Ink Medicine: A Podcast Off The Tattoo Table

Count down with me as I, your host, Micah Riot, spill the ink on some of the biggest Tattoo Artist Pet Peeves. Well... for me, anyway. I can't speak for all of us.  Number ten is that one time somebody asked me to make change for the cash they brought to pay with. Sorry, I don't keep a stocked register. I can see why you thought I might, but I don't. The vast majority of time I&apos...

Carina and I started working on a larger project last week.  Almost right as we started working together, she told me she used to tattoo.  I had so many questions but held them all so we could have that conversation on the record.  I love tattooing so much and am always curious about people's journeys in (and out) of this life. If you are also curious about why someone might start to tattoo a...

Listen in as I share some personal updates regarding decisions I've made. I'll also be taking you through a heartfelt review from one of our listeners that deeply moved me and further affirmed why I am so proud of this podcasting journey I've been undertaking for the past eight months.  The second half of the episode takes us on an exploration of the big question, can tattoo artists...

Part Two is live! This is the second half of my deep AF conversation with my new tattoo bestie (don't worry, Wolf, you are still my OG tattoo bestie!) Sarah Sun ( https://www.instagram.com/sun.medicine/ ) of Balm Tattooing (( https://www.instagram.com/balmtattooing/  ).  We tell each other stories of notable tattoo clients and sessions (with privacy in mind, never any names!), talk about the...

Some weeks ago I posted about a podcast episode I just released. Sarah commented. I didn’t know who she was so I went to look at her profile and immediately became obsessed with her positionality, her perspective and her art. I wanted to know anything and everything she was willing to share about her life and career. It is rare that I encounter tattoo artists whose ethics I’m impressed with first,...

Here is a little reference episode for all you newbs to getting tattooed. I will tell you how to plan the week of your appointment, and what to eat, how to dress, what to bring the day of. If you want this kind of info, I am so very happy to provide.  I am happy to hear your questions, suggestions, and feedback. Please send Ink Medicine a message. You can connect with me, Micah Riot, as well as se...

I was asked and I shall answer! This episode is about my journey to having my own business, or more accurately, my own shop. Up until very recently most tattoo artists were self employed and renting chairs at shops. California law changed and now most people "renting chairs" are employees of the business.  For me it was a long and fairly organic process, from apprenticing and working at...

I started tattooing in 2008, and I started following Tattrx almost from its' inception just a few years later.  It was the blog that gave me permission to explore alternative styles in tattooing. Morgan is the person who started that blog. After poring over the pages of Tattrx, I started to play with "watercolor" and "abstract" tattoo styles.   These days Morgan is better...

So this thing came out over the past few days on Tattoo TikTok. A story and then another story and another about a scammer tattooer up in Canada, and it got me thinking about how integrity is a scant resource these days. But then all of these other tattoo artists started responding to the original person, creating free art for her, and offering to tattoo her (also for free), and it warmed my heart...

I met Amithyst Fist when I was about twenty years old, which was about twenty years ago. We couldn't remember if we met at Camp Trans, a protest camp, on the outskirts of the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival, or at NOLOSE conference in Portland, OR, or maybe it was on the floor of a queer dance club (I was underage at the time). To sum it up, we have the same rebellious queer punk streak...

Hear me tell the story/ies about how I got better at boundaries as a tattoo artist with clients. This work gets very personal. Boundaries can get messy.  And what I saw around me "growing up" in my family and then at my first tattoo shop was entirely conflicting in messaging.  Honestly I am proud of this episode. It's honest. But boundaried. I wanted to spill more tea, but I held ba...

I've known The Movement Maestro for a couple of years in the online space. They are a super engaging Instagram marketing specialist, an athlete, and a real, genuine, whole ass human. They have the most adorable cat named Rupert, The Meowstro, and they eat the same breakfast every morning. Spoiler alert, it involves cinnamon raisin bread.  They are an East coaster originally, (but perfect for...

Listen to me explain why tattoos are costly.  I absolutely did forget to talk about the fact that every time we tattoo someone, we make them bleed, could potentially poke ourselves with their same needle or get their blood in our eyeballs and so we risk being blood bound to them for life.  I use myself as an example for why tattoos are expensive giving you a breakdown of what it costs to run a sho...

