Tattoo Budcast

New Year’s Eve chaos meets big ideas on this NYE episode of the Tattoo Budcast. We ring in the new year by diving headfirst into everything from urine therapy and Mexican superstitions to manifesting, the power of the mind, and whether you can actually think your way into winning the lottery. As always, the conversation goes off the rails in the best way possible—mixing humor, curiosity, and questionable life advice.

This is how the Buds are acting when Santa is literally on his way to town.

We welcome back Bud Dalton Elliott to the studio, and things get chaotic fast when he gets tattooed by BOTH Buds at the same time. Dalton is celebrating the one year anniversary of his year-long tattoo road trip, and we’re feeling extra merry about it.

We get into Christmas dos and don’ts, our own holiday traditions...

Jimmy Jam is officially creeping toward 40 and having a full-blown existential spiral. He’s turning 37, and Sanae catches him mid freak-out to unpack his problems, offer some real-life advice, and set goals before the void fully takes over. We also get to know the Bud known as Jimmy Jam a little better over a McDonald’s Grinch meal, because nothing sparks self-reflection quite like pickle fries and a seasonal promotion. Plus, we re...

In this episode, we sit down with Red 🔴 owner and operator of Just Deadly Tattoo in Pico Rivera. Red’s start in tattooing wasn’t easy, and those early hardships are exactly what make her grateful for every year she and her shop stay alive in this wild industry 💉✨

We get into the sweet spot of client communication, where someone knows what they want but still gives you the creative freedom to make it sh...

What is a tattoo artist without supplies?? Exactly. Today we’ve got Dale Dimapindan in the studio from the world-famous Kingpin Tattoo Supply, one of the most trusted names in the game.

We dive into what the “tatpocolypse” looks like from the supplier side, whether it’s better or worse to stick with one tattooer or collect from many, and Dale jumps in for a round of FMK (tattoo edition). Sit on your thro...

In this episode of the Tattoo Budcast, Jimmy and Sanae sit down with Montana tattooer Dana Richards, who Sanae has known since his earliest days as an apprentice in the same California shop they once worked at. Now a successful shop owner in Montana, Dana shares his journey from those humble beginnings to running his own studio, along with the major differences between tattooing in Montana vs California. The conversat...

🎙️ Today we’ve got a wild one for ya!

We’re joined by tattoo veteran Eric Hare — and trust us, the only thing more complex than one of his geometric stencils… is his story. 👀

From graffiti ➡️ tattooing in prison  ➡️ exponential personal growth ➡️ to honing his craft,  Eric takes us through a life that’s as chaotic as it is inspiring. We laugh, we get deep, we get real — this episode has it all.

💺 Jump in the tattoo chair and get...

New city, same chaos.

Today we’re comin’ at you from Phoenix, Arizona with a Budcast fan favorite — the curmudgeonly sitcom-neighbor energy, the OG Travel Bud himself… Frank Allen! 🌵🔥

We’re recapping our Arizona guest spot, debating the age-old tattoo question:

Copying vs inspiration — where’s the line?

…and because it’s tradition…

we’re diving into tattoo shop prank culture 😈

It’s another ROADBUDS episode —

🎧 Laugh hysterica...

🎉 HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY TO THE TATTOO BUDCAST!! 🎉

The Buds are turning ONE and celebrating like only 1-year-olds can (and should) — in baby bonnets, bibs, and up to our elbows in baby food. 🍼💩

Join us for our most chaotic celebration yet and thank YOU, our buddies, for an incredible first year of laughs, tattoos, and total nonsense.

So strap into your high chair, grab a warm bottle of… whatever’s in reach, and tune in to the Bir...

🎃 WE GOT A SPECIAL SPOOK-TACULAR EPISODE WITH THE DREAMLAND ART CO CREW! 👻

This week, the Buds — with a little help from returning guests Johnny Bones and Goonies — are coming to you not as Selena y Los Dinos, but as SELENO Y LOS DINXS! 💃🕺

Everyone’s sharing their own unexplainable stories, plus we’re reading listener ghost stories too! So throw on your costume, grab your candy bucket, and tune in for an episode full of laughs,...

🎃 SPECIAL SPOOKY EPISODE ALERT! 👻

We’ve got a hauntingly good one for you this week featuring two extra spooky tattooers — the return of Johnny Vampotna and, for the first time ever, Christina Hock, an LA-area artist with over two decades of experience!

We’re swapping ghost stories (ours and yours), diving into tales of aliens, ghosts, ghouls, and goblins — and of course, talking tattoos....

The Buds are back with returning guest — and newest shop crew member — Johnny Bones! They come in hot with the giggles and dive into everything from Taco Bell nostalgia and Get-What-You-Get specials, to graffiti culture and even people catching feelings for ChatGPT?!

They also unpack why Michigan banned Bactine in tattooing, explore the criminal underworld roots of common tattoo designs, and lean into spooky season with the Scream ...

This week on The Tattoo Budcast, we’re joined by Mike Panic from Removery — The World’s Tattoo Removal Experts! Ever wondered how tattoo removal actually works? Mike breaks it all down and answers the questions every artist and collector has been too scared to ask.

We also dive into the age-old debate of tattoo price haggling — is it ever okay? Plus, we play a couple of our favorite chaos-fuelled games: F*, Marry, Kill — Tattoo Edi...

This week the Buds sit down with Big Ceeze — tattooer of 27 years, Ink Master alum, and former boss of Sanae (who reminds us she’s still got a big mouth and zero filter). We dive into what it was like working together back in the day, why bodybuilding competitions might be the strangest hobby for a tattooer, and Big Ceeze’s new passion project: The Inked Network, a platform built with unique features for both tattooers and collecto...

The Buds are hitting the books this week with Professor Kiki Flambé, a Communication Studies proffesor who specializes in interpersonal communication and the art of persuasion. She’s breaking down the difference between persuasion vs. manipulation, teaching us how to make small talk that doesn’t suck, and showing us what a real, effective apologyactually looks like.

Kiki also gives us a few sales tactics that every tattooer (or any...

We got a Bud Solo on our hands today! James is back from his Hawaiian tattoo trip and—believe it or not—he narrowly survived a tsunami scare. He’s spilling all the wild details about how he escaped his brush with death. 🌊

But it wouldn’t be the Budcast without some laughs—your Buds dive into food talk, fart jokes, and a taste-test of the latest Flamin’ Hot product 🔥. Then they wrap things up with a real tattoo shop convo: the dre...

It’s hard to run a tattoo-centered podcast without eventually touching on piercing—and today, the Buds welcome their very first piercer guest! 🎉 Long-time friend and professional piercer Alexx joins the show. With over a decade of experience, she’s here to bust common piercing myths, drop some piercing truths, and share a few horror stories from the chair. Of course, she’s bringing plenty of laughs along the way.

Tune in for a bra...

What’s better than one guest? TWO guests! 🎉 This week the Buds sit down with not one but two tattoo buds from Handmade Tattoo: Pops (the shop owner) and his right-hand woman, Emily Taylor.

We get into shop life, coworker dynamics, and even read some of their most ridiculous Yelp reviews. Emily shares how she almost didn’t apply to her first tattoo shop right out of her apprenticeship, and Pops opens up about surviving a two-year c...

On this episode, we conjure up the ghost guy himself—Johnny Vampotna. Best known as the paranormal trad-dad of LA, you can spot one of his ghostly or Halloween-inspired tattoos from a mile away. But Johnny doesn’t just draw otherworldly things—he lives them.

We dive into his career, branding, and spiritual “gifts.” And for the first time ever, we get a story for the Tattoo Cover-Up that will have you questioning reality.

So light a...