The Wildest Fights On VH1's Black Ink Crew New York | Screen Rant
VH1's Black Ink Crew: New York is dramatic, chaotic, and messy reality TV, and the series has featured some epic arguments. For almost a decade, Ceaser Emanual has owned and operated a tattoo shop in Harlem, Black Ink. With season 9 currently airing, cameras are following Ceaser and the rest of his staff as they run the business and navigate drama in their personal lives. The success of Ceaser's New York tattoo shop and subsequent reality series has created two spin-offs: Black Ink Crew: Chicago, which focuses on Ryan Henry's shop 9MAG, and Black Ink Crew: Compton, which follows KP's InkArtMusic (IAM) Compton.
However, the franchise isn't just known for showcasing tattoos. While each star on the VH1 program has their own distinct personality, the Black Ink Crew: New York cast members do have one thing in common. That's the fact that they really react if they feel disrespected. Also, they won't back down until they have gotten their points across or security has taken them away.
While there have been tons of reality TV fights among cast members through the years, some stand out more than others. Since this is one of the most violent reality shows out there, almost every single featured artist on the series has been involved in a physical brawl, whether as the aggressor in a reality TV feud or not. There are a few particular instances that have made their marks on fans of the program. The following are a few of the most memorable fights on the first Black Ink Crew installment.
While these two technically started brawling when Puma (Paul Robinson) threw a lemon pepper chicken wing on the ground, the real conflict began brewing back in season 1. The first Black Ink Crew installment introduced Puma and his girlfriend, Quani (Shaquana Robinson). Throughout the series. Quani and Puma got engaged, married, and had a child. While Puma and Ceaser got along at first, Quani made it clear that she was not a big fan of Ceaser. Meanwhile, Ceaser became involved with another tattoo artist, Dutchess (Cristana Lavielle Lattimore), and they later got engaged. Like the other woman, Dutchess did not think very highly of Puma. As time went on, Puma and Ceaser grew apart, to the point where Puma decided to open his very own tattoo shop, known as 124th. Naturally, this issue did cause a reality TV rivalry.
After many ups and downs throughout season 2, things came to a head for the (then) former friends, when Puma visited Black Ink while it was being renovated during season 3. Walking into what Sky called a "renovation party," Puma sat down and immediately began shading not just the get-together, but Ceaser and his shop. Ceaser, a known hothead, was shown silently stewing in anger before finally having enough. With the two face to face, Puma's chicken wing drop was the last straw. It resulted in him being body-slammed by Ceaser in a memorable smackdown. Fans who are interested can check out the reality TV fight (and their complete timeline) on VH1's YouTube account.
Sky (Jakeita Days) seeing her two sons for the first time is one of the most heart-wrenching moments of the entire show. A main cast member in seasons 2-8, Sky described her tumultuous childhood multiple times on Black Ink Crew. In and out of jail with an unstable home life, Sky gave birth to Genesis and Dessalines at just 14 and 15 years old. Unable to care for her sons, she placed them for adoption to give them a better life.
Cameras documented Sky's attempts to reunite with her children as teenagers, and she traveled to Texas to meet their adoptive family. While Dessalines immediately ran up and hugged Sky before saying he understood her predicament, Genesis harbored more resentment. He initially refused to talk to his birth mom, but Sky and Genesis from the reality show eventually met at a restaurant. Sadly, the conversation went downhill in seconds. Between Sky's emotional monologue and Genesis's boiling anger, the mother and son almost came to blows before being pulled apart by security. The fight ultimately divided Sky and her sons even more. She was suspended from Black Ink Crew after season 8 for threatening to hit Dessalines, and many people believe that Sky should have never filmed with them in the first place.
Herb (last name unknown) was only around for a couple of episodes, but he sure left his mark on Black Ink Crew. Hired for Black Ink: New Orleans, (Ceaser's newest tattoo shop) during season 7, the artist turned out to be a mole who worked for a competitor. Sky disliked Herb from day one and made it clear that there would be no relationship between them. Things hit their boiling point at a Black Ink party. when Herb and Sky began heatedly conversing. When Herb called Sky fake and "wack" on the show, the Harlem spitfire responded by swinging. Unfortunately for Sky (and soon after, Herb), the man reacted by swinging right back and punching her in the face.
Ceaser, his cousin Teddy Ruks, and the rest of the group reacted just as viewers expected them to. Witnessing the blow, Ceaser and Teddy chased Herb across the street to a grassy area, where the three continued their fist fight. Black Ink Crew's Sky, who was somehow fine during the fight, tried to re-join the melee. Meanwhile, Donna and Kitty Sovain attempted to restore order as the police arrived. When Ceaser and the rest of the gang got back to New York, the blame for Herb's appearance quickly shifted to Donna's boyfriend, Alex Robinson. As the person who hired Herb for Black Ink New Orleans, Ceaser's misplaced anger towards Alex quickly led to the last fight on this list.
There have been a lot of physical fights shown on Black Ink Crew, but this two-on-two fight is by far the wildest. Although Ceaser was upset at Alex due to the situation with Herb, he was also furious at Donna due to a previous argument that the two had. Announcing that he would fight Alex because he couldn't "hit a woman," Donna's boyfriend was on Ceaser's list for a while, despite not actually doing anything to warrant the hate.
When Young Bae (real known unknown) and her then-fiancé Rob decided to get married at the last minute, Ceaser, as the so-called "father of the bride," hosted a getaway for the entire cast at a beautiful mansion. While there were some small spats leading up to the wedding (which never actually happened), Ceaser really could not contain himself when Donna and Alex walked in for Bae's rehearsal dinner. The latter couple declared several times that they were not planning to get into an argument, but Ceaser had already made up his mind. Advancing towards Alex, Ceaser and right-hand-man Teddy body-slammed their reality TV enemy on top of a table before pummeling him.
Not only were viewers made aware of a heart condition Alex had prior to the episode, but he suffered lasting back pain and tissue damage due to the incident. Many fans of the show haven't looked at Ceaser and his cousin the same way since, and a clip of the incident can be found on VH1's YouTube.
Black Ink Crew airs every Monday at 8 p.m. EST on VH1.