Setting up to interview Leo Baker was pretty daunting. Not only is they a tough one to get ahold of since 2017 saw his sign with Nike, win Street League and move from LA to New York City all in the same year; but they also happens to hold tight as the most influential and respected queer skateboarder in the world today. They is able to occupy so much space, dominating the competitive scene while spearheading moves with grassroots board co. Meow Skateboards simultaneously. It was hard to know where I could go with the interview that they wouldn’t have already gone. In the end I decided authenticity was the way forward.
Shots by Sam McGuire | [TAKEN FROM ISSUE ONE]
How’s everything going?
Leo Baker: I’m good, had a coffee. Regular domestic shit, you know? [Laughs]
I’m sure you deserve a bit of domesticity! You’ve been globetrotting recently, right?
Yeah, I went to Paris with Nike. We skated the streets there which was fun. Also been to Portland a bit, Minneapolis for the X-Games, LA for Street League. Typical travelling for contests, with a bit of street thrown in.
Do you find you get to actually experience these places, or is your schedule pretty heavy?
Usually it’s pretty heavy, but I try to make time. Like in Paris, I made sure I was able to see some stuff. In the past it’s been more challenging, because you’re skating every day. But I try to do my best to learn about the culture.
How did you like Paris?
Oh my god, it’s beautiful. Every moment was amazing. Seeing all the people, the architecture, it was really inspiring. One of the best trips of my life.
“Yeah, we get it. You’re a guy.” – Leo Baker
You must be getting recognised a lot more?
Yeah it’s been more frequent these days, since King of the Road and the Nike stuff. People are starting to recognise me and it’s blowing my mind a little bit. I’m just a regular person like everyone else. I mean, I’m equally stoked to be skating with them, you know?
This has been a crazy year for you. It’s been one year since the ‘My World’ part on Thrasher, and so much has changed, right?
Yeah, I moved to New York and that’s when the momentum really started to pick up. The announcement in April happened, and since then it’s been non-stop. I went to the Nike campus in Portland to check out some shoe and clothing designs, shit like that. I’m starting to be way more involved with Nike, and I was in front of like 500 designers there. I also do graphic design so it was amazing to offer that and for them to really embrace it.
In terms of commercialised skateboarding, skating for Nike is one of the highest accolades you could receive. Then on the other side of the spectrum you’ve got the grassroots womxn-oriented Meow Skateboards going on – is it hard to balance those two?
Yeah, I think with a company like Nike having my back, that could be a huge opportunity to lift the smaller companies up though. They want to support that, Nike, because they want to be authentic. It’s cool to be on both ends of the spectrum, because that’s where we all come from, you know?
And if they have your back on the shoe end, you can put your effort into DIY on the deck end?
Yeah, and it means a lot to be a part of Meow. I don’t know what path my career will take, you know? I mean, people change board sponsors. But right now I just feel so at home with Meow, and Lisa Whittaker has supported me so much throughout my life and my skating. Since I was 12 years old! It means a lot to be involved with her and what she’s doing. Plus what it does for young g*rls coming up in skateboarding is amazing. That company is history in the making, I think. Years from now when there’re a million g*rls skating, Meow Skateboards will be seen as one of the first companies that made such a large impact on womxn’s skateboarding.
So does the torch get passed to you now?
Yeah, for sure. I feel like I’m in a position where I have to represent. I’m more than just a g*rl who skates. I’m queer. I present as more masculine. A lot more g*rls can relate to that than if I was just feminine. Not that there aren’t feminine skaters, but I feel I hit a broader audience, and we should all be lifted it up, not just some of us. I want to be present, I want to be there for g*rl skaters everywhere.
“There are all these younger g*rls who are fucking destroying! They’re doing shit I wouldn’t even think about doing.” – Leo Baker
That’s fucking amazing, but it must be heavy. Do you ever find your career decisions are affected by that responsibility?
Erm…Yeah. I think so. I’m not sure I want to talk much about that. But the answer is yes. There’re are a lot of different aspects to it. On the one hand I want to be set the best example, and on the other hand I want to make the best career decisions for myself. Yeah. It’s a balance, for sure.
That’s totally natural. I mean, you’ve had huge developments in your career in 2017 – Street League, Nike, to name just two – and you’ve suddenly got to step carefully to set a good example? A male skater wouldn’t need to fucking worry about that.
Oh for sure. It’s definitely a different experience for us. We’re still super underground, even though there’s a huge growth-spurt in the womxn’s skate community. We’ve all been here the whole time, but now the bigger companies are recognising shit. It’s just one of those things. It’s going to grow, it’s going to get huge, but we have to be careful how we shape that. Because I’m at the front, Leticia is at the front, and Samarria, and Nora. There are more of us than that, but you get what I’m saying – we’re a tiny group. But there’ll be a boom very soon!
Do you think that’s closer than we realise?
You can see it coming! On social media, the new faces in Street League, there are all these younger g*rls who are fucking destroying! They’re doing shit I wouldn’t even think about doing. There’s this g*rl, she’s like 9 years old, I think Thrasher posted it…
Yeah! In the fairy dress?
Yeah, that. That is what’s coming!
And yet some guys still say g*rls can’t skate for some physical inhibition…
Exactly, fuck that. The only reason people feel like they can’t do something is when they’re told they can’t. Nobody ever came and told me I couldn’t do this. I just loved skateboarding and my mum was all: “okay go ahead.”
But did you hit barriers later?
Yeah, at the skatepark every now and again you’d get those, you know, “hyper-masculine” dudes who feel threatened by a g*rl skating. They behave in some inappropriate way to deal with that. I experienced a lot of that growing up and skating with only guys, but it’s definitely getting better.
