photos and words by Neftalie Williams
When we first start skating we internalize its joys and what it means to us. For some it’s simply an activity that brings us closer to our friends, for others it’s a release from the world around them. In the case of Gershon Mosley, it was the latter. Like a young Proteus he found the glowing ember of possibilities in skateboarding and fanned the flames until they filled up his heart.
However, whenever we internalize our love we run the risk of being burned by it. With Gershon’s quiet, personable demeanor he battled being thrust into the corporate world surrounding skating, while at the same time fought to discover his own persona in the public arena. Over time, he stepped back to reassess what he loved about skating by traveling alone on roads seldom traveled by skaters of his caliber. Never needing the glory or the praise, he skated with people who didn’t care about his status or the image he portrayed. Revitalized by time spent with people who loved skating for skating’s sake, Gershon steps back into the storm again, but this time with renewed vigor and the heat and heart to lend…
I’ve been seeing you everywhere lately. You were skating at the Surf Expo contest in Orlando, FL, the Lord of the Lines and on the East Coast tour with Satori. It seems like you’re back up in the mix?
Yeah, I have been getting back in the mix of everything lately. I was traveling a lot and wasn’t quite out there in the public eye all the time, but I have always been out skating. I just took a little break from being out in the public eye for a second. I just stepped back to enjoy skating for skating’s sake. I was still handling it everyday, but I made a pilgrimage to Seattle for a while.
Do they have a cool scene up there?
They do. It was just a fun time up there. Shout out to 35th Ave in Seattle! I skated with a lot of people, had fun and got my fire back from just having fun and loving skating again.
Is it a good feeling to come down to the land of the lenses and have everyone miss seeing your skating?
Yeah, it’s actually cool that they noticed. I actually didn’t know I had that kind of appeal. I just went a little underground as a way to just keep it pure and remember why I started. It’s just good to be other places sometimes to just let the skating speak.
I’m sure your new sponsors are psyched about your visibility lately. Can you tell us a little about your new board sponsor and how that came to pass?
Right now I’m riding for Subgenius. It’s a brand new company headed up by Jason Massey with the art director named Foof. They actually asked me to ride for them a while ago, but I was still deciding where I wanted to lay my roots. I saw the direction they were going and really liked that they wanted to focus on great skateboarding and great art. The team consists of me, Massey and Cory Sheppard.
So you feel like it’s a good fit at Subgenius?
I do. It’s sort of a perfect combination right now. I like the wood, I like the team and I really like the art direction. Plus, I like being involved in an organic way.
So the art direction was really a big plus factor for you?
It really was because Foof is incredible. Foof is capable of doing art in so many mediums. He’s just that well rounded. He can work in just pen and inks, acrylics, pretty much anything you put in front of him. He actually did my new board graphic inspired simply by a poem I wrote.
It’s great to see that sometimes it’s not about the budget, but about being able to truly bring the concepts of the riders and the company to life.
Exactly, we have a great thing going on over there.
Speaking of artwork, I know that you have a lot going on with your own art, on both a personal and business level. Tell me about the projects you’re working on and the inspiration behind your work?
Well, I’ve always been working on my own artwork, and that’s cool because it’s my own inspiration and interpretation. I actually have an art show this weekend up north, and it has been fun and exciting. The art has been received well.
As far as working on different graphics for other people, it’s going great too. Collaborating with other people on their ideas has been a great learning experience. It’s totally different and expands my own palette and broadens my horizons. It makes me understand and appreciate all types of art and interpret my own vision.
So your art allows you to express yourself in greater ways than just in your skating?
Definitely. Even though you can express yourself through your skating, it’s totally a different thing. Your skating has limits. It’s more of a physical thing, and some people don’t see it as any expression.
And I know you don’t treat skating like it’s just a job.
Right. I respect that some other skaters do, and that’s their vibe. It’s just a little different for me. Skating doesn’t just pay the bills for me. It’s something I’m always passionate about and am always attached to. I’m not just doing tricks to throw myself down something to beat my chest. I want to try to skate in a way that inspires and excites people. Then the next time they are out, it might be the catalyst to their skating and they might do something new.
I always feel that has to deal with peoples’ backgrounds. I’m from the Northeast and we always had to fight to skate. I think it bred people who were really passionate about skating. Do you think environment has that effect?
I do. I think it influences us all. There is no right or wrong way to feel about skating, it’s just personal perspective. I grew up in Compton skating, and it puts a different spin on things for me. I was really raised around all the ills you’d expect from the city. It was tough and it still is there. I don’t talk about it really because it’s not something I need to define me, or to fulfill any stereotypes out there.
Skating did give me a way out though, and for me it grew into a really personal thing. So I always thought that’s the way it was supposed to be. We were an underground unit and in that sometimes you find your strength.
No need to have too much floss and personality and not enough skating or so much skating but no personality, right?
Exactly, I grew up around the “flossy, flossy” and the Ghetto Superstar, so it’s not necessarily someone I’m trying to emulate. I wasn’t into that as a kid and that’s why I skated in the first place, but sometimes elements of street culture permeate deep into skating.
I never tried to market myself like I was from “the hood”, even though I am, because I already know where I come from. It’s the same as being an “artsy skater.” I didn’t try to have that image either. I have always tried to just be a skater’s skater. To be the guy who went out and skated hard and reminded you about the possibilities when skating a spot—nothing more, nothing less.
