вЂњThis will be our first year at the expo. Just as the women of Ladies of Ink are making their mark and вЂњdoing it for the culture,вЂќ this month black excellence will be on display at the second annual Detroit Black Tattoo, Art and Music Expo to be held July 23 at the Eastern Market. The industry is white and male dominated. The whole purpose of the tour, called Ladies of Ink, is to gain more exposure because being a black female tattoo artist, you donвЂ™t find us in the industry. We are all from different parts of the United States. вЂњLast year, I started a black female tattoo artist tour. Lady L says starting the group has created the opportunity to highlight black female excellence in the tattoo industry and is her way of вЂњdoing it for the culture.вЂќ

Now in its second year, the success of the tour has caught the attention of a casting director who is interested in creating a show about the women.

Now, there are quite a few,вЂќ she said.ДЄs the founder of Ladies of Ink, a group of black female tattoo artists and the subsequent tour, Lady L hopes the group will garner more exposure black for female tattoo artists. вЂњTwelve years ago when I started tattooing, I couldnвЂ™t find any black female, except for Jacci Gresham who was the very first acknowledged black tattoo artist that happened to be a woman. Gresham is the first black female tattoo artist, who currently owns the oldest tattoo shop in New Orleans. She credits Flint native Jacci Gresham as an inspiration because she paved the way for black, black female and female tattoo artists. The 12-year veteran notes that she began her journey in the tattoo industry at a time when there were few women, specifically black, female artists. That something else is a lucrative career as one of the countryвЂ™s best tattoo artists. When you do something and you do it out of pure love, it turns into something else,вЂќ she said. It was self-expression that turned into schooling, formal schooling and going to college for art. While currently in the middle of a 10-city all-black female tattoo artist tour, Lady L, Detroit tattoo artist and winner of the Michigan ChronicleвЂ™s Best in Black 2017 Best Tattoo Artist, of Detroit Ink Spot, sat down with us to discuss her journey to success and the importance of representation within the tattoo industry.

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