't care 'cause I didn't get a call.
It's really easy to communicate.
You could've texted me.
"Cease, I can't make it. This happened or this happened."
I didn't hear nothing from Tatti yet.
Have you, has anybody?
[Bux] - No.
- I don't feel like it's fair that Tatti's not invited.
Like, Tatti gives Ceaser all her [bleep] days,
Monday through Monday!
- Anyway, be prepared.
It's gonna be Orlando. It's gonna be hot.
You're not gonna see Disney World,
so don't ask me that [bleep].
I just want y'all to be prepared.
This [bleep] ain't gonna be easy.
- Tatti shouldn't have missed this meeting,
but Ceaser not inviting her to Orlando,
I don't know if it's a little too far.
She's already pissed off
and ain't no telling what she's capable of.
- Everybody, enjoy the dead-ass garden.
See y'all guys later, man. Prepare for Orlando, y'all.
- ♪ We the party, we the party, we the party ♪
♪ Clap your hands, clap your hands if you're naughty ♪
♪ Getting down, getting down with your body ♪
♪ And put it up, put it for a... ♪♪
- Welcome to The Drunken Laboratory.
[woman] - We want you guys to leave here
feeling like smarter scientists.
- Yeah! - [cheers and applause]
- Lately, me and Quani got back to a good space in our marriage,
and I thought it would be kind of fun for us
to go on a double-date with Spyder and his wife.
Try something different.
So I thought this little Drunken Laboratory
where we can get faded and do some [bleep] science.
Sounds like a Puma adventure to me.
[man] - I need everyone to pour that
potassium permanganate into that measuring cup.
[Puma] - Don't spill that [bleep]
on you, Spyder.
Don't you drop that [bleep].
- You know-- hey, hold on, you gonna pour it or what?
[Desiree] - You pour it, I'll hold it.
- I-- I'm scared.
[man] - Three, two, one, go.
- Oh, [bleep].
[Puma] - That was awesome.
- Oh, [bleep]. - Let's blow something else up.
- No, that [bleep] scared me. Ha!
I don't know what's going on here.
I'm having a weird time with this [bleep].
I'm sure Des is probably over there tripping right now.
The only scientific experiment thing that she's good with
is turning her straight hair into a curl.
- This is fun just to have a little date night.
- You know what I'm saying? - That's a fact, that's a fact.
- ...with other adults and just chill.
- The shop is crazy right now.
- And we have Tatti running the show.
- How's that going?
- Well, we just had, like, a... - Rough.
- ...shop mandatory meeting and she didn't show up and--
[Quani] - Why wasn't she there?
- 'Cause she needed a "mental health day."
- So she's overwhelmed?
She's trying to find herself.
Are you guys at least trying to understand
where she's coming from?
- I mean, we get where she's coming from.
There's a lot of people in the shop in Brooklyn.
What the hell do you think is gonna happen
in your own business?
Everybody be thinking that, you know,
we all be living this happy-go-lucky life,
me, Ted and Ceaser.
No.
- Y'all gotta deal with people.
- We be dealing with the stresses,
having to figure out what benefits the business,
what can [bleep] the business up,
'cause it takes one mistake.
- Right.
- One [bleep] up,
and then the whole [bleeps] can go left.
I finally got in contact with Tatti
and she's totally fine.
She had to just take a mental health day.
Listen, I'm all about the mental health days, man.
I get it.
I be taking some of them [bleep] too.
But the key thing about a mental health day
is communicating it.
You can't have one and not tell nobody.
That's a big red flag.
- Yeah, that's-- that's deep right there.
- It's a lot, it's a lot, and then--
- I mean, I feel like we all going through some [bleep].
- You talking about your situation with Bux?
- Eh...
Out of-- out of all people on this [bleep] planet Earth, him.
- We both, literally, nurtured this [bleep] boy
growing up with us.
If you're talking to some [bleep] girl for two weeks
and you telling her--
how you gonna-- you ain't gonna do it again?
- And now I'm hearing that he's denying
that he didn't even talked to that woman about Des.
Feel like, "Come on, bro."
