Star of NY INK and more recently, “America’s Worst Tattoos” Megan Massacre spoke to us just yesterday about the upcoming premiere of the reality TV series. To be honest, interviewing such a bold and talented female wasn’t easy – but we pulled through.
It also helped that she was just as sweet as they come! We almost didn’t want the session to end.
But we digress. Go on, get comfortable and read all about this one time that we chatted with tattoo artist and heroine Megan Massacre:
Hi Megan! Thank you for taking time off your busy schedule to speak to us. Now, we know that you do body art for a living – so tell us, when was your first tattoo and how was the initial experience?
“Actually, getting my first tattoo was rather interesting. I was already learning how to tattoo for about six months before getting one of my own. It was very uncommon because most people got tattoos way before they start learning. For me, I was very young. I just turned 18 but I looked much younger like, I looked more like I was 14. I came to work one day and my boss was like, all the customers are scared to get tattooed by you because you have no tattoos so you’re getting a tattoo today! I had no idea what to get so I had to leaf through some magazines to find a tattoo that I like. I came across a picture of an anime artwork, of a girl who was like a cheetah. She had all these colorful clothes on and I was at the point of my life where I was really into anime. I got it really big on my leg and I never got it covered up because it was meaningful to me.”
Now, we know that we’re going to see a lot of you in “America’s Worst Tattoos” but here’s the thing, we don’t know what it’s like in a day in the life of Megan Massacre. Tell us!
“Me? (giggles) Every day is absolutely different, to be honest. I take on so many jobs! I film for two TV shows – America’s Worst Tattoos and NY Ink. I also tattoo people, apart from just for the TV shows. I work at the Wooster Street Social Club, which is a tattoo shop in New York City and the homebase for NY Ink. I also DJ and I remember flying across the country at least six times to DJ. I’m constantly in and out of the city and I’m constantly in and out of the country, sometimes the world. I also attend tattoo conventions where there are hundreds of artists and people gather for the art of tattoos and tattooing.”
You’ve been doing this for eight years now, right? In your career as a tattoo artist, was there ever a time when you were the most nervous?
“Yeah! In the beginning, I was very nervous because I was learning to do something that was permanent. So I wasn’t allowed to make mistakes because if I make mistakes, those mistakes become permanent! The first year was the hardest but as time went on, I got more confident. It was probably the first year or two that it was terrifying! Cause I was so afraid of, you know, messing up somebody’s tattoo and let me tell you, to be honest, I did make mistakes. Every tattoo artist makes mistakes and we actually call them nightmares – you really never want to think about them again. But it happens when you’re learning.”
What’s the best and worst part of your job as tattoo artist?
“Tattooing has a special place in my heart, it’s where my heart lies, and it’s my passion. The best part about my job is the fact that I get a lot of freedom to do whatever I want. A lot of freedom comes along with my job – I can look however I want. There are people who are confined to their jobs like..they can’t have crazy hair or crazy hair colour or visible tattoos but I can! Also, I can basically make my own schedule – I can choose my hours or decide how much I want to charge. I can also choose to get up and go and literally just tattoo anywhere in the United States. But there’s also the non professionalism that gets tied in with that because you get certain benefits and health insurance if you work a normal job and I don’t get that due to the nature of my job. So I just gotta take care of myself.”
Where we are, in an Asian country, the subject of tattoos and body art is still a bit of a taboo and most of the older generation don’t approve of it. What are your thoughts on that?
“It’s also a bit of a taboo in America as well – just for different reasons. Generally, the consensus is..with the older generation is that people with tattoos don’t do such good things. All I have to say is that..time changes everything. It’s evolution and people change. Obviously, I’m not a gangsta or an outlaw or anything like that. But I have a bunch of tattoos and I see tattoo as an art form. Tattooing will eventually become more popular and mainstream. In fact, most people who have tattoos are not outlaws, even. They go to college and they’re educated and all that good stuff. Tattoos and tattooing will lose its negative connotations but it will take awhile for that to happen. Probably a couple of decades before all that negativity dies down.”
Well put, Megan! Okay, last question – if you weren’t a tattoo artist, what would you most likely be doing?
“(giggles) That’s the funny thing! I’m a tattoo artist but I’m also a model and a DJ. I’ve also just started designing clothes but, okay, if I had to make a big decision back then on my career of choice I would say..probably, something in fashion design.”
For more information, hit up Megan’s official website or, you know, stalk her via her Twitter account.