(Lemeir) - Damn near killing myself dealing with Happy Ice and College Boy
and opening another shop with Barbie and Ken.
- I'm feeling like it's not the right time.
(Nessie) - I cannot go back
to the struggle, yo.
- I've been through everything that you're going through.
One of our artists just quit.
We have a booth available.
You're more than welcome to come and try out
for a guest spot if you want. - Okay.
- I didn't force you to have a child with me.
I didn't force you to ask me to marry you.
So why go this far if you wanna continue to cheat?
'Til you figure it out, I'm not going this anymore.
- So you say you (bleep) with Barbie?
- So what? I am here for your shop.
- We don't need you to manage Ink Art Music.
- You think I need you? - Bye!
- So you gonna guest spot with us or what?
- Yes. - Cheers to (bleep) Nessie.
(cheering)
- ♪♪ I be fishin' with your bish ♪♪
- ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪ - ♪♪ Hey ♪♪
♪♪ Trying to get a... ♪♪ - ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪
- ♪♪ Hey, tell... ♪♪
- ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪
♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪
- ♪♪ I do me and you are you ♪♪
♪♪ And you can't tell me who to screw ♪♪
- ♪♪ Who be getting... ♪♪ - ♪♪ I do ♪♪
- ♪♪ You can't tell me -- ♪♪
- ♪♪ Because ♪♪ - ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪
- ♪♪ I do what I want to ♪♪
- ♪♪ I do what I wanna ♪♪
- ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪♪♪
- ♪♪ Oh, oh yeah ♪♪
♪♪ Guess who's back? ♪♪
♪♪ Ahh... ♪♪
♪♪ Yup ahh... ♪♪
- So today is my first guest spot at Enigma.
I'm kinda nervous but I'm way more excited.
- Hey, hey, hey. - Hey, what's up?
- How you doing? - You got a big piece today.
- Always... (chuckling)
- The vibes here have been great.
Like, I'm really excited to start working here, especially
because it's a complete contrast from the IAM shop.
- If you need any colors, I have a...
- Yeah, I got some here too. - ...crazy variety.
- Thank you. I just hope I can show Kat
that I'm serious about this opportunity.
She's on a whole nother level, and I aim to impress.
- Hey, girl, you ready to talk? - Yeah.
- Have safe travels? - Yes.
I was literally that girl on the plane with a crying-ass baby.
- Aww. - How have you been?
What you been up to?
- Just been trying to wrap my head around everything
that's going on. Even being away from
the Compton shop, I just had to get away from that,
like, negative energy. - Yeah.
When I opened up my shop, I promised
to keep it a positive work environment with no egos
and a creative space where everybody can learn
from one another. I've seen Nessie's work,
but I really need to see how she vibes in the shop, because
I've been taken advantage of by former employees
and that can't happen again.
I think it'll be good to just start you with a guest spot.
And you just come here at least a couple days a week and just,
you know, so you could start to feel comfortable.
And, you know, I really, really hope that it works out.
If it doesn't, I totally understand because
I've dealt with situations where somebody thought
that they could commit to this team, and a couple months later,
like, just decided, "Oh, this doesn't work for me."
The whole team kind of took a hit.
Really, really think on it. We're all really looking
forward to, you know, having you a part of the team.
- Yeah, I have a good feeling about it.
- Well, good.
- ♪♪ Get pow pow What you doing for the crowd ♪♪
♪♪ Get up, get up do it for the crowd ♪♪
♪♪ Crowd, crowd, crowd, crowd ♪♪
♪♪ Crowd, crowd, crowd, crowd, crowd, crowd, crowd, crowd ♪♪
(man) - Nice.
- ♪♪ Do it for the crowd... ♪♪♪♪
- Turn the face out that way a little bit more, right there.
- Today I am doing a birthday photo shot
for the big 3-0.
I mean, any chance I get to unleash my inner
bad bitch, I'm in. - Incredible, love it.
- And also I think it's a really great way for me
to start promoting some new pieces
that I've mocked up for my lingerie line.
So it's a win-win for everybody.
- A'ight, let me set up for the next shot.
- Okay, cool. I'm gonna call
my friend really quick.
As much as I miss seeing girl, Nessie, every day,
I definitely do not miss the drama at IAM.
After all the (bleep) that went down at that shop,
I started to spiral.
I just got really depressed.
And when I get to that point,
it gets, like, hard for me to get out of it.
- Don't forget to focus on your art, express everything
that you're feeling instead of carrying it, you know?
- And Nessie's been such a great friend.
You know, she's given me really great advice to focus on myself
and my art, and I feel like the weight is slowly being lifted.
Hi. How are you?
Thank you.
Yeah, yeah.
Pretty much, yup, you know me, love being naked.
(chuckling) How've you been?
- I do, Kat's place, yeah. - It's like...
- That's exactly what you needed.
(laughing)
- I'm so happy for you.
Yeah.
Aw, look at us being blessed.
Yeah.
Okay, that sounds great.
Nessie may be the only good thing that came out of IAM.
I feel so incredibly special and loved just by
the mere fact that she wants to celebrate me.
I feel incredibly thankful for her.
Well, I'm gonna get back to it 'cause
I know I'm paying him by the hour, so...
