Yoji Harada Apprentices on TLC's Miama Ink

Ami James and Chris Nunez Mentor

By Orato Staff July 24th, 2007 - 02:27 pm PT

Yojiro Harada is a household name among tattoo aficionados now, thanks to his real life role as the humble apprentice on TLC's Miami Ink. Yoji will soon graduate from apprentice to full-time tattoo artist, and his New York band Big Deal have just gotten back together.

When I moved to New York , I played with a punk rock band for a couple years and then moved down to Miami to work in the tattoo shop. I was 18 when I got my first tattoo, and I've been getting tattoos ever since. It's addictive. Now I've got tattoos all over my body, but I never actually wanted to be a tattoo artist myself.

I had been working at the tattoo shop for over five years whenI asked Ami James if I could apprentice. Ami and Chris Nunez are old school tattoo artists, so I have to learn in the old school style.

My wife and I have two children now. When my kids grow up, they aren't allowed to have tattoos. No tattoos. No way.

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Posted 11/06/2008 at 12:30pm

Like any other teenager I thought I might do something strange to make my parents scream. So I got a tattoo, joined a band and completely changed my look from sweet girl to rock girl. I got the desired effect. My parents went mad about everything but specially because of the tattoo. Now, 9 years later I realized I have to take it out. The color faded a bit and my job is too serious to have a tattoo on my neck. The only place that inspired me enough trust was the Houston tattoo removal shop and they did it without even asking me why. I guess getting a tattoo is the easiest thing one can do. Deciding to give it up is the hardest thing I had to do. Oh well...


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