Getting Faded with Lonnie Gallegos

Below is an interview I did with Lonnie Gallegos a couple of months ago before the release of his new video Fade Nation. It was supposed to be on Be-mag but for some reason it never made it up on the site. Enjoy...










Getting Faded with Lonnie Gallegos

This month, Lonnie Gallegos and Brandon Negrete released their second film Too Faded. Their first venture, Fade Nation was a shining example of what can be achieved when two talented individuals work together to create something special. You could easily recognise the characteristics that both directors have brought from their previous releases but there was something more. It was obvious that their styles complimented each other perfectly.

Now that their second film has been officially released, I thought it was time I caught up with Lonnie to find out how his life has changed since we last spoke and what it is like making the adjustment to working with another person on a film. As always, Lonnie was more than happy to give us an insight into his life and offer a few hints of what we can expect in the future.

It’s been a couple of years since I spoke with Lonnie. The last time we were in touch was to discuss his clothing company, Black Fabric, and the release of the team video, A Staggering Artwork of Heartbreaking Genius. I was curious to know how life has changed since those days and if Black Fabric was something that he was still pursuing. In Lonnie’s opinion, things are pretty much the same.

“Not much has changed. I’ve moved to downtown Los Angeles with Kevin Gillan and Lee Martin. Other than that I’ve just been working the graphic design day job, making shirts and filming. I moved from Orange County to L.A. and that’s about it. I still have the same job and the same friends.”

Lonnie is still making clothes under the Black Fabric label but he readily admits that it is not something he is taking very seriously at the moment. This is hardly surprising considering he is already balancing the responsibilities of working a full time job and producing some of the most visually stunning videos in rollerblading. When asked if there are any plans to release another range of items, he simply said:

“Yeah, I already have some but it’s kind of like, you come to my house and see something you like and I’ll sell it to you. I’ve been planning a website forever. I swear BlackFabric.com will be up soon. You’ll see”

Once we got that out of the way, I thought it was time to find out why Lonnie decided to team but with Brandon Negrete and how their working relationship was going so far. Lonnie asserted that it was simply a natural progression from working in such close proximity to one another for so long.


“We lived close together and were always filming the same people. Plus, we usually tend to agree on a lot of different fronts. It was something that kind of naturally worked out. Instead of being all like, “Hey, look, we’re the new VG!!” about it, we decided to work our way up to that point.”

When two people work together on something they feel so passionately about there are endless opportunities for conflict. I was interested to know how Lonnie was finding working with Brandon and if they were having any trouble agreeing on certain aspects of making a film together.

“At the beginning, there was really no telling how far the Fade Nation idea would actually go. I think neither of us knew if we could put up with the other for very long, but so far so good. Plans for a 3 and a 4 have already been arranged.”

When asked how Too Faded would be different from the first Gallegos/ Negrete collaboration, Lonnie was keen to emphasise that their main goal is to progress and build upon their previous work with every new project. This is something that the pair find challenging as the success of their last effort has caused people to request that they keep producing something similar.

“We always look to improve and do something different every time around. I notice a lot of people requesting the same sections with the same style and vibe over and over. But we’re trying to push things and make them different. This video has one of the most mixed groups of skaters I’ve ever seen. From JC, to Montre Livingston, to Enanoh, to Ben Schwab, to the Russians who always send us fresh clips. It’s a beautiful mess.”

Thanks to Lonnie’s insightful responses it is now clear that the world can expect more Fade Nation releases in the future and we will even see a rebirth of Black Fabric. However, there was still one very important question that had to be answered.

“Lonnie, what’s your favourite skate video?”
.
”Mine is The Adventures of Mr.Mooseknuckle for every reason. It had cool
thugged out rap music, people doing big stunts. It introduced the balanced backslides, fishbrains, topacids, unitys, the lurch switchup (royale to ao topsoul), and the TJ Webber section is still my favorite of all time. When I asked Negrete he said Road to Nowhere.”

J.C. Rowe is hard work

Last year, Be-mag asked me to interview J.C. Rowe for an online feature. I was accustomed with interviewing pro skaters through my own efforts of numerous emails, phone calls and instant message chats. When Be-mag provided me with his details I was excited because I enjoy watching J.C.'s skating. More importantly, I was looking forward to doing less work because I had already completed the first hurdle, I had his contact details and I knew he was willing to do the interview. Hard part over... or so I thought.


It turns out J.C. Rowe is one of the most difficult people I have ever had to interview. You have to prize answers out of him with a crow bar. Everything I asked was either met with a one-word answer of one that did not have any reference to the question. It quickly became very frustrating and I soon regretted agreeing to the assignment.


Don't get me wrong. He is a nice guy. I'm just not very certain that his attention span is very long. In fact, that could be the most understated thing I have ever said about another human being in my life...

Speaking in Riddles- The J.C. Rowe Interview

J.C. Rowe is a self-aware enigma. Getting a straight answer out of him is like trying to get a sensible sentence out of a child plagued with a Ritalin addiction: It just doesn’t happen. Maybe it’s the copious amounts of Mountain Dew he consumes at an alarming rate. Maybe it’s that he just doesn’t want to give away the secrets locked away in his mind. Either way, the replies he provided proved to be interesting to say the least. One thing became painfully obvious: J.C. likes to go off on a tangent and say whatever it is that he feels is necessary. The Detroit native failed to clear up many of the mysteries that seem to surround him concerning spontaneous sponsor changes and his sudden rise to international recognition since his appearance in Dave Paine’s Videogroove 22. Could it be that the rapidly progressing urban wizard is a cunning composer of riddles? Only those close to him can truly know. All that is certain is that J.C. Rowe is an incredibly gifted athlete, and a very strange individual.

