There’s so many points to touch on from the videos that have dropped throughout the day but everything I considered typing went out the window at the brain splitting stylistic juxtaposition of skater and spot that is Jamie griffin skating what I presume is some kind of Portland bank to ledge crust
If someone showed me that screen grab with no context I’d be so hyped to watch this Fred gall Dane Brady hybrid next gen ripper.
If someone told me I was witnessing the ride away of a 360 flip nose stall 180 to tail stall 360 flip out, I would scoff and say anyone skating a spot so tasteful would be incapable of reducing them selves to a trick so meaningless
He seems pretty pleasant. I think maybe just can’t shake the dodgy trick and shit sponsor connotations?
To be accepted in conventional skating he would have to completely reinvent himself and that would probably just result in even more of a shunning because his trick selection and bogus sponsors are so synonymous with his name.
Bit tragic to have worked himself into a corner so early on really, cos he’s quite sick and seems like a good egg
Also I think I’ve flagged your post as some sort of hate comment by mistake. I tried to quote reply and haven’t used the forum in a while. I got a pop up thanking me for being civil and asking what I found offensive about your post.
I don’t know how to undo it. Sorry!
Most confusing title for an edit possibly ever (edit: I misread the title as ‘Algeria’!). Wes Kremer, Rob Wootton, Madars Apse and others skate Chilli, Argentina and Uruguay. Some fun stuff in this, nicely filmed and put together.
That Griffin part was definitely the best stuff he’s put out. The ender was well done, popped and not sketchy and it would have carried more weight of the rest of the part had felt the same.
The editing was a bit ropey regarding the audio levels and the music added nothing. Could easily have trimmed it into a 5 minute video.
Some good skating in there though. Feels a bit like HopKing are holding him back a bit at this point - he must have had at least a couple of chats with US companies post batb? Unless it doesn’t hold that weight anymore. I don’t know the guy tho so fair play I’m sure he’s happy riding for them.
If griffin listened to the naysayers and went the traditional trick route and left his sponsors he would just be an average generic am.
He seems more pleasant than his contemporaries and his trick selection seeming to be a bit more routed in freestyle than street. He’s almost got some nerdy flip tech Darren Nolan vibes.
100% a Griffin fan. He won me over with BATB. Seems nice and has genuine talent. Skateboarding is far more interesting if we have people doing really weird and hard tricks.
They are not really an established British brewery and you would be hard pressed to buy their products anywhere other than their website. Hop King is essentially the sideline of two trust fund brothers. For me, and I accept I may be reading far too much into this, the ‘business’ represents something rotten about central London and the cultural/creative industries at this contemporary moment. Both are becoming more and more the reserve of the uber rich.
On a more basic level, one of the brothers (Ludo?!) does the Hop King vlogs and he strikes me as quite clueless. Sort of using Griffin, Decunha and others to play out his skateboard fantasies. I suppose you could use the age old argument that they are at least investing their wealth in skateboarding and skaters, but something about the whole enterprise seems inauthentic and depressing.
Griffin has also skated or starred in creative ‘content’ for brands like BooHoo Man,
I bet Griffin is getting well ripped off by his sponsors, considering his social reach and amount of content he puts out (regardless of it being traditionally good)
They provide an entry point for young children to get into skateboarding
they create content that successfully engages with the demographic they’re aiming at.
they exist within their lane and are aware they have no place in the traditional world of skating
negatives:
they take away potential earnings from traditional skate companies with the knock of less money for jobbing skaters & industry workers. (Would the company owners funnel those extra earnings to their teams if they had it?)
They corrode the conventional attitude around skating. Reduced hellride.
The corporate approach to business and pandering to an audience fosters an apathy toward creativity and individualism which are integral parts of skateboarding culture.
If I walked into my daughter watching a hopking vlog and she then asked me if we could go out to the skate park would I be bummed?
No.
Would I take her to the skate park then make her watch 10 minutes of eastern exposure 3 after?
Yes