(photographer) - Yeah, 'cause time is money.
- Time is money. Bye, I love you.
- ♪♪ Hey my dog run up on me I'ma break 'em all ♪♪
♪♪ Forgot the .22 tucked deep down in my sock by my... ♪♪
♪♪ Laces dog ♪♪♪♪
(chatter)
- Vaccination requirement. - Oh, yeah, I heard.
- This morning I asked my neighbor what was going on.
He was like, "Yeah, they requiring it
for the kids to be vaccinated."
And I was like, I know if they doing it with
the education department, I'm quite sure they gon' start
doing it with other business, small businesses and stuff.
- It's been changing so often, I don't even...
I don't even know where it's at right now.
- We gon' figure it out altogether.
California is the first state
to require COVID vaccine for schools.
It just might be the beginning of all mandates.
I'm all for the safety and health protocol.
But I really hope these masks, tests, and the vaccines
really work 'cause I can't afford another shutdown.
(Armani) - Gonna require that
to come in the shop?
- Yeah, you gotta show some proof of, you know...
- You gotta show proof of all the tests.
Gonorrhea, everything, you gotta show everything.
- Wow, damn. - I don't know, I don't know...
(door buzzer)
- Hi, Alana!
Wait, wait, do you got your vaccination card on you?
Oh.
- Finally! - Oh, wow, (bleep)!
- So low key it took me a while
to get settled from moving back from Arizona, but...
I finally got my tattoo license renewed,
so now I'm official, bitches.
Now I'm excited because now that I'm legit,
KP said that I could host my own puff-and-paint at the shop.
So it's gonna be weed, not alcohol.
You guys wanna come?
- Oh, yeah, oh, yeah, sign me up.
- Wait, who's gonna be the artist, you?
Are you gonna teach us? - Me, yes.
- Okay, yes. - Alana!
That's what I'm talking about.
- I like this. It's gonna be cool.
(Alana) - It's super weird that
Star isn't here.
- She just didn't get it. Star is young.
- Young-minded, say that, 'cause she's not young.
- Nah, she young-- she-- she-- nah, she young, for sure.
- All right. - Man, when Star flipped out
the other day at the audition,
I thought she was having a moment
with her negative comments
about everybody, but she was serious.
I'm seeing everybody leave.
First Lemeir, then Barbie,
then Nessie, then Vudu.
And now Star? This (bleep) is getting serious.
- What y'all think about the new artists that came by?
They came in here, and they wanted to work.
- We want the energy in this shop to be about money,
growth, empowerment.
- My boyfriend's calling me, I got it.
- All right, baby. - She 'bout to take off
her clothes for him or something
(laughter)
- Hey, babe, I was just...
inside for a meeting.
I feel like I haven't spoken to Jerris in a long time.
My man's locked up.
And I'm talking 'bout FBI barging in our (bleep) house.
Guns blazing where I'm, like, what the (bleep)?
It's so hard being in a relationship with Jerris
while he's still in jail. I went to go visit him
a few times, but it's just getting harder and harder.
Do you have any good news?
(Jerris) - No, I talked to my lawyer.
He really didn't tell me nothing.
- So, like, did they say, like, when you're gonna get released
or, like, what's gonna happen anytime soon?
- No. Honestly, no time soon.
- Jerris still has an open case, and all they can do now
is just be patient and wait for the courts
and the lawyers to just do their job.
I'm trying to stay positive but it's just hard when
I feel like there's no light at the end of the tunnel.
- But I love you. - I know, I love you too.
- I'm trying not to be emotional about it.
- Yeah. - I don't want these men
to see me crying and stuff, but...
(laughter)
I'm about to go make me some food, like, something tamale,
burrito or something in there. - All right.
- ♪♪ I can't wait to see you again ♪♪♪♪
- Try calling me later. - Okay, I love you.
- All right, I love you.
I truly love Jerris, but I just feel like how are we supposed
to make a life together if you're not even around?
I feel like my tattoo career is taking off.
But my personal life is all over the place.
Like, why is it so hard to just have everything all at once?
- How's everything been since our last conversation?
- I'm figuring it out.
- Is it boyfriend issues?
- I don't have one of those anymore.
(Nessie) - A fiancé?
- He has been blowing me off the past few days.
- When I left the shop, you said anytime that I had to come back
for any type reason that the door's open.
- I love you, Eric. I legit look at you
like a little brother.
You're no longer working here,
then you're not my first priority.
- What's wrong with you? You seem kind of like eh.
- It's tough on me to having even say it to y'all.
But it's not the best time for me to do the shop.
- Okay, I'm kind of thrown right now.
- ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪♪♪
♪♪♪♪
- ♪♪ To the top as we go, top as we go ♪♪
♪♪ This is our show, this is our show ♪♪
♪♪ You either can get down and lay down ♪♪
♪♪ It's our time wherever we go ♪♪♪♪
(Kat) - I'm hungry, girl.
- What are those? - We about to see.
- Oh, that ain't the...
- This the mystery box right there.
- What is that? - Y'all can have that.
- No, hell, no. (laughing)
- Okay, that's the type of tips-- I just got a $1,000 tip
from my client. - That came out good.
