The INKCARCERATION Music and Tattoo Festival team is thrilled to report that the festival’s inaugural event, which took place July 13-15, 2018 in Mansfield, OH at the historic Ohio State Reformatory (one of the most haunted buildings in the country and the filming location for the 1994 cinematic classic, The Shawshank Redemption) – was a resounding success! Fans packed the Ohio State Reformatory grounds and enjoyed non-stop music, ever-flowing refreshments, stunning tattoos by world-class artists, countless vendors and food trucks, tours of the remarkable haunted Reformatory, high-stakes action at the Hellzapoppin Rock N’ Roll Circus, and more. In its first year, INKCARCERATION hosted over 18,000 fans, raised over $6,000 for local charities, and made an estimated $2.5 million local impact.
Jodie A. Perry, President & CEO of the Richland Area Chamber of Commerce & RCDG states, “We were excited to have Mansfield be the host of the brand new INKCARCERATION Music and Tattoo Festival this year. Thousands of visitors poured in to our area for the event which helped stimulate the local economy throughout the weekend. Many of the attendees had never been to Richland County before and they left with a positive impression of our friendly and welcoming nature. The organizers were pros and it was amazing to see internationally recognized musicians playing in our ‘back yard’. We are excited for next year!”
INKCARCERATION head of marketing Susan Fisher states, “We’re thrilled with our inaugural year of INKCARCERATION Music and Tattoo Festival. We think we’ve truly got a winning formula: epic line up of rock bands, amazingly-talented tattoo artists, in the coolest historic landmark setting: the Ohio State Reformatory, a.k.a. Shawshank Prison. The entire community – including the Reformatory, the civic leaders, local businesses and non-profits, and law enforcement – were excellent to work with and helped us bring this large scale, three-day festival to centrally-located Mansfield, making it a must-go event of the summer. And most importantly, the response from festival goers has been amazing – so huge shout out to our fans! We are busy planning for 2019… so stay tuned!”
Dan Smith, Creative Marketing Director at the Ohio State Reformatory adds, “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to host the INKCARCERATION Music and Tattoo Festival here at the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield. It’s a great opportunity to bring music and tattoo lovers to one of the most historic and famous prisons in the world! The feedback that we all got from the first year was incredible and we can’t wait to grow the festival every year with their team. This is a great win for the Reformatory and Mansfield itself to bring people here from all over the world and experience an event like no other.”
Artists who put on electrifying performances at year one of INKCARCERATION included Rise Against, A Day to Remember, Bush, Black Label Society, Clutch, Our Lady Peace, Suicidal Tendencies, Fuel, Hatebreed, Sevendust, Living Colour, Of Mice and Men, DevilDriver, Corrosion of Conformity, Lit, Life of Agony, Alien Ant Farm, ’68, Soil, Adelitas Way, The Convalescence, Bad Omens, Fear The Fallen, Dead Girls Academy, Akadia, Through Fire, and All About A Bubble. ReverbNation contest winners include Milwaukee, WI’s Avenues, Raleigh, NC’s Nikol, Bradley, IL’s The Unlawful, and Columbus, OH locals Absolute Hero.
Mike Muir of Suicidal Tendencies says, “We had a blast at INKCARCERATION at the Shawshank Prison… great festival, great location. We were really excited about [performing] beforehand, and afterward we thought it was even better! Great people, great time… hopefully y’all will be coming back years and years later!”
Dez Fafara of DevilDriver says, “INKCARCERATION was truly one of the best fests I’ve played. The line-up, the location, the catering, and the crew were all top notch and the DEVILDRIVER show was on fire thanks to the rowdiest crowd of the day! We are appreciative of the invite and would return in a heartbeat!”
INKCARCERATION hosted close to 70 local, regional, and world-renowned tattoo artists tattooing all weekend inside the Reformatory, and featured tattoo competitions all weekend. In addition to hosting the entire INKCARCERATION Music and Tattoo Festival, famed media personality Mistress Juliya was a competition judge, in addition to tattoo artists Krazy Ken Phillips and Troy Denning (Invisible NYC).
Event host and tattoo competition judge Mistress Juliya says, “Working the INKCARCERATION Music and Tattoo Festival for the first time this year was an absolutely incredible experience! The bands were killer, the fans were thrilled, but the tattoo experience was most unique! Inside the historical prison, I found many very talented artists showcasing their work on print and on the flesh. Concert goers had the opportunity to explore new artists from all over the country in one place and get work done that they might not have access to otherwise. The tattoo competition was really fun, and a great way for the fans and the artists to be center stage and feel like part of the festival experience! I look forward to next year with even more artists of all calibers, and the old and new faces as they join to compete for the best work on their bodily canvas. See you guys next year!”
Troy Denning of Invisible NYC adds, “Best fusion of music/tattooing I’ve ever worked! Awesome show and a great opportunity to get work from very talented artists in a non-chaotic, professional environment.”
INKCARCERATION‘s inaugural event was sponsored by Rockstar Energy Drink, Bud Light, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Coca-Cola and Dasani Water, McDonald’s, PRS Guitars, Pony Powersports and Indian Motorcycle of Columbus, KingPin Tattoo Supply, Phoenix Brewery, Ronzworld Guitars, The Ohio Lottery, Mansfield Distributing (Bud Light, Budweiser, Yuengling, Modelo), and Heidelberg Distributing Co. (Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., 19 Crimes, Rhinegeist, Great Lakes Brewing Company, Mike’s Hard Lemonade, Sugar Hill Rum, Jose Cuervo, Heroes Vodka, Tattoo Tequila, Freedom Bourbon).
INKCARCERATION partnered with Destination Mansfield, Richland County Chamber of Commerce, 99.7 The Blitz, 100.7 WMMS, Alt 99.1, Loudwire, The Ohio State Reformatory, Kaplan Artist Group, RCS Productions, and NEO Music Scene. Vending partners included State Farm Insurance, TGI Fridays, Acathla Clothing, The Outlaw Metalsmith, Crazy Cutters Custom Decals, Henna Jhenna, Shining Star Faces, LuLaRoe, Glen’s Surplus, Providers for Healthy Living, Fred Hot Sauce, Lucky Duck Creations, Skullz Dollz, Lynne&Lucille, Shattered Illusions, DFK Designs, Creative Beauty, Urbnpop, and CB Entertainment.
INKCARCERATION is produced by INKcarceration LTD and Blueprint/Forward.
Words and images provided by INKCARCERATION Music and Tattoo Festival.
All Photo Credit: Patrick Fenner
