With John Shanahan’s pro debut anticipated in DGK’s Thoro video next month, now is a good time for an interview. SOLO just published a new one on its website that gives a bit of insight into what makes Shanahan tick. He goes on the record about why he’s such a fan of the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, which is clearly reflected in his style.

All the footage from the late ’90s, early 2000s is my favorite shit. That shit gets my hyped. The vibes were amazing, and it seemed like everyone was skating with each other and teams meant more back then because they were all skating with each other all the time. Nowadays, you can be on a team with anybody that you never even fucking met, you know what I’m saying? Back in those days, it looked like everyone was just having fun and vibing out with each other, and you can just tell by looking at the footage. I like that.

I think the shit that sticks out, stood the test of time. It’s obviously always gonna be good. I feel like back then people weren’t just pumping it out. Nowadays, there’s a new video every fucking day up on Thrasher. Back in the day, they’d take their time and do a full project. That shit would come out really good and they’d put everything into it till it came out perfect. The shit you put that much effort into is always gonna be classic. I feel like you need to know the history of the shit you’re doing. That’s a part of skateboarding as well. You don’t want to do tricks that have already been done.

Head over to SOLO to read the full interview, and check out a bunch of photos from Shanahan’s recent footage.

Image Via Mike Heikkila