Converse Soundskates: A Sonic Skate Jam

Skate culture is where style, music and community collide. But when COVID hit, fourteen skate parks in Toronto had been shuttered. So together with Converse we created Soundskates: A Sonic Skate Jam.

Knowing that the skate community is skeptical of brands co-opting its style inauthentically, we ensured our indoor skate experience was built by skaters, for skaters. We worked alongside skate pioneer Gord Hardie (founder of iconic skate shop Blue Tile Lounge) to build sound activated skate ramps and DJ Louke Man to curate an ethereal sound environment for the skate activated sensors.

To create more presence, we worked with Kadence World to create the first skateable OOH just outside the venue. On launch day, we brought in pro Converse rider Aaron Herrington to kick-off the sound experience in front of 150 core skaters and skate-adjacent community members.

Our weekend activation stayed open to consumers with 503 visits from the tight-knit community, 15M+ impressions through OOH, wildpostings and paid digital, 3.4K+ engagements on social and 42K+ visits to Converse.ca. As a donation to the Toronto Skate Committee, all skate ramps from the Soundskates activation now live on at skate parks in Toronto; bringing more skate to the community, and more skaters together.