New Season of Spike TV's INK MASTER to Premiere Today

SPIKE TV's hit original and the first tattoo reality-competition series "Ink Master" returns for a fifth season starting Tuesday, September 2 at 10 pm ET/PT, and this time there's bad blood in the water. Tattoo artists from around the country will battle it out to defeat their rival and the other 16 artists in permanent ink and sometimes with each other for a $100,000 grand prize, an editorial feature in Inked and, of course, the bragging rights title of 'Ink Master.' This season it is not just about the rivalries you create on the show, each contestant is coming into this competition with a personal tattoo rival. From convention circuit foes, a former boss vs former employee, brothers and even two of the Most Infamous rivals in "Ink Master" history, this season's competition is more personal than ever.

Each week "Ink Master" puts artist through a series of tattoo challenges that are not only designed to test the artists' technical skills, but also their on-the-spot creativity, where they must create and execute an original tattoo by command on a 'Human Canvas.' Each episode focuses on a different and distinct style of tattooing including realism, black and gray, geometric, neo-traditional, Asian and cover-up, among others. The masterpieces these artists create will last a lifetime, but so will their mistakes.

After every challenge, the contestants face a tough panel made up of series host Dave Navarro (Jane's Addiction) and world renowned tattoo artists Chris Nunez ("Miami Ink") and Oliver Peck (Elm Street Tattoo) who are joined by a roster of guest judges including Joe Manganiello, Tommy Montoya and DeAngelo Williams.

Once again the Human Canvases, who volunteer their bodies to be tattooed by the "Ink Master" contestants, will have a say in who gets sent home. The Canvases will form their own jury, deliberate as a group and pick one artist per episode who will be up for elimination. In the jury room, viewers get an inside look at the heated arguments and wicked emotions as the Canvases defend or abandon their new ink and artist.

In the season opener the artists put ink-to-skin right from the get-go. There are eighteen artists standing, including season three rivals Joshua Hibbard and Jason Clay Dunn, and each of them are forced to collaborate with their biggest rival in a tag team tattoo challenge (right away as they are challenged to tattoo as a tag team).

The "Ink Master" Season Five tattoo artists are (listed in alphabetical order):

· Angel (@Angel_Bauta) -Owner/artist at Puncture Tattoo Studio in Brooklyn, NY

· Julia Carlson (@julzcarlsontat2) - Artist at Ink Obsession in Brown Mills, NJ

· LT (@lt_doart3) - Artist at East Providence Tattoo in Providence, RI

· Jason Clay Dunn (@JasonClayDunn) - Owner/artist at Tattoo Alchemy in Montclair, CA

· Emily Elegado (@EmilyElegado) - Artist at Roses & Ruins Tattoo in Goose Creek, SC

· Cris Element (@CrisElement) - Artist at Leathernecks and Bullseye in Brooklyn, NY

· Ryan Eternal (@Ryan_Eternal) - Artist at Hart & Huntington in Orlando, FL

· Joshua Hibbard (@_JoshuaHibbard) - Artist at Inspired Tattoo in Portland, OR

· Tim Lees (@Timstat2) - Artist at Propaganda Tattoo in San Diego, CA

· Mark Longenecker (@longnecktattoo) - Owner/artist at Endless Summer in Cocoa Beach, FL

· Aaron Is (@AaronIsTattoo) - Co-Owner/artist at Bloodline Tattoo in Tampa, FL

· Cleen Rock One (@Cleen_Rock_One) - Owner/artist at Chrome Gypsy Tattoo in Las Vegas, NV

· Don Peddicord (@DonPeddicordArt) - Co-Owner/artist at Tattoo Dynasty in Baltimore, MD

· Ty'Esha Reels (@Ty_Tattoos) - Artist at 401 Ink Tattoo in Providence, RI

· Robbie Ripoll (@RobbieRipoll) - Owner/artist at Chapel of Love Tattoo in Viera, FL

· Jayvo Scott (@JayvoScott) - Owner/Artist at Ink Doctors Tattoo Studio in Melbourne, FL

· Erik Siuda (@ErikSiuda) - Owner/Artist at Ghost Gallery Tattoo in North Bellmore, NY

Viewers can find more on each artist including biographies, photo galleries, artwork portfolios and artist introduction videos by visiting inkmaster.spike.com. Throughout the season fans can watch full episodes and video clips, and are encouraged to join the conversation on social media. Each week fans can interact with the show by using #InkMaster for the chance to have their tweets featured on-air, and by participating in real-time polling through custom hashtag battles. The latest in tattoo culture and series news can be found on the official "Ink Master" Facebook page, on Twitter @spikeinkmaster, Tumblr and on Instagram @spiketv.

Coming off its highest rated season with Men 18-49 and Persons 18-34, "Ink Master" season four saw triple digit increases vs. all time period averages with Persons 18-49, Men 18-49, Women 18-49 and total viewers. In its Tuesday 10-11 PM ET/PT slot, "Ink Master" ranked among the top 5 among Persons 18-49 Men 18-49 and Men 18-34 and is currently one of Spike's most gender-balanced programs. The series generated 4.6 million total Cross Platform Video Views during season four and the LIVE finale was ranked #1 on cable based on twitter activity, its highest ranking ever.

"Ink Master" is produced for SPIKE by Original Media ("Swamp People," "Comic Book Men," "BBQ Pitmasters," "Grilled," "Dual Survival," and "NY Ink") with Charlie Corwin, Daniel Laikind and Andrea Richter serving as Executive Producers. Original Media is a subsidiary of Endemol USA.

Sharon Levy is Spike's Executive Vice President, Original Series, Chris Rantamaki and is Senior Vice President of Original Programming for SPIKE and oversees production of "Ink Master" and Kevin Bartel serves as the network's Executive in Charge of Production.

Founded in 2002, Charlie Corwin's Original Media has built a strong reputation for cutting-edge content and quality production. Original Media produces hundreds of hours of award-winning content across multiple media formats including Academy Award nominated feature films, reality television, scripted television and digital programming and currently has fifteen television series on air. Some of Original Media's hit television series shows "NY Ink," "LA Ink," "The Rachel Zoe Project," "Swamp People," "Storm Chasers," "Dual Survival" and "BBQ Pitmasters." Original Media produced the Academy Award nominated films The Squid and the Whale and Half Nelson. The company, headquarters in New York, is a subsidiary of Endemol USA.

Spike TV is available in 98.7 million homes and is a division of Viacom Media Networks. A unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), Viacom Media Networks is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. SPIKE TV's Internet address is www.spike.com.

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