Kyron Davis interview

Interview and photography: Henry Kingsford
Illustration: Marke Newton

I interviewed you about a year ago for The Legend Grows, just after you’d shot your Koston II ad at Ladbroke Grove. What have you been up to since then?

Just a lot of travelling. I’ve been going on some trips with Cliché, just trying to film and Nike sent me to some events. I got to go to the Chronicles Vol. II premiere in Paris for a demo, which was pretty cool. Other than that I’ve just been skating a lot, trying to get as much footage as I can.

Didn’t Nike send you to the Tampa Am contest last year?

Yes. That was intense, a bit too intense for me. I don’t think Tampa’s for me at all. It’s good to go and check it out, but I don’t know if I’ll be going back.

Was it too competitive?

It’s not fun unless you’re really trying to snake people. Everyone’s really hungry for it, but I just wasn’t as hungry as most people there.

Where has been the favourite place you’ve travelled to in the last year? 

Probably Okinawa in Japan. That place was a lot of fun.

Tell us about Okinawa, because it’s quite different to the rest of Japan.

It’s weird. It’s quite westernised. I thought when they said we were going to Okinawa, an island off Japan, that it’d be really old-school, you know, the typical kind of stereotype. But there were McDonalds and Burger Kings everywhere, big supermarkets and stuff.

And lots of US soldiers.

Yes, it seems like the US army has taken over half of the island. I think they’ve taken the best bits of the island and made it theirs. They have a base on one of the best beaches on Okinawa. I don’t think the Japanese are too happy about that.

Nosegrind pop out, Bloomsbury.

What was it like skating there?

The spots were so good, loads of banks and wallrides and a lot of really cool stuff that I’ve never found anywhere else. It was all really rough though. When they told me we were going to Japan, I thought there would be marble everywhere, but it was really cool to go to Okinawa and skate those spots. I actually injured myself in the first few days, so I couldn’t really skate for the rest of the trip, but it was still fun.

I heard you guys couldn’t get any weed out there. How did people cope with that?

I was cool, but one guy on the trip went a bit loopy because he couldn’t find any weed. It’s mad over there: if you get caught with a spliff on you, you go to prison for a month or two, so the Japanese dudes weren’t up for it at all.

It’s probably fair to say you drink a lot on skate trips. Do you think this gets in the way of your skating at all?

If you just get up and get out the next morning, if you go for it for a few hours, you can sweat it out. I actually tend to feel it when we finish skating, when we’re on the way to a restaurant or something. Then I’m completely dead. So skating hungover is not too bad, but I’m going to hit 23/24 and just be fucked…

You can’t carry on like that forever.

No way. I’m just trying to have fun now while I’m young.

Are you still living at home in Harrow?

Yes, I’m still pretty much living there but my friends live in south London and my bird lives south too, so I’m always in Elephant and Castle or Waterloo. Recently I’ve been skating around those areas.

Backside 50-50, Marseille.

Have you been skating Southbank much?

Yes, I go to Southbank, but I go in the daytime, when it’s empty. Sometimes it just gets a bit too busy.

Do you still go to BaySixty6 often?

No, actually. I haven’t been there for a while. I’m just trying to stay away for a bit, because I used to go there all the time. It’s quite nice just to go out and do different things.

Can you name some up-and-coming skaters in London?

Oh shit. OK, I think I’ve got a few. Jeremy Jones, he’s a killer.

What do you like about his skating?

He’s just so different. He’s got the craziest style. I’ve known him for eight years and that’s always been him, that’s exactly how he skates. He hasn’t changed his skating. He’s literally just been how he is since day one and that’s what I like about him. Matt Hay is another one. That dude is on another level. If I had a company I’d probably turn him pro, for real. He’s so good. He goes street skating with me and Will (Miles). Will made that video, Glitch. He’s trying to make another video at the moment and I think Matt is filming for that.

Who else? There’s this dude Little Tommy. He skates everywhere in London. He’s only 14 or something but he’s jumping down huge rails. He rips. Taylor Lewis has been so sick for so long. He chills at Stockwell. Then there’s the Mile End crew, people like Dan West and Sam Sitayeb. Everyone from Mile End is smashing it. I think there’s someone else… Vaughan Jones! That dude is super cool. I met him for the first time the other day, but I’ve been out with his brother (Guy) a few times. Everyone told me that those two would be exactly the same and together they are so, so funny. I think that’s it for now.

Backside nosegrind pop out (past two stoppers), Southwark.

You only had a couple of tricks in the credits of Bon Voyage, but you’re having a proper part in the new Cliché video. How did this come about?

I think I was meant to film a few more bits for Bon Voyage, but I didn’t get the chance because I was in London and it was always wet. For this video, Al (Boglio) just told me, “It’d be good if you can get a full part together.” I haven’t filmed enough though.

You’ve spent quite a bit of time in the van with Cliché. How do you find travelling with those guys? 

It’s quite fun. Sometimes they all start speaking French and I end up zoning out a bit, but they always make the effort to speak English too and there’s always another English person, or someone not French. There aren’t really any rules in the van; you can pretty much do anything you like. As long as you’re not pissing on the seats or anything like that. It’s quite fun just to chill out and spend a few hours in there talking shit with everyone.

What’s the first Cliché video you watched?

I think it was Bon Appetit. I’ve watched them all now though.

What’s your favourite?

What was the one we watched in Lyon? The one where Jeremie Daclin has that part…

Europa, the first one.

Yes, the one where Jeremie just goes crazy. Jeremie’s the man, he smashes it.

There are spots all over Lyon where he’s done crazy tricks. 

Yes, everywhere we went he’d done something.

Which trick stood out for you?

That massive 50-50 he does in the alleyway. We went past it once in the van. It’s pretty cool having someone like Jeremie as the team manager, someone who’s done so much.

Backside kickflip, Barcelona. Photo Marcel Veldman.

Who is your favourite Cliché rider from over the years?

I think it’s got to be Lucas Puig. There’s no doubt about that. Lucas Puig is the boss.

You’ve spent quite a bit of time in Lyon. How do you find the city?

Lyon’s sick. It’s really cool. It kind of reminds me of London. Everyone is just super mellow, likes going to the pub, chilling… And everyone can speak a bit of English too, so it’s easy to talk to people.

What about for skating?

There’s so much stuff around the city. Normally we just jump in the van, but I’m pretty sure if you skated from spot to spot, there’d be lots of stuff on the way. It’d be cool to go skating there at night and just cruise around and see what you can find.

Do you like Hôtel de Ville?

I’ve never had the chance to skate there but that place is cool. I do want to skate there.

Do you have plans for after skateboarding?

I’m looking into social work. I’d like to try to get into that. That’s pretty much it though, that’s all I’ve thought up so far. Or just win the lottery, one of the two.