Does that vibe at hometown skateparks translate into massive skatepark situations, like at Street League, for instance?
No, no. 95% of the time everything’s fucking chill. Especially in a setting like Street League, where you’re just surrounded by people who fucking skate, everyone gets it. Sometimes there’s a “hyper-masculine” feel which doesn’t feel safe for me personally, but it’s just like: “Yeah, we get it. You’re a guy.” [Laughs]
Is it easy to see the skateboarding you fell in love in those sorts of competitions?
You know, I decided I do like to skate contests. I mean, sure, sometimes contests aren’t as fun. But I just love skateboarding and I enjoy skateboarding, so I enjoy skateboarding in contests. I try not to let the competition aspect side-track the fact I just love skateboarding, and I try not to take for granted that I’m young, I’m able. I’m not going to be able to do this forever, and I don’t want to be jaded about skating contests.
You’re seen as having a sort of punk ethos, where do you think that came from?
Punk? Hmmm… I think It’s just me presenting in the way that I want. There was a heavy influence on me as an 11, 12, 13 year old to dress more feminine. When I was super young I’d tie my hair back, wear baggy clothes, look like a boy. But then when I was entering my teens I had pressure to keep my long blonde hair. You know what’s funny, it was at the time that guys all started wearing their mom’s skinny jeans and shit, and my mom would say: “Come on, all the boys are wearing them.” So I’d dress like that for a little while, but then I realised I didn’t like it, so I just started doing whatever the fuck I wanted, because that’s what’s going to make me happy. I guess that’s where the idea of punk comes from, but I don’t think I would call myself a punk exactly. I’ve done a lot of shit that’s definitely not punk, you know?
Like what?
Like get good grades, be a teachers pet, nerd out. But parts of me can relate to that, yeah.
Your identity is one of authenticity, you know? Your sexuality, your goal of setting an example for young womxn and queer people in skateboarding, it’s all clearly part of Leo Baker as we know Leo Baker. Can I ask, what do you feel about the idea that Brian Anderson was unable to formulate his identity as openly – is this purely a gender issue?
You know, I can’t answer for Brian, but I know there’s one factor that both him and I can relate to. Right now, there’s a huge conversation around queers and the LGBTQ+ community, and the success stories in those communities. The media pushes the limelight in our direction because that is what is “cool” right now. And me and Brian in skateboarding is a great story for them, so they want to keep on telling it. The thing is that we’re being asked the same questions again and again, and sometimes the media requests take up so much time that we don’t have time to skate. But I do understand that for young people coming up it’s so important to have people like us represented. It’s a double-edged sword. Sometimes I don’t always want to answer the same questions, you know?
“Years from now when there’re a million g*rls skating, Meow Skateboards will be seen as one of the first companies that made such a large impact on womxn’s skateboarding.” – Leo Baker
I’m with you. Take this interview, for instance. We’re promoting skate diversity and culture, and so we want to talk about this with you, but for weeks before this interview I’m thinking to myself: “How the fuck do we do this authentically with Leo Baker, without asking the same shit?”
Yeah, but I think it’s important on my end to know when it is and isn’t authentic. I mean sometimes you get magazines who don’t identify with this stuff, or who maybe aren’t even necessarily an ally. Like we get people just ask really offensive questions. Like: “what the fuck are you doing?” But, no. I’m into this, no worries. I want to make sure I talk about this stuff with people who can present it the right way – who give a fuck about the right things – and I feel what you guys do.
It’s about making people feel more comfortable about who they are, ultimately.
Yes, exactly. Have you heard of Unity Press?
Yes, Jeffrey Cheung, right? Love that stuff.
Yeah! I saw that in Seattle at the Wheels of Fortune competition and was like: Holy fuck! I was so stoked to see Jeffrey and my friend Gabriel doing the right thing with Unity.
So I’m interested to hear what’s going on with your announcement that you’re going to the Olympics?
Ha, yeah, but we don’t really know what’s happening there yet. I think there’ll be qualifiers in like 2019 or whatever. But if you’re interested in how I feel about it on a personal level, I’m not mad at the Olympics, I think it’ll do great things for g*rls getting involved and generally skateboarding is never not going to be cool, you know what I mean? We all skate for the same fucking reason.
Yeah, totally. I have been thinking though that while we all know what skateboarding is about now, what will the future kids think? If the Olympics offers accessibility, will it also potentially mean skateboarding is no longer a place for outcasts?
Yeah, that’s actually a really interesting angle. I’ve not thought about it that way. I mean, I would hope that with the roots of skateboarding where they are that kids will always feel comfortable enough to start skateboarding, you know? That they will still feel that it’s for them. But I think womxn are going to feel it’s more acceptable, I don’t know how it will affect the men’s side.
There will be goods and bads to this, as with everything. That leads me neatly to ask the question, what is the best and worst thing about skateboarding today?
The best thing is the growth of womxn’s culture in skateboarding. That’s definitely it. The worst thing would be when inauthentic people get involved with skateboarding, like when brands come and try to appropriate the culture. Fuck off.
Locals only!
Haha, yeah. Fucking posers!
If you had a button that would change one thing what would it be, and would you push it?
Man, the “hyper-masculinity” in the world in general, and in fucking skateboarding. And I’d definitely fucking push it. [Laughs] I want things to be more safe and comfortable for everybody in the world, not just men.
Well, as a man let me know if there’s anything I can do…
Call out your bros. If they’re ever racist, sexist, homophobic, call those bitches out. Thanks for asking that, I appreciate it.
Consider it done.
Thanks so much Leo,
keep pushing!
IG: @leo_baker
