Katrina "Kat Tat" Jackson Returns to 'Black Ink Crew': "The Timing Couldn't Be More Perfect" (EXCLUSIVE)
Published April 18 2022, 9:00 a.m. ET
Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Season 2 of Black Ink Crew: Compton.
The name Katrina “Kat Tat” Jackson is one that Black Ink Crew: Chicago fans will never forget. The 30-year-old appeared on the series in Seasons 1 through 3 and quickly became a fan favorite. Not only was Kat Tat the first female tattoo artist under the 9Mag umbrella, but her realism and portrait style of tattooing also quickly won over viewers. Plus, Kat’s charismatic and down-to-earth personality was an added bonus.
Kat bid the show farewell in Season 3 after an intense argument with Ryan Henry and has been in grind mode ever since. Kat was the first Black woman to open a tattoo shop in Beverly Hills and will soon be welcoming her second child. Plus, Kat will be returning to Black Ink Crew — via the Compton franchise — so this is clearly Kat’s season of winning.
In an exclusive interview with Distractify, Kat opened up about making her grand return to the series, her life as a businesswoman, and what fans can expect to see on Black Ink Crew: Compton.
Kat Tat said that “the timing couldn’t be more perfect” for her return to ‘Black Ink Crew.’
There’s no argument that Kat is one of the best tattoo artists to appear on the entire Black Ink Crew franchise. Kat’s skills are simply unmatched. Fans have long been begging for the reality star to return to the series, and she’s finally giving the people what they want.
Kat won't be returning to the Chicago series, but she will be appearing on the Compton show. And in her words, “It feels amazing.”
“I felt like the timing couldn't be more perfect,” Kat exclusively told Distractify. “I know people know me from Black Ink Crew: Chicago, but I've had years of downtime. … So much has happened … a lot of progress.”
Fans were unable to see the process of her shop —Enigma Tattoos — opening and running, but now everything is falling into place at the right time.
“All the artists in the shop have great relationships with one another,” Kat told us. “And I know that we're gonna make great TV. I'm just really excited for everyone to see where I'm at now in my life.”
Kat’s excitement to return to the small screen is also excitement for her tattoo artists. The humble entrepreneur complimented her team and shared that she’s “excited for them to finally get the exposure that they deserve.”
Kat made history on Black Ink Crew by being the first tattoo artist to successfully tattoo herself. However, Kat tells us that her self-tattooing days are long behind her.
“I'm not going to do that anymore,” Kat said, laughing. “I don't know how I sat through all my tattoos because I feel like as I get older, the lower my pain tolerance gets. So I have to force myself to even get a tattoo by someone else, let alone tattoo myself.”
Kat is the first Black woman to own a tattoo shop in Beverly Hills.
Kat has been serving up a strong dose of #BlackGirlMagic for quite some time. Kat opened the doors of her beautiful tattoo shop, Enigma Tattoos, in July 2018. June 2022 will mark four years that Kat has been in business.
The journey of being an entrepreneur comes with its share of ups and downs. However, Kat has been able to rise above and maintain a successful business.
“One of the biggest issues with being an entrepreneur is making hard decisions,” Kat told us. “I am a nice person and I don't really like confrontation. But at the end of the day, business needs to be handled.”
The male-dominated tattoo industry has a reputation for not taking female tattoo artists seriously. Kat shared that she “would walk into these tattoo shops to try to get an apprenticeship or to try to learn” and get laughed out of the place. So, being able to create Enigma Tattoos is much more than a dream. It serves as a reminder that any goal is attainable.
“It gave me a platform to really show that you can be everything that you are,” Kat told us. “You can be outspoken, you can be a woman, you could be sexy, you can do all that and still be a boss. You can still be better than the people that want to underdog you. So I'm grateful for this opportunity and this entire platform.”
Fans will not only be able to see Kat Tat back in action, but the tattoo mogul will also be in mommy mode. The 30-year-old is all about transparency, so viewers will be able to see it all, unfiltered.
Catch new episodes of Black Ink Crew: Compton Mondays at 9 p.m. EST on VH1.