I became aware of Jamal and his work on instagram last summer when he approached me to get tattooed. Our plans didn't work out then but I started paying attention to his online presence. Lemmeeducateyou does precisely that. He says the Thing when it needs to be said. He says it as loud as he can. I think of him as a political influencer of sorts. He is raw and  he is kind, he is bold and he i...

How's your start of April going? Mine is chill. Have a lovely April and please listen to my next couple of interviews, they are with incredibly powerful people.  I am happy to hear your questions, suggestions, and feedback. Please send Ink Medicine a message. You can connect with me, Micah Riot, as well as see my tattoo art on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/micahriot/ Micah's web...

If anything, I know how to pick my guests. As a bonus, this fascinating human has a buttery silky radio voice.  Leila McCabe Williams talks about growing up Muslim with an Irish father and a Jewish mother, being heavily tattooed as a young woman, building Beloved Communities as an activist, and what it's like to straddle the line between cultural worlds for the entirety of her life.  Tune in,...

An fun silly quickie to tell and show you what a day in my life is like. For some the mundane details are boring, and feel free to skip, for others -- they are fascinating. I, personally live for that sh*** .  Highlights include my morning and night drink of choice, the amount of time I've been doing crossfit, my dog's primary communication mode, and my excitement about the abundance of...

It's hard to describe this one, y'all. I've known this person as long as I have been tattooing (fifteen years), and I've admired them this entire time. They walked so I could prance a bit.  This may have been the most raw episode yet. Wolf and I cover so many topics. We talk shop in so many ways. We talk about apprenticing, evolution of the craft, what it takes to become and st...

Last week I, Micah Riot, met some close friends in Ireland, and we adventured in Dublin and along the West coast in a big gay van, stayed in a short castle, saw the brightest green fields and the moodiest grey skies and a lot of shaggy cows.  We ate fish and chips, we drank (mostly Spanish) wine, and some of us even tattooed each other.  Tune in to get the deets on my big gay trip to Ireland.  I a...

I am hanging out in Ireland this week taking in all the green and visiting an old friend with some other friends. Getting tattooed, too. I will tell you all about it when I am back at the end of this month.  I am happy to hear your questions, suggestions, and feedback. Please send Ink Medicine a message. You can connect with me, Micah Riot, as well as see my tattoo art on Instagram at https://www....

Erin Rogers is autistic and she is a story telling coach. We met on a reddit board. Follow along as we meander down a lot of conversational paths stumbling on some real gems and moments of connection along the way.  We talk about the way different ways our minds work, she tells me her tattoo stories, we touch upon the systemic humiliation built into our education systems, mention a couple of movie...

So you decided to get tattooed.  This is a ramble from me, Micah Riot, a person who has been getting tattooed for twenty years and tattooing others for 14 about what to think about and ask yourself when you are wanting to take that next step of finding a tattoo artist.  If you have questions, desires, requests, notes, find me on instagram or over e-mail and let me know.  I am happy to hear your qu...

Luoi. They have Luoi in common.  Meet Luoi. She might be the owner of the most buttery toasty voice I've ever recorded. Luoi talks about her polyamory, how she met her wife, being on the road more than being at home, being a butch of all trades, studying piercing and getting tattooed as a youngin, making coffee, and all the while we giggle like tired schoolchildren and Lulu gently snores.  Yo...

A short(ish) ramble about the things I'm excited about in the next few months, including a big for me purchase I made last week.  Also a couple of little bummers.  Announcement: please rate and review the podcast! Help me get the word out! Everyone who reviews it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts (an entry per review) will be entered into a giveaway. I will be giving away tattoo t...

The thing about Alle is that she is an absolute ray of sunshine in my life. Alle, as she says, has resting friendly face and is genuinely one of the sweetest humans I've ever met. I consider Alle my Fairy Goddesschild, it is a chosen family commitment, one I consider an honor.  In this episode we recount some of the cornerstone stories of Alle's young life. From singing opera all over th...