Whether landing switch heel flips on his board, or landing lucrative deals in the business world, Stevie Williams stays on his grind. In little over a decade, this South Philadelphia native went from touring for DC Shoes and Chocolate Skateboards, to establishing his own apparel company – DGK, short for Dirty Ghetto Kids. The 25-year-old skater-turned-businessman recently partnered with Reebok/RBK to produce his signature line of kicks, boards, and street wear – marking the first time the athletic company has ever had a pro skater on its athletic roster.
Not impressed yet? How about this: his gear is being released side-by-side other popular lines by superstars such as Jay-Z, 50 Cent and NBA’s Allen Iverson. Pretty darn good for a self-proclaimed dirty ghetto kid. Stevie sat down to discuss the mainstream’s recent fascination with skaters – the good, the bad, and the ugly side – and how he and his team fit into the scheme of things.
SHC:What made you want to take up skateboarding in the first place, and when did it change from a hobby to a career?
STEVIE WILLIAMS: Well, just me being athletic – I always played basketball, football, ran track – so it was pretty much inevitable for me to hop into a sport like this. I got sponsored a year after I started skating, so I pretty much knew that you could make money off of skateboarding. From the time I started until the time I got sponsored, it started off as fun, but the word was you could make money off of it. So I already caught wind of that, so I was trying harder after I found that out. My first sponsor was [Underworld] Element.
SHC:Your story is crazy though, because you moved out to California by yourself when you were only 14…
STEVIE WILLIAMS:Well, I hitchhiked. I ran away actually. I dropped out. I just left to get a bigger name, to turn pro and shit. I knew a few people out there, but not really. I didn’t really know nobody, I was just out there on the dolo. It took a week and a half to hitch hike out there.
SHC:It’s always been said that you aren’t the typical skateboarder – from your clothes to your overall style. Have you faced any hate because you don’t fit he image?
STEVIE WILLIAMS:Yeah, I went through all of that shit, being called names, embarrassed. I grew up in the ‘hood so my neighborhood was all Black, and there was only like three kids out of my whole neighborhood who were skating. I went to school, got teased, got laughed off. Just crazy shit – I got called White, corny, sell-out. All that type of stuff. But I mean, I was good. I had something that I knew nobody else had, so I was just taking them shots. Before you knew it I was immune to ‘em, so it wasn’t really phasing me no more.
By Kenny Rodriguez
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xF58sp-lNY[/youtube]
