WS Chronicle

By Busta Brown

“I come from a big family. We all lived together in a trailer behind my grandmother’s house in Winston-Salem. I was really mischievous. I always wanted to know how stuff works, so I always got into a lot of stuff, but nothing bad,” said Andre Phillips. 

His saving grace was his art. “I loved to draw, I was really good at it,” shared Andre. He got it from his mama. “My mom was an artist and my dad was a carpenter. But the crazy thing about it is my dad taught me how to draw a portrait.” 

Andre’s gift is his photographic memory. “That’s how I drew my first self-portrait.” He remembered that day perfectly. “I ended up bringing it to church and when my grandma saw it, she actually said, ‘Damn!’ out loud in church! She was so amazed by how good it was.” As he shared the story, I laughed out loud. I could imagine the expressions on the faces of the pastor and congregation.  

Although he began drawing at a very early age, it wasn’t until he was 26 that he realized art was his way out of the street life. “I got kicked out of my place and had five dollars to my name, so I started selling weed. One day the police did a drug sweep in the projects. If you don’t have your I.D. or if you have a warrant, they took you to jail.” At that moment, that’s when God made it clear to Andre how he would stay out of jail. “So I came up with this idea. I’m gonna do this painting. So, I sat on the porch and was like, man, the police ain’t gonna mess with me if I’m sitting here painting and minding my business,” said Andre. 

The magic began. “I started painting and all of my friends told me about a new tattoo shop downtown. So, I thought about it. If I take my paintings to the tattoo shop, they might buy them from me.”  He did just that, but they didn’t believe he did the paintings, so he was given a list of things to draw. When Andre returned, he presented something that was mind blowing. It was an amazing twist to that list. “Instead of me drawing everything on the list, I just put it all together in one picture. They said, ‘You got talent. We’ll teach you how to tattoo if you leave the streets alone. You’ll make a lot more money doing tattoos than you would being in the streets. And it’s a lot safer, and you won’t go to jail.’ I didn’t like being in the streets anyway. So, I was like, cool, I’m with it, and I never looked back”

In 2012 Andre eventually bought the tattoo shop but shortly after, tragedy struck. “My tattoo shop got shut down. I went to Greensboro, where I met a young lady named Jamie. On Dec. 4, she committed suicide. That messed me up. So, I was tired of North Carolina,” shared Andre. By Jan. 5  he had packed a U-Haul and headed to Atlanta. 

His career began to evolve in Atlanta, where he moved in 2015 to join the hit reality TV show “Black Ink Crew” from 2017 to 2019. During this time, he traveled the world creating stunning wall murals, earning numerous awards, and tattooing celebrities such as music mogul and producer Teddy Riley, NBA star and Winston-Salem native Josh Howard, as well as hip-hop artists Young Thug and Rich Homie Quan, among others. 

I asked Andre about the challenges that come with being a popular tattoo artist. “A lot of people think that, since I’m a tattoo artist, I got all the money in the world. That’s one challenge. Another challenge is because I know my worth, I charge accordingly and competing with tattoo artists that work in their kitchen can be tough, because their prices are much lower,” he said. 

The first thought that came to my mind was health and safety concerns, and Andre’s reply was on point. He made it clear why spending that extra money is worth it. “Look at the tattoo artist’s environment and not the price. This person can destroy your body and they’re dealing with your blood. Things that you know can hurt you. If the artist isn’t clean and responsible, they wouldn’t think to ask if a client has HIV AIDS, herpes, syphilis, or things like that. So, you have to treat everybody as if they’re infected with something, because you can really mess people up if you’re not extremely careful and appreciate your clients. They sit in front of me and see that everything is sterilized and wrapped and unopened. All of my stuff is sealed. I make sure people feel safe,” shared Andre. 

Andre is very attentive with his clients. “In this business, you’re like a bartender, barber or therapist. Sometimes people just need someone to talk to, and I love being that person – that shoulder they can lean on.” One client showed his appreciation by gifting him $60,000  to open his first tattoo shop. 

Andre pays that love forward. On Wednesdays, he volunteers with the unhoused. “I go to the shelter and teach them how to draw. They are really cool people. We talk and draw for hours, and like all of us, they have problems. But during those sessions, they’re not worried about their problems at that moment. They’re actually having fun, and that right there is cool. It’s a great feeling that I can help someone escape their problems for a few hours,” said the humble artist. 

Andre Phillips’ latest and most intimate project will honor one of the Twin City’s most beloved citizens. “I’m working on a mural for my good friend Taneisha Gist.” Gist earned her wings on Aug. 17, 2024, after a long and hard battle with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. The two were close. “That was my friend, man! I admired how she wasn’t afraid to share her journey on social media. I called her up one day and was like, I wanna do something for you. And I came up with this tattoo just for her. I told Taneisha, I want to give this to you. She was super happy,” said an excited and emotional Andre. 

During their tattoo session, the two sat for hours talking, until Gist became fatigued and needed to rest. “We couldn’t finish, but we had a deep conversation and learned how much we have in common. We always made sure we kept in contact with each other. So, when she passed, it was sad. But I’m glad that she’s no longer in any more pain,” he said. 

He decided to paint a mural of Gist to ensure that people would always remember the phenomenal woman she was. “Looking at her story, I felt it’s the only honorable thing to do. It’s my way of giving her the chance to live forever,” he shared. 

The feedback from the Winston-Salem community has been extremely positive. “I’m still in the process of painting it. I want it to be equally as beautiful as she is and represent everything that she stood for, while shining the light on breast cancer awareness.”

I asked Andre: The art world can be very competitive and has its challenges financially. What keeps you pushing forward? 

“I got a plan. My goal is to be able to send my kids to whatever college they want to go to, if they don’t get a scholarship. I have my family to take care of. I’ve been around Lamborghinis and all that type of stuff. That stuff doesn’t move me. Just being able to provide a life for my family is why I keep doing what I do. And it’s never too late to beef up your own eulogy. I go to funerals and people don’t have much to say about the person. I’m going to experience all that life has to offer. I want people to say that I was one of the great ones.” 

My Phenomenal Person of the Week is Andre Phillips. Follow Andre on IG @tats_go_crazy and @artdealercreations or call 404-808-2643.