Only a fool would believe that Bux didn't tell nothing
to that lady about me and my wife.
So, okay, let's get it.
You're lying to me, you betrayed me,
and now you're being a coward.
In my book, that's strike one, two, and three.
You're out.
- Well, at least you know that's not a real friend.
- And he was beyond a friend.
- That was like family. - He was beyond a friend.
- There's no backtracking. He's clipped.
- And it's okay to say that, it's okay to feel that way.
- Well, hopefully, everybody else keeps it cool out there
in Orlando, and you and Bux could keep it [bleep] cooler
than a goddamn penguin's toenail, bro.
I'm really hoping that everybody...
takes this Orlando moment and runs with it.
- When has team building ever worked?
When has team building ever--
- So far, this team-building [bleep] seems like a curse.
- It always goes to [bleep], it always goes to [bleep].
- What is a record of these bootcamps?
Has anybody sat down and said--
- Um, think about the time Puma locked
everyone in the shop together.
[all shouting]
When you guys went to Atlanta to CHACE Village.
There was tense arguments, cursing-- all of that.
- [bleep] dickhead. - You're going too far now.
- No, no, that was a win! - I caught the--
- Spyder caught a fish, that's it.
- I caught the biggest fish on record.
[Puma] - Yeah, Spyder!
- That was a win.
- Can I bet you $50?
[Quani laughing]
- Come on-- - $50, [bleep] show.
[all laughing]
- He said, "I don't see her being out there with us."
- And you're not gonna not give me the opportunity
to prove myself when all I've been doing since I got here
five years ago has been proving myself?
This-- this is trash to me.
♪♪
- ♪ I'm gonna fight for mine ♪
♪ I'm gonna fight for mine ♪
- Hey, doll. - Oh, hey, beautiful.
- ♪ Fight for mine ♪♪
- This is a whole vibe out here.
- Right.
It looks alive.
The dead-ass garden is alive.
- How you doing, baby girl?
- A little overwhelmed, to be honest.
That's why I had to take a mental health day.
You know, like, I appreciate you calling,
I appreciate Bae calling to check up on me.
Not for nothing, like, I didn't answer you or Bae
because I was sleeping.
You know what I'm saying?
Like, I was sleeping, I was resting,
I was catching up on my house stuff, girl.
My laundry, my bills-- everything.
I feel like--
- Yeah, 'cause being here--
- It's exhausting. All the [bleep] time.
This is my first day back since my mental health day,
and, believe me, I woke up that morning
and had every intention of going to work
but could not get myself out of bed.
So I know I needed to just take some time
to do some self-care.
Well, what did I miss, because...
- It was a little get-together back here.
Ceaser wanted to thank us all for doing such a good job,
and he made the announcement about us going to Orlando.
- Yeah, I need a vacation, girl! Thank you!
When are we leaving?
[Vanity] - I really like Tatti,
so I wanted to be the one to let her know
what went down at the meeting and what Ceaser said about her.
'Cause us Black Ink girls need to stick together.
- Hold on. - What?
- He was so upset about you not being there that day
that he said, "Oh, well, if she can't be here,
then I don't see her being out there with us in Orlando."
- So I miss one day and I'm being punished?
- But it's a whole, like, bootcamp thing.
We're all going down there, pretty much just work.
He wants to be able to see who's worthy of being
part of Black Ink for the next decade.
- What a giant slap in the face.
I put more into this brand than half the people
going on this trip.
So much for a mental health day.
And you're not gonna not give me the opportunity
to prove myself when all I've been doing since I got here
five years ago has been proving myself?
Like, it, like-- if anybody should be here for
the next ten years-- hello.
Like, why are you really not gonna give me the opportunity
when all I'm trying to do is the right--
this-- this is trash to me.
He be opening up all these shops
with everybody else but me.
I've been trying to open up a shop with him for mad long.
- You don't think maybe the whole drug-case situation
got him, like, kind of... overlooking you a little bit?
- Listen, I get it.
You know, my case last year put a big hold on everything,
but... it's over.
And I don't feel like I should be penalized
for my personal life.