- It came out really good. - Thanks. I still got it.
- I'm still getting back into the swing of things
after having my baby.
And my team really held things down
while I was on leave.
Feels so good to be back with my fam
in here tattooing.
We all went out with Nessie the other night.
- It felt natural having her around us.
- I just felt bad because I invited her out.
I didn't want her impression of me to be a flake.
- No, no. Bitch, you got a baby.
- I know. - Nessie was cool, though.
I got to talk to her. - I (bleep) with her.
- I (bleep) with her, too. - I really do.
- You know what it is? I'm excited to see
her grow in this environment. - Me too.
- Especially as a minority female.
You know what I mean? - Yep.
- She reminds me literally like so much of myself.
I can see so much of me in her.
Your black and gray is super solid.
You got it, girl. - Thank you.
- I'm really excited to have her.
- Me too. - Yeah, yeah, yeah.
While I was at the party, I made a mistake.
I was introducing Nessie to everybody.
Eric came and I was like, "This is our new artist, Nessie."
And I was like, oh, my God.
And, like, immediately, like, it just got awkward.
- So you jumped the gun. - You know, ain't no filter
on that mouth. There's no filter on that mouth.
- Y'all crazy.
Eric, aka Tans, was the first apprentice
that we brought into the shop three years ago.
He was already a dope-ass painter,
but when it came to tattooing,
we taught him everything that he knows.
He showed so much progress,
and I went out on a limb and hired him
as a full-time resident artist at Enigma.
But then a few months later,
when it came time to pay booth rent,
he up and quit on me with no prior notice.
I think none of us expected Eric to fall off from us
the way that he did.
I ain't gonna lie, I'm hurt.
Over the years, all of us got
very close to Tans.
Hell, I even called him my little brother.
So I was very shocked and very hurt
when he just up and quit.
And then you come in the shop in the middle of the night
when no one is here and grab all your art off the walls
and all of your tattoo stuff, like we did something to you.
- I'm more disappointed than anything
because we literally equipped his ass
with all the (bleep) tools and knowledge.
And you're just gonna (bleep) on everybody like that
and just walk out? - I talked to him.
And the miscommunication I think that he's feeling
that when he came to you, you told him
that if he ever do want to come back...
- The door's open, and I wish I didn't say that.
- My thing is this, if somebody says
the door is always open, it means, yes,
I'll (bleep) with you still.
If we have space for you, you can come back.
When we tell you that we've already replaced you,
you need not be mad at us.
- I told him how I felt,
like however it came across.
I'm like, you know, nobody's mad at you.
But at the end of the day, like, look at how you left.
He's like, "No, if I'm little bro," and this, this, and that,
but I've never heard, like, the term "little bro"
thrown in my face, you know what I'm saying?
- Because he's trying to make you feel bad.
- I know, but I call him Little Bro
because he reminds me of little me
when I was a teenager.
The thing that upsets me the most
is this sense of entitlement that Eric seems to have now.
I mean, if it wasn't for Enigma,
Eric would still be cutting hair.
And even after quitting on us, as bogus as he did,
he's acting like he should just be able
to come back whenever he pleases.
- All right, I've been listening to all y'all.
Got it, okay.
Do you guys want to reconcile with him
to bring him back in?
- There you go, next topic.
(laughter) That's it.
- Look, the shop is all about growth
and reaching your full potential.
When Eric left to do his own thing,
I wished him nothing but the best.
But he didn't even apologize for leaving the way he did.
And now he wants to come back?
I think it's gonna take a lot of time,
a lot of apologies, and a lot of trust-building
before he can turn things around.
- At the end of the day, we want to see everybody grow.
As a mentor, you're not doing your job
if you're not helping that person grow.
Now you growing, don't bite your nose to spite your face.
- That's my thing where Nessie is beyond tattoos
is like she paint, she hustle, like you know what I'm saying?
- She does everything. She gonna get it.
She ain't turning down money. - Yeah.
- So I feel like her being in our shop
is gonna be what she needs. - No, deadass.
- I don't know about y'all, but I need another drink.
- I mean, I got some more liquor in the back
if y'all trying to drink.
- I will take a couple more shots, yes.
- Who gonna clean this up? - (bleep), y'all got it.
(laughter)
- ♪♪ And it just feels good ♪♪
♪♪ It feels good to be alive ♪♪
♪♪ I'm alive I'm alive right now ♪♪
♪♪ So alive right now... ♪♪♪♪
- Hi. - Hi, guys.
Not only am I riding high from a great day at Enigma,
but it's also Vudu's 30th birthday party tonight.
And you know I'm ready to turn up.
What's up? - What's up?
- Hey, guys. - Yo.
- And I invited all the cool people
over from IAM shop to help her celebrate.
- Yo! What up?
What's up? What's up?
- How you feeling? - I'm good. How y'all feeling?
- Good. - Me and Nessie is still
not really on good terms.
But we've both grown for real, for real.
So picking sides? That's weird.
And that's only gonna make stuff more awkward.
The focus for today is to show Vudu
how much we love her.
♪♪♪♪
- There she come.
- Happy birthday!
- (laughs) - Hi, hi.
- Happy birthday. - Hi, guys. How are you?
