Ryan is welcoming a fresh face to 9 Mag, talented tattoo artist Shine. “It’s endless competition in the tattoo game and keeping 9 Mag fresh and up to date is how we’re going to stay in the running, so Shine bringing newer techniques, you know, that’s what we need to keep this thing going,” Ryan says in our EXCLUSIVE video from the Jan. 16 episode of Black Ink Crew: Chicago.
After Shine explains his techniques to Ryan, he gets to work on a client he’s worked with before. “He found out I was coming to Chicago to tattoo, so he jumped on it quick. I mean, like, what’s the point of being modest? People get on planes for me,” Shine says. Hey, he’s not lying!
He continues: “Living the dream for me right now is basically having the freedom to go wherever the f**k I want. Would I have picked Chicago if it wasn’t for Ryan? I don’t know, probably not. I don’t really like the cold that much. But you know, I respect Ryan, I respect his hustle. We got a lot in common, so it fits.” Shine finishes up his tattoo and shows of the final result. The client is over the moon about the work Shine has done on his arm. We can’t wait to see the work Shine and Ryan do next! Black Ink Crew: Chicago season 5 airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on VH1.