[ JAPANESE / ENGLISH ]

Main portrait_Bailey Schreiner
Photos_Clement Le Gall
Special thanks_adidas Skateboarding

VHSMAG (V)：　You were just on the adidas trip in Lyon, France. Where are you now?

Kai Kishi (K)：　Right now I’m in Guangzhou, China. I went back to LA for just three days after Lyon, and then flew here.

V：　What brought you to China?

K：　There’s an event hosted by Avenue & Son every year, and I’m here for that. But before that, I’m spending about a week in Guangzhou skating the streets and filming with friends.

V：　Tell us about the adidas trip in Lyon.

K：　Earlier this year, adidas dropped SSTR, which was themed around the Superstar, and the response was really good. That led to the idea of doing a second round. So this was the second filming trip, combining an event with filming. adidas collaborated with Wall Street in Lyon and the local soccer team, so the trip included both that event and filming for SSTR 2.

 

V：　Since you’re into soccer as well, was that event special for you?

K：　I hadn’t watched much of Lyon’s team before, but I’ve always liked watching soccer games. Getting to see a game live at the stadium was dope. Everyone was drinking champagne, and yeah… we got pretty drunk (laughs).

V：　How was skating the streets in Lyon?

K：　The street spots were great. I’d always wanted to skate HDV Plaza, which I knew from watching JB Gillet’s videos. I didn’t expect to finally get there on this trip, so actually skating there was definitely a hype moment.

V：　You had a photo of JB in your IG story.

K：　Yeah, around the fourth day of the trip we were all like, “Where’s JB?” Some locals said he’d been seen at a skaters’ bar. Later there was an event at a different plaza—not HDV—and JB just showed up. Laurence introduced me to him and we talked for the first time. I’d been in contact with him on Instagram before, but meeting JB in person was next-level.

V：　He’s one of your favorite skaters?

K：　Definitely. I grew up watching French Fred’s videos. JB’s switch mongo push was an influence as well. At first I would push switch normally, but during one filming session I thought, “Let me try mongo,” and it stuck. At HDV I even filmed some JB-inspired tricks with my own twist. To visit Lyon and skate there for the first time was huge.

V：　In the adidas team, which skaters leave the biggest impression on you personally?

K：　Lil Dre—I first met him on the Shanghai trip, and we got along really well. Always fun to skate with him. Niels Bennett has that ’90s skater vibe—like his style feels old-school. On this trip he even lost his phone (laughs). He’s fun to skate with, has unique trick choices, and we always end up having deep skate talks. He doesn’t film clips constantly, but whenever he does, it’s always something special. Then there’s Laurence. He skates with me, gets clips, and has always pushed me to take on things I didn’t think I could do. He really helps me grow. Honestly, he’s the best TM out there.

 

V：　Are you still mainly skating in Superstars?

K：　Yeah, I wear Superstars most often. But lately I’ve been really into the Pro Model—the one with the suede and white toe. It feels perfect.

V：　It’s been three years since you moved to LA. How has your mindset changed compared to when you were in Japan?

K：　LA is basically the mecca of skateboarding, so things move faster when you’re here. It keeps me motivated. My first one or two years, I stayed in LA almost nonstop. Now I’ve adjusted, and my lifestyle has shifted—it’s less about grinding super hard in LA, and more about chilling there, then traveling abroad for filming trips.

V：　Your Venture signature truck just dropped. What was the process like?

K：　Around last October, about three days after I turned pro for April, I got a message from Venture’s TM saying he wanted to do a pro model with me. I was totally surprised—I didn’t expect it at all. But once I knew I’d have a pro model, I wanted to put out a part alongside it. I also wanted this part to look and feel different from my past ones, so I barely used LA clips and instead focused on spots in San Francisco and China.

V：　Which trick from that part means the most to you?

K：　The ender, which I filmed at a famous plaza ledge in Taiwan. I didn’t have an ender locked in at the time, and while I was there, it just happened naturally. It wasn’t a trick I’d been chasing for a long time, but it worked out perfectly. It wasn’t just a normal ledge trick—it went from ledge to ledge, which is rare for me. That made it feel really good.

 

V：　Your skating is known for hyper-technical, complex combos and unique trick selection. Where do those ideas come from?

K：　When I was filming my April pro part, I really wanted to do tricks no one had seen before, so I was thinking about it constantly. These days, I’ve shifted a bit—I don’t overthink it anymore. I’ll just show up at a spot and decide there. The Venture part was definitely like that. But for my next part, I want to go back to that April mindset of creating tricks no one’s seen. I realized overthinking kills the fun of skating, so this past year I chilled on inventing new tricks. But after Venture, I want to film my best part yet.

 

V：　So you go through different phases. By the way, why was your "KISHI•KAI" part with Braden Gonzales released from his personal account?

K：　At that time, Braden and I were filming nonstop, but we hadn’t decided where to release it. He was also figuring out his direction as a filmer. Instead of dropping it through a brand, we thought it would be better to put it out on his YouTube, so more people could see what he created. That way we could both rise together. Braden’s a really good friend of mine.

 

V：　Got it—that makes sense now. That's brotherhood. You also run your own brand, Parah, right?

K：　Yeah, in the beginning I took the photos myself, and friends modeled. Like skating, it’s about having fun with your crew regardless of background. That’s the vibe I want to show. By creating a brand as a Japanese skater, I also hope the gear becomes a conversation starter when Japanese skaters travel abroad—a tool for connecting with people. Beyond skateboarding, I just want to keep challenging myself with different projects.

V：　Finally, what’s your ultimate dream or goal through skateboarding?

K：　I want to keep filming video parts. And just like I’ve been able to build a life in the US and launch my own brand, I want to create an environment where my friends can also live off what they love. I want us to all work together and move forward as a crew. And it’s a big dream, but someday I’d like to build a skate park in Japan—not just a typical park, but more like a space that feels natural in the city. Something that looks like a regular park, but has areas where you can skate. I want to create a spot that blends into the streets.

Kai Kishi
@_kaikishi | parahbrand.com

Kai is one of the faces of April and adidas Skateboarding, known for his exceptional technical style. His ledge combos and manual tricks rank among the very best. He recently released his signature truck with Venture.