- Right.
- Especially when I do the right thing here all the time.
Not for nothing, I feel like if, like,
from when I first started at Black Ink 'til now,
like, you can see my growth.
You can see that I've changed and I've-- and I've learned
and I've become a better person.
- And you do so much.
I've seen the work that you put in.
- They just don't be giving
no [bleep] credit, like, when it's due.
For real.
I hate that I'm getting emotional right now,
but not for nothing, everybody deserves a second chance,
and I've been busting my ass since day one.
I had just bought a house and I left my house
and dropped everything to be in Atlanta for months,
and you're gonna deny me Orlando?
God forbid Ceaser ever does something wrong
and nobody forgives him about it.
I'm going. I don't care.
- Are you able to travel?
- If it's work-related and I get permission,
then I will talk to my PO.
I'm pissed, dude.
♪♪
- ♪ Look at me go, look at me go ♪
♪ Look at me go, look at me go ♪
♪ Heavy on the dark heart we don't ever come down ♪
♪ Look at me go... ♪♪
[Alex] - Orlando, here I come!
- Oh, my God, Niko, Mommy's gonna miss you!
[engine roaring]
♪♪
- ♪ Freedom to be exactly who I am ♪
♪ I'm the author of my story ♪
♪ The pain the shame the glory ♪
♪ I'm living out loud ♪
♪ I'm living it proud ♪
- There has been no one more loyal to Black Ink than me.
No one has put up with as much [bleep] as I have.
- ♪ Golden ♪
♪ Let's just start a brand-new day ♪
- I'm done being overlooked and disrespected.
Why you always coming at me?!
- You're the manager-in-training!
- ...coming at me! What about yourself--
- Because you're the manager-in-[bleep]-training!
[woman] - Tatti's the manager!
Respect her!
You better be gracious with your promotion, bitch,
'cause you will get dog-walked the [bleep] up out of here.
[Ceaser] - Tatti, I feel like this whole
VP [bleep], I'm getting rid of that title.
You're now the receptionist.
- I-- whoa, what?!
What, I'm supposed to be okay with this?
Ever since I got here, I felt like I've had
a target on my back and I'm tired of it.
But that bull[bleep] ends today.
- ♪ Running brick by brick ♪
♪ Building up on the tower my power ♪
- I told myself after last year that I was gonna do
whatever it takes to reach my dreams.
So I'm here at my PO to get permission to go to Orlando,
because guess what?
Even though Ceaser doesn't wanna pull up on me
and have a conversation,
I'm gonna have to pull up on you.
- ♪ Feels like this ♪
♪ And my words my grit ♪
♪ Every day's unwritten ♪
♪ I'm making my future brighter ♪
- So watch out, Ceaser. Here I come.
- ♪ Baby I'm chosen ♪
♪ Baby I'm golden ♪♪
[Ceaser] - Welcome to Florida
for Black Ink bootcamp.
This is not a vacation.
We here to work, yo.
- Damn.
- So it sounds like Black Ink "Hell Week."
- Yes. - Yeah!
- Now, this can go left, but we're gonna try to have
a good time with it.
- Y'all are gonna go on a scavenger hunt.
- "Possibly the shop's best artist--
"talent is hard to fake--
she's full of surprises like jumping out of a..."
- Window! - Window.
- Window?
Where the [bleep] did they get "window" from?
- Oh, y'all didn't even wait for me to eat?
I should have brought some sage or something
because the energy in this room right now is just bad.
- I owe you nothing!
Why do you think I put you to Brooklyn?!
These mother[bleep] do not like you, yo.
- Ceaser said something yesterday
that has been on my mind all day.
Do y'all [bleep] with me or not?
- You got riled up, you fell into the trap
and then you came at us.
- What are you talking about?
- You said it like we weren't friends!
- [all shouting] - [bleeps].
- Bitch!
- ♪ Hey ♪
♪ Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey ♪
♪ Hey, hey, hey ♪
♪ Drop, drop ♪
♪ Hey, hey, hey ♪♪
[man] - ♪ MTV ♪♪