Magazine Cover Staff Blog

Stories Behind The Inked

I have been waiting to get my hot little hands on this month’s issue of Inked Australia/NZ. Finally it has arrived, and once again it has delivered – with an Inked Girls 2012 Calendar may I add…

The cover of the 10th issue features Australian singer/song writer Vanessa Amorosi sporting a much edgier style than her previous “girl next door” look.

Discovered and signed as 15 year old brunette, Vanessa has told Inked “Like most people I have simply grown into myself. I disappeared for a while. And I guess people got a shock when I came back and I had grown up”, and now with her flaming red hair and red lipstick the “changed woman” cannot go unnoticed.

Amorosi is pictured flaunting her collection of body art (which she previously hid whilst performing), having had her first tattoo experience at the early age of 16. Her impulsiveness has led to a much larger collection of unique tribal designs on her arms and legs which the singer is now recognised for.

Inked also features body art from the lead singer of “The Young Giant” Sameer Gadhai, hailing from California. The band have recently caught the attention of Australian listeners with their popular new single “Apartment” being played on rotation on radio station Triple J.

Gadhai is pictured in a rather sultry pose with his shoulder tattoo on display. As the singer is known for his raspy yet smooth vocals , like Amorosi , Sameer tends to cover his body art and isn’t normally pictured exposing his ink. He explains “It’s a chakra around the Indian flag, or in a looser sense it’s just staying true to your roots”. Sameer reveals stories of his childhood from being raised around his Indian grandmother who was a classical professional singer. He admits that singing was in his blood after being subject to the importance of melodies in Indian music, which now reflect in his own songs.

As Vanessa Morgan the editor of Inked states,“To appreciate music you don’t have to be in a band, and to appreciate tattoos you don’t have to be covered in them.”, and as a non-Inked individual myself I couldn’t agree more – nothing could stop me from attending the Melbourne Tattoo Convention this year.

Inked magazine features a four page spread with a collection of attendees, artists,  artworks and performances from the event which was held from the 16th -18 of September. And why wouldn’t they… with tattoo contest and zombie pageants, the event was packed.

Inked Australia/NZ magazine manages to rip the clothes off tattooed bodies to reveal the story behind the art. It’s usually the individuals you would never think of who are the ones with with ink to bare…

“Its not just your beefy, long haired metal heads anymore displaying their tattoos. Rock, pop, rap, dance.. It doesn’t matter who is streaming from your iPod, they are all likely to have spent time under the needle.”