- Lady in red. - Does this make you happy?
- Yeah, like, I never had a birthday party before.
Like, never celebrated my birthday.
This is the first time. - For real? That's crazy.
- People are always so shocked
when I tell them that I've never had a birthday party.
But I grew up in a cult
and we did not celebrate anything at all.
- I saw you got to do one of your original pieces...
- Mm-hmm. - ...the other day.
- At the shop I've been working at in Venice,
I've only been doing my own original art.
Like I haven't taken a walk-in. - Okay.
- Just nice to be in a space where it's, like, art driven.
I finally feel like I'm getting there.
Yeah, I'm so happy! (laughs)
- That's dope. - Alana, how are you?
I haven't seen you in forever. - Good.
I'm hosting a paint-and-puff.
So I'm gonna be teaching, like, an art class, like, with weed.
You guys are all invited.
I would love for you guys to come.
But it's just at the Compton shop.
(music slows, stops)
(laughter) - ...but, uh...
(laughter continues) - What?
- You funny as (bleep).
- Hosting my first puff-and-paint
is a big deal to me,
so I wanted to invite all my people.
But I know damn well
KP and Tim are not gonna let any of them through the door.
I just hope that me, Ink, and Polo don't get fired
for being at this table right now.
- Barbie! I love you. - Love you more.
I'm good. Just, you know. - How's everything been
since our last conversation?
- You know. - What happened?
- Is it boyfriend issues? Or fiancé?
- What? I don't have one of those anymore.
- What? - So, yeah.
- A fiancé. - Yeah, yeah.
I don't have one of those at the moment.
- Shut the (bleep) up.
- I really haven't made a big announcement
about my breakup with Bone 'cause it's still pretty raw.
And honestly, he hasn't even apologized or done
any type of grand gesture since I put my ring on the table.
But I just have to take it one day at a time at this point.
I don't want to go into it 'cause it's--
I'm in a good place right now, you know?
- No time to be crying at this table.
- Right, like, I got a kid to worry about,
a business to run, a tattoo shop to try to open
and (bleep), so like that's the last...
- Yeah, what's going on with that?
- It's a lot.
- I was hoping Barbie's ass
was not about to bring up this shop
in front of everybody.
'Cause after having my heart-to-heart with Dani,
I know I gotta make the right decision
and be there for my family.
Barbie look real excited right now,
so I really hate to squash all her dreams.
But I do know I gotta have this conversation
sooner than later.
- Yeah, so you guys know I've been working out my crib.
I'm like, I just want to be around other artists.
I want to be great. I want to be around artists
that are way better than me.
I want to learn. - Okay.
- And so I finally found a shop...
- Oh, wow. - ...that welcomed me
with open arms. - Where? Where? Where?
- At Enigma... - Okay.
(overlapping chatter) - Very nice.
- Really, they have a nice bond, that's good.
Congratulations, Nessie. I'm happy for you.
(overlapping chatter) - Good.
- Well, you guys, I just want to say
thank you so much for just being here
and making this the best birthday ever.
Also my first one.
- And some shots for the birthday girl.
- (screams) (all cheering)
(Lemeir) - Oh, for Vudu.
Continue, continue to be yourself.
Don't chase the money and lose yourself.
Happy birthday.
- Cheers. Happy birthday, Vudu!
(Vudu) - I think it's really poetic
that I'm having my first birthday party
on my 30th birthday.
I feel like I have a lot to celebrate this year.
I've taken a huge step to work on my insides
as well as I've made a few tweaks on the outside.
I hated when people said that I look like my mother.
And I did do a few changes.
- I support that. - Thank you.
- It looks amazing. - I took a giant leap of faith
and decided to reconnect with my biological father.
Hi. (laughs)
Mmm, it's just been forever.
- I'm glad to be here.
- Thank you. Me too.
Our relationship isn't perfect, but we're working on it.
And I've decided that I'm no longer putting up
with any disrespect at the IAM shop.
Look how quickly you just turned.
- Y'all don't want to be here, y'all can just leave.
- I don't think it's for me. - Good luck.
- And I'm so glad to be here
celebrating life through its ups and downs
with a great group of friends.
(excited shouting)
- ♪♪ Happy birthday to you ♪♪
♪♪ Happy birthday to you ♪♪♪♪
- Whoo!
(all cheering)
- What's been going on? - I don't want to say too much.
I feel like, since you're my mom,
we just have to keep that boundary.
But I just feel like we can just stay away from
topics of Jerris.
- I'll go, I'll go talk to him real quick.
- I need you like in this family.
- You pop up here on your own time.
It's like that's disrespectful.
- ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪♪♪
- ♪♪ Representing yeah ♪♪
♪♪ Is it time to hit the ATM? ♪♪
♪♪ All cash maybe time to get another advance ♪♪♪♪
♪♪♪♪
(door buzzer)
- Hello! - Hey. Hi, Mama.
- Thanks for not telling me about your little setup.
I had to see it all over Instagram.
- I didn't know that you wanted to come.
- Well, of course. Anything to support you.
- I'm really nervous hosting my first puff-and-paint
and I really want it to be a huge success.
I mean, I don't want to be embarrassed
if nobody shows up.