You seem very comfortable in your skin these days. I know there are certain things expected of you when you’re in the limelight.
Yeah, I’m much more fun now! I understand myself and kids a lot better. I was just out skating the park the other day and, at least here in my area, there is a lot of diversity amongst the diversity. It seems more ethnically balanced in skating now, at least more so than five years ago. Back then I was the only brother at the park. Now I see the different relevant subcultures amongst us. You can see everyone at the park, the Pharell flossy types, your DGK kids, your Zero kids. They are all finding there own space within the groups or the subcultures amongst the subculture. That’s actually cool to see and there is no right or wrong way to be. I’ve found a good balanced role now.
Whenever your name comes up, it’s always “Gershon skates the hardest stuff and you never know how gnarly his spots are until you get there.” This is coming from some of the greats of our time like Chris Haslam, Daewon, Chris Pastras, Mullen and filmer extraordinaire Socrates. Do you make a conscious effort to skate difficult things or does it just happen?
That’s great to hear! For me I’ve just been skating so long, I want to be challenged. I want to at least find out the adventures possible at a spot and entertain myself. I don’t want to just shoot at someplace too easy because then I’m not giving the most or getting the most out of my skating. If I’m at a gnarly spot, but pull a kickflip to fakie in something that’s hard to roll around in, I’m stoked. I want to feel like I earned the right to be a pro skater and am not just living off a name I built years ago.
Well you earned it with those backside flips out of the ditch! I’ve seen people barely carve around in that ditch and you were just finding the lines to throw tricks out four feet over the lip.
Well, that’s what I want to do. I was challenging myself to pull something good out of there. That makes me excited about skating. For me it’s not just a career, it’s something I actually like to do. I’m not just trying to clock in and out to be a professional at “chilling.” I want to speak to people through good skateboarding.
Since we’re on the subject of being inspirational. Who still inspires you in skateboarding?
Seeing Guy have that great part in the Lakai video was pretty amazing. He was gone so long and to just come back and still be Guy Mariano and not a shadow of himself was inspiring to all of us.
Guy just showed back up and let us know, “Oh, skateboarding? No, I still got that on lock, baby!”
Exactly, he just came and did it again like it was nothing and everything was amazing. He came back in the game and pushed it all over again.
I used to say that there are other great skaters, but he’s the only direct descendent of Gonz. He can do anything if he wants to.
I would definitely say that Guy and Gonz are two of my influences, not that you necessarily see that in my skating, but they are inspirational none the less.
Watching Gonz in the FourStar video and all his eccentric-ness was just great. He’s Gonz all the time and sees the world the “krooked” way he does 24/7. It’s not an act or an effort for him to be as groundbreaking as he is. He just looks at the world different.
Now you’ve been pro for a long time and I know it affords you the ability to travel. Are there places that are on the top of your list that you’ve visited?
I really liked New Zealand a lot. The people were super mellow and genuine. I like Australia a lot too. They’re not quite the same people but fun in their own ways. Japan is super cool as well. They are so polite and just look at the world in a different way. I always wondered if they have a lot of pent up aggression from being so polite.
Overall, I feel that people are the same all over the word. Their cultures may be different, but they are all trying to just work, play and enjoy life in whatever manner they find appropriate in their country. The parties are all the same, they just get broken up at different times! There is always the universal good time.
Speaking of universal good times, I love watching Danny, Colin, Jake Brown and Bob on vert just as much as anything else. With so many different aspects popular in skating like street, vert, longboards, slalom and all, do you feel like it’s a good time for skating right now?
You know what? It’s always a good time for skating! Anytime we hate against any aspect it just hurts ourselves. We are all looking to get the same rush and the same good time. I stopped caring about what was cool a while ago and just want to lead by example from my actions and attitude while I’m out skating.
On the subject of the vert dudes, those guys are killing it and keep me inspired too. Jake is the man, he really is super gnarly and I’m stoked on the way he skates. When I saw what happened to him, I knew if anyone was going to survive it he would.
It was the slam heard round the world, but it just let people know we just skate for the sake of loving what we do regardless of teams, money or labels or some of the risks.
Right! If I felt like skating was a career and not something I just love to do and take personally, I would have made different choices. I treat skating like something we’re blessed to have found. People have said to me, “Oh you must be glad you’re not on Blind anymore because of the reaper graphic, but that’s not true. I love Marc Mckee and his art and he always made something for all of us in our graphics. He’d put little jokes in, and I love the team. I respect all those guys and I was proud to be part of the Blind legacy. It didn’t work out, but I’m friends with all those guys still.
You’re just supposed to try to do the best job you can everywhere, right?
Right, I’m not trying to be “Gershon the Messiah,” just Gershon the dude who chills and tries to put it down with his skating.
Great. I guess we should wrap up with the shout out section then?
No problem. I just want to say what’s up to everyone who’s helped inspire me along the years. I’m psyched to be on Subgenius and to be working with them. Gary and Lisa at Destructo for taking care of me in the truck department, and keeping a brother in the sick new tees, Nick Matlin over at Satori wheels for keeping me rolling, and Obtuse Concepts for keeping my thoughts straight!
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