We were lucky to catch up with Shanequa Chambers recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Shanequa thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

I’ve been tattooing for almost 15yrs. In the beginning I didn’t think it was possible to make a living doing so. I used to work multiple jobs and tattoo on the side here and there. I worked so much for another person’s company that I wasn’t dedicating time to my own passion. One day I just quit my regular job and worked on my craft, and honestly it was the best decision I’ve ever made! I was able to be in the tattoo shop more, learn new techniques and grow my clientele. Putting in more time to improve my talent allowed me to price my work accordingly, and from there I was able to make a living full time.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Hello, I’m Uneq a tattoo artist from Baltimore City. I’ve been tattooing for almost 15yrs. I guess you can say tattooing runs in my family. My dad is a tattoo artist. At the age of 15 he taught me how to tattoo.

I guess what sets me Apart from other artist is that I specialize in many different things. But what I’m most proud of is my color work on brown skin, cover up ability and my portrait work. I love being able bring a clients vision to life or exceed their expectations!

I feel like working brown skin is overlooked in the industry. I always hear clients say they didn’t think they could get a nice tattoo because of their skin tone or because another artist told them so. That’s simply not the case! Some artists don’t like working on darker skin tones because they aren’t experienced with it and instead of telling a potential client that they’ll instead tell them it’s impossible or make the clients feel bad.
I like to have one on one time with my clients to come up with a beautiful design that best fits their vision.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

I feel like society should learn how to appreciate artists and creatives for who they are and PAY THEM WHAT THEY’RE WORTH! Creatives built the world we live in. The cars you drive, the buildings you live in, the clothes you wear. I feel like creatives are often seen as less than in society. People love seeing the stuff that we can do but don’t think be deserve to be paid accordingly.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I would say I built my audience on social media my being personable. I don’t pretend to be anything other than myself! In the beginning I used to only post my drawings and tattoos because I thought no cared if in posted myself or my story. I was so wrong! Once I stared sharing my story and career journey people started to listen. Social media is exactly that! “Being social” I interact and engage with my following. People love being able to connect and relate with someone or an idea, it makes them feel seen. Social media has definitely help build my confidence as a person and an artist. Seeing so many people genuinely like my work and coming to me for a tattoo or piece of artwork is a dream come true because I didn’t think it was possible to make a living doing what I love!

Contact Info:

• Website: Shesuneq.com
• Instagram: @shes_uneq