And of course, my mom stalked my social media account,
but I just feel like I needed my space
after our last blowup.
I'm tired of explaining myself!
I don't want to explain anymore.
- Well, you just came to me and told me,
"Oh, he was in jail." Like, boo, explain to me.
- I'm fine. I'm happy. I'm good.
I'm not in jail. Be happy I'm not in jail.
I'm happy to see my mom, but I can't tell her
too much about my relationship.
And I don't want my guests to walk in
and see me battling my mom about this.
That would not be a good look.
- It looks good in here. I'm really proud of you.
I really want you to, you know, get back into art.
- Yeah.
- So what else? What's been going on?
I haven't talked to you in a while.
- Um...
I don't want to say too much.
I feel like since you're my mom,
we just have to keep that boundary.
I just feel like, as far as Jerris goes,
it's just always an argument.
I just feel like we can just stay away from
topics of Jerris.
- I'm good with that.
- I love talking to my mom.
And she's like my best friend.
But when it comes to stuff about Jerris,
and if I told her that he has no release date,
I just know that it'll be an never-ending conversation.
So, with all things that come with Jerris,
I'm just gonna dead it.
And I'm glad that she finally understands.
- At the end of the day, Alana, you're an adult
and this is your journey.
I just have to trust that you know what you're doing.
I mean, with Jerris, I don't want you to feel like
you can't talk to me. - Yeah.
- You know, but... So this is the shop, huh?
I've never-- - Never been here?
- No. So where's your station at?
- I was right there.
But KP took it over, so now I'd be, like, around this...
- It's cool. - Okay, okay.
- Whoo-hoo-hoo... - That's what I'm talking about.
- Well, since Alana's so rude, hi, I'm her mom.
- Oh, yeah, you guys never-- - Wow.
- I never introduced you guys. This is my mom.
- Nice to meet you. - I need a hug, Mom.
- Ew! Don't hug my mom.
I don't bring my mom to the shop for one reason--
I don't like to mix my personal life with business.
And my co-workers always love to get
a little too friendly with her.
- BFF club. - (laughs)
- Mom, sit down! Hey, hey, hey!
- Go get her. - (laughs)
- Bye, bitch. - Let me in.
- Hey!
So hands off, KP.
- This is good, though. This is cool.
I'm really proud of you, Lani. - Thank you.
- You definitely come a long way.
- All right, I gotta go.
Bye, baby. Love you, though.
Good luck. Have fun.
- Bye. - Bye.
- I'ma do black and white on each one.
Y'all do the other colors. - Okay.
♪♪♪♪
- It should be two trays each.
(door buzzer) - Hello.
- Perfect timing. Oh, my gosh, yay!
Hi, thanks for coming. - Okay, okay, okay, okay.
I'm proud of you.
- No, I'm proud of you guys.
- I didn't believe
that you was gonna come through.
- Why? - I didn't believe.
- (gasps) What did you think
I would do wrong? - Ain't no (bleep) way
Alana gonna be able to put on no (bleep) event by herself.
I for damn sure thought Alana was gonna blow it.
I know she ain't always the most consistent in the shop.
I mean, I would've thought Alana was gonna need
Jesus to come down and help her plan this party.
- Polo! Polo! It's one orange. One orange.
- This is exactly the type of stuff
we wanted to bring to the city of Compton.
And if she can really bring the people out on her own,
Alana just might be (bleep) employee of the month.
- About to pour me a cup.
- (laughs) - Back to IAM talk.
Everybody's starting to get aligned.
And now, you know, you got the "I," the "A,"
and the "M." - Ohh... (bleep).
- The music.
I got a lot going on right now with the shop.
So, when I get a little bit of time,
I'm breaking in the music studio.
I got some records to put out.
That's gonna really spike up these clients
because once they hear the stuff I've been working on,
they're really gonna pull up and try to see
what we got going on.
This is the culture, you know what I'm saying?
This is what we do right here.
(bleep), we cover all three of us.
(Alana) Guys, now let's get started.
- Yeah, let 'em all in. Welcome, welcome.
- Hi.
- Yeah, be careful with the paint.
- Y'all can get a joint. - Oh, yeah.
There's joints here. Y'all can smoke. Enjoy. Chill.
Thanks, everyone, for coming, first of all.
I know it's not too complicated.
It's mostly just, like, blending a bunch of colors.
But we gonna first start off with the sky.
So you guys can do any color, but before you guys start,
I would suggest wetting your brush first
so that we would blend all together.
♪♪♪♪
- ♪♪ I'm just grinding, I'm just grinding... ♪♪
- See how it's becoming a little bit more pinkish?
You gotta add the white to it.
- ♪♪ 'Cause I'm just grinding ♪♪♪♪
- I'm so surprised so many people showed up for my event.
I feel like things are finally looking up for me.
I mean, I got my tattoo license, I have my own booth,
and KP finally trusted me to throw my own event at the shop.
- Alana? - Yeah.
- Why are you so quiet? - Right.
- (bleep)... Do you mind?
(laughter)
♪♪♪♪
- ♪♪ Damn that's the hook ♪♪
♪♪ Grind got me going out my mind ♪♪
♪♪ For that look real ♪♪
♪♪ Make me wanna run up on some people before they branded ♪♪♪♪
- What's up, guys?
