Thankful For Keith — An Interview With Keith Denley

Intro + Interview by Adam Abada
Headline Photo by Jason Lecras
Skate Photos by Pep Kim

The longer you stay in one place, the more you get to know the people there. If you’ve skated in New York anytime since the Autumn era, it probably didn’t take long until you ran into Keith. As around as he was, though, you somehow never got as much as you wanted. Closer friends saw him skate on trips or sessions between work, while co-workers got some of his hardest working hours.

The skating that did trickle out to the public was always timeless, though. As it turns out, one of those co-workers turned him pro. It is this kind of steady, thoughtful, genuine living that makes Keith’s personality and skating alike so delightful to be around. It’s been long overdue to hear, in his own words, what makes Keith …well, Keith.

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Keith Denley’s ‘Sure Shot’ Part For Hopps Skateboards

We live in strange days for anticipating something.

We anticipate albums for years only to leave trash emojis in the comments two seconds after they land on streaming platforms.

People anticipated a prequel to the most analyzed TV show in history, only to be disappointed that it didn’t do what it had no business doing in the first place.

U.K. soccer football fans keep anticipating it “coming home,” only for it to get lost along the way.

…and the Knicks. Jesus, don’t even ask. A wise man once said that expecting a Knicks decision to work out was akin to hoping the sun wouldn’t set.

But in our small corner of the skateboard universe, there has been no one thing as anticipated as That Keith Denley Part™.

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Clogging the Feed

Big news: the Dunk is out. We can stop clogging your social feeds now.

Have you heard the other big news? Everybody’s favorite skateboarder — yes, Keith Denley — is pro! At risk of not coming off absolutely insane promoting two collabs in the same week (we never planned for things to pan out that way, but c’est la vie), we took pause on pushing the new Hopps x Quartersnacks stuff, but it’s arriving at all Hopps accounts now. We’ll have it on our webstore soon. Whether Keith ends up filming *that part* remains to be seen, but in the eternal words of Mr. Hjalte Halberg: “You Americans are too serious about the pro board shit, in Europe you just turn the homie pro. Fuck it! It’s not about being ‘pro’ at skating. If you are a sick character, you should be pro!”

WEALTH is a new 17-minute video by Steve Lancello filmed all throughout the northeast, with a fire Neil Herrick part at the end. Is that the first footy of someone connecting a trick over the concrete divider on that that side street off Flatbush? Feels like an Aaron Herrington spot too, but maybe misremembering.

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Dreamer — An Interview With Jahmal Williams

Intro & Interview by Adam Abada
Collages by Requiem For A Screen
Original Photos by Cole Giordano & Pep Kim

Jahmal Williams is as humble as he is effortlessly flowing on his skateboard. He is someone with thoughtful personal aesthetics that you could never mistake for pretension. That translates into his effects on skate culture — one that he has been a part of for many decades now. A painter, sculptor and connoisseur of 180 nosegrinds, Jahmal is also a father and runs his own cult favorite brand, Hopps.

“Keep It Moving” isn’t only Hopps’ slogan, but a philosophy that keeps Jahmal relevant and creating great work. With a mind and personal history that exemplifies striking while the iron is hot, Jahmal’s new mural and accompanying short is the type of pandemic-era work that reveals how constantly evolving he is.

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