Ryan Buzzie and his young daughter have full pass tickets to Bluesfest this year, and to mark the moment dad is having her name, in her handwriting, inked on his arm.
The year 2025 was also tattooed, with the twos backwards, because Kynlie, 9, sometime scribes them like that “and we just left it.”
“Getting her name in her writing is something I always wanted to do, and, since they had the tattoo place here at Bluesfest, I decided to get 2025 as well,” Buzzie told the Ottawa Citizen as the tattoo was finishing up.
“It’s just me and her here, so it’s a father-daughter thing, so I thought it would be a good memory to have.”
The Tattoo Truck is in its second year at Bluesfest and the operation aims for 35-40 tattoos a night, Luke McCormick told the Citizen. Last year, there were 335 tattoos done in the truck during Bluesfest’s run.
McCormick says the tattoo truck embodies the memories unexpected tattoos can bring to an event like Bluesfest, particularly with friends.
“It’s the experience, it’s spontaneous, the fun of getting a tattoo,” McCormick said. “It’s for the story.”
For Kathryn Green, one of the truck’s three tattoo artists, her favourite tattoo she did at Bluesfest was last year. Two workers came in to have raccoons inked on them after a baby racoon was stuck in a popcorn machine, delaying the 5 p.m. opening.
“They came in and got raccoons on their legs,” Green said.
McCormick’s wildest Bluesfest tattoo story was also from last year, when three guys came in and had flaming 8-ball tattoos placed on their butts: “Three dudes dropped their drawers.”
Tattoos on average take around 15 minutes and cost $150. According to McCormick, it often takes longer to clean a station than to finish the tattoo.
For Luc Michaud, another tattoo artist at the truck, the work represents a fantastic marketing opportunity for his own practice.
“It’s nice to interact, get out of the studio and interact with people face to face,” Michaud said. “I find the old-school handshake is a good way to find new clients, and I got a lot of new clients from this festival last year.”
As for tips of Bluesfest attendee wanting tattoos, Michaud says it’s best to avoid rib tattoos on the truck. There is limited space on the converted small bus and rib tattoos, which are already not a flat surface, become more difficult when the truck moves slightly.
McCormick said the truck also avoids neck and face tattoos.
It’s also best to come early to avoid lines, he adds. The truck operates from 5 to 10:30 p.m.
“It’s nice to see the people’s reaction for the experience, the memorial experience that they get, the matching tattoos,” Michaud said.
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