- Hey! - What y'all working on today?
Yeah? I'm excited about today's appointment.
Um, do y'all watch "Dave" on FX?
I'm tatting GaTa. He's Lil Dicky's hype man.
But, like, he's, like, the best character on there.
So I'm about to do this tat.
(cell phone rings) But, um, oh, (bleep).
Tans been blowing me up the past few days.
- Word. - I don't know what
the (bleep) is going on. We've been busy as hell,
and he's been calling me like he still works here.
Yeah. Last time I talked to Tans,
I told him that we could sit down
and talk when I had time.
But now he's nonstop with the calls and texts.
Sir, you don't work here.
I don't owe you anything.
I will get back to you on my time.
His behavior is just kinda crazy right now.
Right.
- What he want? - Whew.
Yo, GaTa, what's going on? - What's up?
- Man, thank you so much for coming through.
- My pleasure. - What's up, y'all?
This is GaTa. - What up? What up?
- Welcome to Enigma.
- How y'all doing? Salud.
- Glasses dope, bro.
- Oh, yeah, thank you, man.
I'm a sunglasses connoisseur.
- I was just telling them, so, like,
he's a big deal, so treat him as such
when he walks through these doors.
Since I had my baby a few months ago,
I've been doing as many tattoos as I can.
But I'm really ready to get back into it full-time.
So I'm super excited to be tattooing GaTa.
He's a big client, and I'm not trying
to let any of that Eric stuff mess up this session.
- I'm so excited today, man,
to be here with a talented individual like you.
- Thank you so much. - So talented, y'all.
- I appreciate it, man.
So my brother struggles with depression.
And, um, he's been on meds for it.
So, when we were watching the show,
and for you to open up about your story and everything,
like, it-- it meant so much to my family
because, for once, my brother felt like he had somebody
that he can relate to. - The moral of my story is just
to basically tell people that it's okay to not be okay.
- Right, right. It's so special for me to do
this tattoo for GaTa because of how much
his story meant to my brother
and what he's doing for black men in general
in terms of mental health.
There's so much work that needs to be done,
and transparency about mental health can help save a life.
You have a little puppy. I'm a dog person, too.
- That's my guy right here. That's Young Morty the Great.
- Yeah. - So we about to get started.
- Yes, we are. - Whoo.
- ♪♪ I'm a, I'm a, I'm a ♪♪
♪♪ I'm a savage ♪♪
♪♪ I'm a, I'm a, I'm a I'm a savage ♪♪
♪♪ I'm a, I'm a, I'm a... ♪♪
(music slows, stops)
- I'll go, I'll go talk to him real quick.
Why does Eric think that he can just
pop up at the shop in the middle of the day
while I'm working and demand to talk to me?
I can't have him just lurking around.
So I'ma go and diffuse the situation
before it gets out of hand.
(growls, sighs)
Check this (bleep). Yo.
(Eric) - This is, like, serious.
Like, I need to talk to you. - Okay.
Like, to me, this type of (bleep) is more serious
than anything else. - Okay.
Are you all good? - I'm not.
That's why I wanna talk to you.
- Hey, well, we got stuff that-- that is going on.
I can't talk right now. We're filming.
- But I need you to, like, understand me.
- You pop up here on your own time,
it's like that's disrespectful.
(Lemeir) - I wanna be all in for
Danielle right now.
I feel like a decision need to me made
between family and doing the shop.
I just know right now I ain't got no time.
- ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪♪♪
♪♪♪♪
(Kat) - I can't talk right now.
We're filming.
- But I need you to, like, understand me.
- You pop up here on your own time,
it's like that's disrespectful.
- If I don't know what's going on,
then I'm just stuck up in the air.
- Okay. - I just want to talk to you.
- So you have to test right now if you're gonna
be up here at all. - I have (bleep) to do.
- Okay, well, my baby's at home.
So, in order for us to talk, you have to take
the COVID test, period.
But I'm about to do a tattoo.
I'ma handle my business and we'll talk.
- All right.
- Eric is acting crazy right now,
popping up at the shop, demanding my time.
If Eric wanted us to give him respect
and talk to him whenever he pleased,
then maybe he should've made better choices.
I'm so sorry about that.
All right, you ready to get started?
- Oh, yeah, I'm ever so ready. - Turn your back.
- Do you know how hard I'm about to flex?
Like, yo, I got a tat from Kat!
- ♪♪ Bigger badder madder ♪♪
♪♪ I'm back and I'm bigger badder madder ♪♪
♪♪ I'm back and I'm bigger... ♪♪
- Aside from my baby, tattooing is my life.
And balancing a shop, motherhood,
and a long-distance relationship is a lot.
So Tans really has no clue as to what my life is like.
And there's really not enough time in a day
for this emotional nonsense.
- ♪♪ On a mission pay attention ♪♪
♪♪ I got to make you 'bout to listen ♪♪
♪♪ Got tunnel vision I got to get it on hit it... ♪♪
- This shop is my first child and I put a lot of pride
and all of my heart into building it.
I know everybody here understands that.
That's why Tans quitting upset everybody
the way that it did.