Several years ago, J.C. Rowe made the decision to move from his home state of Michigan and relocate half way across America to Wesminster, California. Like many skaters before him and many more that are sure to follow, he chose to follow his dreams and base himself closer to the heart of the industry in San Diego. However, he soon came to understand the grim realities that faced him as an aspiring pro skater.

“I first made plans to move out to California 5 years ago, although I had no idea what I was getting myself into. At that time there was still a good number of people making their living from skating. After a few years the industry was becoming smaller and less capable of providing a living for many pros. As people started doing other things and skating less, I began skating more and started showing up in magazines and videos. I knew how things were money-wise at this point, but it didn't matter. I was getting to do what I had always wanted to. I was living my dream. However, the pro skater life ended about 2 years ago when I realized I needed to get a job”

Despite the fact that J.C. Rowe has risen to international notoriety thanks to a memorable performance in Carl Sturgess’ epic Killerboots, there are still bills to pay and responsibilities to fulfill. Luckily, unlike many of his peers, J.C. was not naïve enough to believe he could simply survive on his endorsements alone and set out to find himself a stable form of income. However, he does hold a slight grudge against the fact that it does intrude on his cherished time spent on skates.

“At the moment I work in the office of a window tinting company. They do cars, buildings and houses. I run the automotive department. I work every Saturday, which is probably the only thing I don’t like. On a Saturday when everyone goes out skating, I'm busy talking to people about their cars. I have a full time job and a sold out pro wheel. Not bad, eh?”

Not bad indeed. J.C. is currently skating for Eulogy wheels, Fifty-50 frames, Sixwonsix clothing, Night hardware, Octona skateshop and Crap bearings: An impressive list of sponsors that not many of his fellow professionals can boast. The more observant of you will notice that there are two notable absences from that list of endorsements: Senate and Remz. J.C. became the topic of many debates among rollerblading fans everywhere when Eulogy suddenly released a pro wheel with his name on it. This came as a shock to many enthusiasts within the industry, as J.C. was widely regarded as the new face of Senate, under the guidance of veteran pro skater Kevin Gillan. It is unclear to this day if Senate has simply ceased trading or if the relationship between the two simply ceased to function. When asked what happened with Senate to prompt such a move, J.C. seemed reluctant to go into specifics. He simply said, “I guess I realized after a few months of intercepting and stealing Eulogy wheels that were supposed to be sent to my house for Rob G that I should make the switch myself, and tell Rob I owe him some wheels.”

This seemed like an extremely odd response considering in the short period of time J.C. has skated for the brand he has received two pro model wheels and previous interviews suggested that his relationship with team manager Kevin Gillan was really good. For the past six months J.C. has also been seen riding on Xsjados, which came as a surprise to many as he was a well known member of the Remz team and until recently featured heavily on their website with regular online edits. The fact that J.C. left Remz without any motive to ride for another company poses many questions. When asked what prompted the departure from a team that he seemed so suited to, J.C. replied, “Apparently there are no more Xsjados in my size anywhere. I wish didn't start liking a skate so much right before they became extinct.”

Eager to know if there had been a dispute with owner Kato or conflict with other members of the Remz team, I pushed J.C. for an answer but he seemed unwilling to provide one. Instead of saying why he left the team, he simply declared what weren’t the reasons for his departure. It is evident that J.C. prefers to keep certain aspects of his career as a pro skater private.

”I think everyone expects me to say ‘because I didn't get a pro skate’, which is stupid. Skating for Remz gave me the opportunity to do a lot of skating and travelling, which is more than I could have asked for. It didn't matter if I was going to ever get a pro model skate or even another paycheck for my skating, and it still doesn't. The reason I skate is for fun. That's why I started and that's why tomorrow on my day off I just want to go skating with my friends.”

If you have ever wondered what a normal day is like for J.C. Rowe then I am afraid you are going to have to continue wondering. When asked what J.C. usually does to keep his conscious hours occupied, he was more interested in detailing what he likes to fill his stomach with. However, he was gracious enough to give us the briefest insight into his life once he was done listing his favourite junk food indulgences.

”I have donuts and vitamin water for breakfast, hamburger or pizza for lunch, and usually pizza again for dinner. I drive an old Bimmer a few miles to work. I spend my spare time with my friends, or drawing and listening to music. Oh and I usually beat Chris in a couple games of pool, haha!”

J.C. Rowe tends to go off on tangents when faced with basic questions. It is difficult to assert whether or not this is due to the fact that he didn’t want to give out certain details or that his mind simply wandered off track at certain points during the interview. It doesn’t really matter either way. His skating ability is undeniable. Anyone who has witnessed J.C. in the flesh or viewed his astounding performances in Videogroove or Killerboots cannot deny that he is at the forefront of modern rollerblading. This is reflected by the fact that he has a sponsor list that many of his fellow professionals would envy. Look out for J.C. Rowe in the new Sixwonsix team video that is set for release very soon. If his last performances are anything to go by, it will certainly be a profile to be admired time and time again.