Rich Harris isn’t selling shortcuts. He’s building a system.

We start with an unexpected blueprint: sports biographies. Not the highlight reels, the grind. The training blocks. The boredom. The sacrifice. Rich reads athletes the way tattooers should study tattooing: as a long game of discipline, preparation, and showing up when no one’s clapping.

That spills straight into how he works. Craft over chaos. Reps over hype. If you want a better tattoo life, you don’t need a new style, you need a stronger standard.

Then we get into the modern noise. AI, social media, and the weird pressure to perform your career like it’s a reality show. Rich’s take is grounded: AI can be a tool for breaking creative deadlocks, but it can’t replace taste, judgement, or the hours. And social media? Useful, sure but it’ll turn you into a polished avatar if you let it. The point is to stay human.

We also talk about authenticity, what it actually looks like when you’re not curating a persona and how personal connection still does more for your work than any algorithm ever will.

From there it gets bigger: government, industry pressures, and why the people doing the work need to have a say in the world they’re working inside.

By the end, Rich is looking forward to new seminars & new projects but the theme stays the same:

Do the work. Stay real. Build something that lasts.

Tattooing doesn’t stand still, even when we do. A long-term view on staying curious, avoiding dogma, and building a career that lasts.

I talk about tattoos a lot. I’ve written about them in my Total Tattoo column for over a decade now. A lot has changed in that time. I’ve talked about tattooing into cameras, over bar tables at conventions, in late‑night hotel rooms, and on podcasts that probably should never have existed.

When I started, I didn’t have a complete view of tattooing. Not even close. I had opinions, strong ones at that, but perspective only comes with time.

If you’re early in your tattoo career, a year in, two years in, maybe just finding your feet, this isn’t advice in the usual sense. It’s not a checklist or a set of rules. It’s a warning, and some encouragement, offered quietly.

Follow me on Instagram: @thisisourstodestroy

Email me if you want: [email protected]

You can read more of Pauls thoughts on his blog at: thisisourstodestroy.com

"You can't outwork the stress of that kind of job."

In this engaging conversation, Joe Swanson, a former California Highway Patrol officer and tattoo artist, shares his unique experiences and insights on the intersection of law enforcement and tattooing. He discusses the challenges of stress and mental health in law enforcement, the evolving perceptions of tattoos in the profession, and the importance of tactical resilience training. Joe emphasizes the need for personal responsibility and growth, both in law enforcement and tattooing, and highlights the significance of community and connection in overcoming mental health challenges. The conversation also touches on the changing business models in the tattoo industry and the potential for mental health resources tailored to tattoo artists.

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joeswansontactical.com

@joeswansontactical

In this episode of MRKD, Paul and Liam Hunter go deep into the realities of being a tattoo artist. From physical health and yoga to mastering techniques and color theory, they cover the grind that keeps tattoos looking real and artists staying sane.

They tackle imposter syndrome, online criticism, and sponsorships, exploring how authenticity, humility, and ongoing learning define success in the industry. Every tattoo deserves the same care, every artist deserves support, and personal growth is key — this episode is about thriving in tattooing, not just surviving it.

Honest, gritty, and solution-focused, if you’re an artist looking to level up your craft and mindset, this one’s for you.

FIND OUT MORE: paulfuckintalbot.com

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@paultlbt

@liamhuntertattoos

In this episode of MRKD, Paul and Dave dive into the mess social media has made of the tattoo world. With influencers, viral trends, and attention-grabbing gimmicks taking center stage, authentic tattooing is being treated more like a performance than craft.

They break down the tension between staying true to your work and playing the game for likes, asking whether it’s still possible to make real art for real people without getting lost in the chaos. Solutions, strategies, and honest conversation — this isn’t about moaning, it’s about finding the line.

If you’re a tattooer trying to navigate trends without losing your soul, this one’s for you.

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@paultlbt

@littledavetattoo

Joshua Black is a tattooist from Baltimore, now working out of Gypsy Skull Tattoo in Hanover, Pennsylvania — a shop run by Brian Fuentes.

His decision to finally start his journey into tattooing came at a time when he wasn’t even certain he’d be able to walk that path. Literally. Stuck in a hospital bed during the early days of the pandemic, alone, battling scoliosis, and watching the world fall apart, the first steps of his journey were uncertain in every sense — physically, mentally, and emotionally.

When he finally left the hospital, he made a choice: he was done being a wage slave. He was going to make art, not excuses.

We talked about becoming a tattooist later in life, about rediscovering happiness, and about sometimes having to blow everything up just to save yourself. Josh also reflects on the old school, their influence, and how tattoo TV and the rise of celebrity culture have shifted the perception of what tattooing is really about.

Because the truth is — we’re not the cool ones. The tattoos are. And Josh hasn’t forgotten that.

Paul sits down with Iuri Waitzberg to unpack a journey that begins in biology and ends in tattooing. Iuri talks about falling out of love with academia, falling headfirst into tattoo culture, and teaching himself the basics the only way most people do — badly, experimentally, and without permission.

They also get into tattoo culture in Brazil — how it’s shifted over time, how it’s viewed socially, and why a tropical country with visible skin naturally develops a strong relationship with tattoos.

This episode is about curiosity, cultural context, and listening to the pull when something grabs you harder than the path you were supposed to be on.

A wide-ranging conversation with Sam Barber about why making things with your hands still matters. From diving head-first into oil painting, to deliberately choosing analog processes over digital convenience, to a shared love-hate relationship with social media as a business necessity.

We talk about creativity as research, obsession, and storytelling — why the design process is the real joy of tattooing, and why turning artists into output machines kills the work.

The episode closes with an unfiltered, England-specific conversation about tattoo schools, regulation, money, and why so much of it feels broken. No American takes, no global claims — just an honest look at what’s going wrong locally, and why so many artists have stopped pretending otherwise.

Expect strong opinions, laughs, and zero interest in playing nice.

Paul talks with Gabe Ripley about bad tattoos, good tattooers, the long road between the two and how a computer-programming geek end up in tattooing in the first place?.

From a $60 dove on the ankle in the early ’90s, to discovering that not all tattooers are equal, to realising that coding could be traded for skin when cash was short.

This episode digs into class, skills, value, and the quiet overlaps between technology and tattooing. It’s about figuring things out the hard way, recognising quality when you see it, and learning that sometimes the thing that gets you tattooed isn’t money — it’s what you can build with your hands and your brain.

Expect stories, honesty, and a reminder that tattooing has always attracted outsiders, geeks included.

A deep dive into making for the sake of making. Paul chats with Jason Butcher, exploring how authenticity defines art, why labels fail, and why feeling “real” matters more than liking it.

Expect stories about unexpected interruptions, childhood memories resurfacing, and how the act of creation itself can be its own reward. This isn’t about perfection or approval — it’s about honesty in making, and the chaos that comes with it.