He didn't give a (bleep) about anybody else
and then when he's faced with consequences,
he comes back crawling, looking for his job back.
- ♪♪ Papa I can make it ♪♪
♪♪ Papa working on a one ♪♪
♪♪ Doesn't matter and I'm on top yeah, yeah ♪♪
- I don't want any of the other amazing artists
to feel like there's any bad energy in the shop,
because just like they depend on me to keep this business going,
that's why I depend on them when I have to up and leave
to go across the country to see my fiancé.
This team is super strong
and they honestly deserve the absolute best.
So I will talk to Eric when I have time
and continue to make the best decisions for this shop.
- ♪♪ I'm back and I'm... ♪♪♪♪
- All right, final wipe. - Wow.
- You ready to check it out?
- I'm ever so ready.
Whoo, GaTa with a tat from Kat!
Wow!
- Is it Morty?
- That's Morty right there.
- Yo, you killed that, y'all. - Yay.
- Getting tatted just like that.
- There we go. - Boss.
- ♪♪ We will always find a way ♪♪
♪♪ We will always find a way hey ♪♪
♪♪ We will always find a way, we will always... ♪♪♪♪
- What's up?
- How are y'all doing? - Good.
- What's going on, bro? - Chillin'.
- Welcome back to LA, brother.
You've been in-- in Philly for a little minute.
- I know, bro. What's you've been up to?
- Grinding, trying to get everything together
for this tattoo shop.
Actually, I'm actually going to look at a location
in Inglewood tomorrow.
(Lemeir) - I've been dreading having this
meeting with Barbie and Ken about not doing this tattoo shop
'cause I know they done put a lot of goddamn energy
and they're really trying to figure this thing out.
But I really can't just let my friends
and people that I love continue to work towards a goal
that I know for a fact is on hold right now.
- We came up with a good name for the shop.
- Okay.
- We Are.
So, the old shop that we used to work at is called IAM.
So from IAM to We Are.
(Ken chuckling)
(woman) - Some drinks for you guys.
(Barbie) - Thank you.
- You're welcome.
- What's wrong with you, though? You seem kind of like "eh."
- Yeah, word?
- Uh, you know, we added on a new-- a new child.
I wanna be all in for Danielle right now.
She's never asked me for anything but time.
So I feel like a decision need to be made...
between family, uh, and doing the shop.
I just think right now it's not the best time
for me to do my shop.
(Ken sighing)
(Barbie clearing throat)
- Okay, I'm kind of thrown right now.
- I get what you mean, though.
Like, as far as your new-- your new responsibilities,
but, like, we've got a team.
- Yeah. - We got you.
- First of all, if I'm not there like I'm supposed to be,
giving the shop attention,
that wouldn't be right to y'all for me to, like,
just hand everything off and be like,
"Oh, y'all figure everything out."
I feel like I'm really just doing the same thing
we just came from.
Damn, it's eating me up inside just hearing
the disappointment from Barbie and Ken.
Especially Barbie, 'cause I know she was really giving
a lot to this whole situation.
I know in my heart I had to make the decision
to give more time for my family,
but, honestly, that really don't make
this situation feel any better.
It's tough on me having to even say it to y'all,
but... I just know right now, I ain't got no time.
I feel like I would be letting my family down.
- I understand that 100%, bro.
- Like, with everything I've got going on,
it was a great distraction,
but I get it though, you know,
especially with the whole family thing.
I'm real disappointed right now
but also I can't be mad at Lemeir.
You can't fault a man
for trying to do right by his family.
I wish some other guys would try to do that.
Bone.
But I'm hoping maybe down the line it could still happen.
- I appreciate y'all for coming here today
and understanding where I'm coming from.
We still brothers and sisters in real life, so...
(Barbie) - That's how families roll.
'Cause we are in this together.
♪♪♪♪
We Are-- We Are was more of a comedy bit.
I think we was gonna stick with that.
(Kat) - You no longer work here, E.
I don't owe you (bleep).
- He's not gonna apologize
'cause he don't feel the need to.
- Guess there's drama everywhere, huh?
- ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪♪♪
♪♪♪♪
- ♪♪ ...I can smell their deaths ♪♪
♪♪ They ain't really looking for a plan to invest ♪♪
♪♪ Straps like an army you go do your best... ♪♪♪♪
- It's watered down with witch hazel a little bit,
so, like, the ink flows a little smoother.
It makes a difference.
A slight one, you know what I'm saying?
- Hey, Miss Nessie. - Hey, hon, how are you?
- I'm good, how are you? - Good.
- You look cute. - Thank you, thank you.
- Ooh, I like this.
(needle buzzing)
- It's cute, right?
- It's like a fully functional tattoo shop.
- We've never seen it before.
- Now, this is a whole vibe.
The shop is bright,
all the artists here are actually vibing.
It almost makes me kind of sad
that Lemeir's shop isn't opening.
But I'm still happy to be here
'cause I'm getting my first tattoo of my baby boy
from my girl Nessie.
- I'm nervous. - Don't be nervous.
Did you put your numbing cream on?
- Mm-hmm. - Oh, so you'll be good.
- I'll show you the three sizes I printed.
I printed one small, so just in case.
