Marc Johnson
American professional skateboarder (1977–2026)
Marc Johnson (January 6, 1977 – May 26, 2026) was an American professional skateboarder. He was known for his creative and passionate approach to skateboarding and was awarded Thrasher Magazine's Skater of the Year in 2007.2
From Wikipedia’s article on Marc Johnson (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Born Jan 6, 1977, died May 26, 2026.1
Companies
Career
Early Career
Marc Johnson moved from North Carolina to San Diego in 1994, where he began riding for Maple Skateboards. He then moved to San Jose where he began skating with the crew of skateboarders that became known as the Tiltmode Army. During this time he also began riding for Emerica Shoes and appeared in their video Yellow, followed by two pro model shoes for the brand. Rodney Mullen added him to the A-Team skateboards brand. He had a Pro Files spotlight in 411 Video Magazine Issue 20 followed by a section in Best Of 411, Volume 4. Johnson then had the cover and opening section of the Transworld Skateboarding Video Modus Operandi. He then left Emerica to join Lakai Limited Footwear.
Enjoi Skateboards
Unsatisfied with the direction of A-Team skateboards, Johnson launched the board company Enjoi with support from Rodney Mullen. The company broke from skateboarding tradition by having humorous deck graphics and irreverent magazine ads that did not feature skateboarding, as well as a bright palette of blue, yellow, and orange. He brought on his Tiltmode Army friends Jerry Hsu and Louie Barletta from Maple to the team.
Chocolate Skateboards
Due to burnout from riding for and running Enjoi, as well as frustration with Dwindle distribution, Marc left Enjoi in the hands of Louie Barletta and Matt Eversole. From travelling with the Lakai team he received an offer to ride for the Chocolate Skateboards. He appeared as the first skater in the Chocolate Skateboards section in the Yeah Right! video. This was followed the Hot Chocolate Tour of the United States, which became a full-length tour video directed by Ty Evans and Spike Jonze. This was followed by his section in the Girl and Chocolate Skateboards joint venture Pretty Sweet.
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Back Forty
The "Back Forty" project was launched in mid-2013/early 2014 and is a collaboration between Johnson, Kenny Anderson and Chris Roberts. Johnson asserted in a March 2014 interview that, while the project sells products, it is not a "company." On the "About" section of the Back Forty's Facebook page, the project is self-defined as a commitment to: "Becoming the voice for what skateboarding has to say for itself." Johnson further explained: "We have tons of ideas that don't belong anywhere else... Back Forty's a home for all the ideas that we have that don't really vibe with anything else that we're involved in."
Johnson appeared on episode #36 of The Nine Club hosted by Chris Roberts. While technically unrelated to The Back Forty, The Nine Club podcast shows a clear vision of furthering the missions of the latter project and generating skateboarding culture, history, and business content by and for skateboarders.
Leaving Lakai Limited Footwear for Adidas Footwear and departure from Chocolate
Marc Johnson accepted an offer to ride for Adidas's skateboarding program in 2016. The public announcement came at the premiere for the Adidas full-length skate video Away Days. During an interview with Jenkem Magazine, Mike Carroll, co-owner of Lakai and Chocolate, claimed he knew of his impending departure but he and other riders were caught off-guard by Johnson's appearance in the video. Carroll subsequently removed Johnson from Chocolate Skateboards professional roster.
Business & Co
In 2018, Johnson started a skateboard company called Business & Company.
From Wikipedia’s article on Marc Johnson (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Personal life
Johnson was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, on January 6, 1977. He stated that he had a rough upbringing as a child, and finding skateboarding changed his life. His mother and a neighbor gave him $80 to move to California.As of August 2012, Johnson's residence was in Crestline, California.
Johnson died on May 26, 2026, at the age of 49. His cause of death was not immediately disclosed. He is survived by his son, Avery.
From Wikipedia’s article on Marc Johnson (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.
Links
Sources
The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.
- 1WikidataMarc Johnson on Wikidata
- 2WikipediaMarc Johnson on Wikipedia
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- 9WikidataEnjoi, Founder