- I'll let you choose, I have faith in you.
- We're gonna go full back piece.
- Okay.
Whatever you decide, I'm-- I'm fine with.
- You wanna come on this side for me real quick?
- Yeah. - I'll shade you.
- So how's everything been going?
So I haven't seen you since Vudu's party.
- Been all right.
You know Lemeir's not opening his shop anymore.
- What? Why?
- Yeah, family stuff.
He needs to be around.
I understood it.
It's not completely off the table,
it's just a not for right now.
- Yeah.
I'm surprised to hear that Lemeir isn't opening
his own shop anymore.
I mean, the last time we talked,
he seemed 100% sure that that's what was going down.
And even though our friendship is in a weird place,
like, us falling out basically led me to Kat and Enigma,
so I'm happy that that part worked out.
That's good that he's choosing his family, though.
You know, it's hard for people when they're on, like,
on the journey.
And I still wish the best for him.
I hope everything works out.
But just like Lemeir, I need to focus on my business
and what I'm doing.
(Barbie) - Is it dry yet?
- Yeah, let's do this.
(Barbie laughing)
- Ooh-wee.
- You're numbing her up? - Mm-hmm.
- Oh, man. - (baby crying)
- My baby's back there just making all kinds of noise.
- Look, I'm a creep, I'm watching mine sleep.
He's 14 months and he is in his crib, knocked out.
- Yeah, oh...
Nessie told me that one of her old co-workers from the IAM shop
was coming in today to get a tattoo,
but I didn't realize that Barbie was a new mom too.
Maybe I should start a daycare in this bitch.
(baby crying)
♪♪♪♪
- What's up? You here to get a tattoo?
- What the (bleep) is he doing here?
(Kat) - What's going on?
Where did we leave off?
Last time we talked, you wouldn't answer my calls,
you're ignoring me.
So we talk on your time, huh?
Eric is on some (bleep),
because now he's ignored my calls and my texts
to actually schedule a time to talk,
and here he is popping up at the shop again unannounced.
After you quit.
♪♪♪♪
- Guess there's drama everywhere, huh?
- It's not mine, though. - Right.
- I don't know exactly what's going on,
but I know one thing's for sure--
this whole team got up to support Kat.
That's what happens when the boss is transparent
and she treats her co-workers with love and respect.
(Kat) - You no longer work here, E.
I don't owe you (bleep).
(Nelly) - He's not gonna apologize
'cause he don't feel the need to.
He don't see where he's wrong.
I'm talking to Kat.
- ♪♪ I do what I want ♪♪♪♪
♪♪♪♪
(Kat) - You no longer work here, E.
I don't owe you (bleep).
(Nelly) - He's not gonna apologize
'cause he don't feel the need to.
He don't see where he's wrong.
I'm talking to Kat.
- Okay, I'm gonna stop-- I'm gonna stop you right there,
I'm gonna stop you right there.
I love you, Eric.
I legit looked at you like a little brother.
You're no longer working here,
then you're not my first priority.
If you're gonna do your own thing,
I love you, I care about you,
I'm gonna tell you best to you.
I'm not gonna curse you out, nothing.
Tans needs to stop bringing up this little bro, big sis talk
because at this point,
that's just digging the knife even deeper.
We all treated him like family
and none of us saw this coming.
And now all this denial,
like he doesn't know what he did wrong?
I don't blame anybody for feeling some type of way.
You're not hearing everything I'm saying.
I'm doing a lot.
But I'm supposed to just answer your call
when you didn't give me--
like, you really wanna come back?
You didn't give me no courtesies.
You told me halfway through the month
that you are gonna do your own thing.
You didn't say, "Hey, Kat, I'm thinking about
opening up a studio next month, two months from now."
No, you waited 'til I said,
"Hey, E, again, do you have your booth rent?"
Because you don't pay on time.
(baby crying)
Yeah, that's my child crying right there.
Ain't got time to think about E 24/7.
I still haven't gotten an apology for nothing.
Like, I feel super disrespected right now.
You haven't asked me to come back.
Eric, we've never talked about you coming back.
What the (bleep)?
I know I said the door's always open,
and that's my bad,
but he quit the shop out of nowhere,
came and took all of his artwork in the middle of the night
and just left us out to dry.
And now he's trying to come back?
This cannot be life right now.
♪♪♪♪
So you've gotta catch up on that part quick.
- Man...
- You will never get kudos, bro,
for trying to become loyal.
- Ink Art opened up the gates.
You've just gotta take it to the top.
(KP vocalizing)
- This is it.
It's time for me to finally let them know
what I've been working on.
(Tim) - All right, Compton.
(Polo) - She was able to be strong
for me when I was in jail,
and that kept me stronger in prison.
- You've got a good dad.
- I'm just happy that he's home.
- I feel like you turned on me when I needed you the most
because I was already in a (bleep)-up situation.
I wouldn't treat my family like that,
so that's why... I felt a type of way.
- At the same time, I've gotta think about myself.
If it's not working for me, then I feel it's, like,
stopping my potential.
- How is Enigma stopping your potential?
- It's my journey.
- Well, we ain't got nothing else to talk about.
♪♪♪♪
- ♪♪ MTV ♪♪♪♪