Kip Moore and Tony Hawk Combine Music, Skateboarding For Good Cause

Kip Moore and international skateboarding champion Tony Hawk joined forces on Sunday (Sept. 10) for Music City Skate Jam, a day of music and skateboarding at Nashville’s Music City Walk of Fame Park. The free event began at 3 p.m. with the goal to raise money for hurricane victims as well as Moore’s Kip’s Kids Fund and Hawk’s Tony Hawk Foundation, both of which aim to empower youth with the creation of skate parks in inner cities.

In an interview with Sounds Like Nashville prior to Music City Skate Jam, Moore says Hawk had a major presence in his home growing up with two brothers who were avid skateboarders. And, with a similar foundation to Moore’s, the partnership was the perfect fit.

Tony Hawk; Photo by Alex Ferrari

“Tony does what I do as far as building skate parks in the inner cities,” Moore explained. “We talked about what can we do together, how could we really make a big impact? I play a show, [he’ll] bring his ramps in, do an expo with his skate team, and we’re going to raise money to build parks and to build houses in Houston for Harvey victims.”

Dee Jay Silver kicked off the event in the early afternoon with a deejay set while music and skateboarding enthusiasts descended upon Music City Walk of Fame Park. Young fans could test out their own skating skills on a small ramp set up on site before skating legends including Hawk, Alan Young, Elliot Sloan, Jordyn Barratt and Kevin Staab, among others, shared their award-winning tricks and jumps on a portable vert ramp.

Newcomer Jordan Davis amped up the audience before Hawk’s skating expo with a lively 25-minute performance that showcased the singer’s talent for crafting intriguing songs with beat-heavy production. Ballads like “Leaving New Orleans” and “Slow Dance In a Parking Lot” showed the singer’s soft side while party anthems “Take It From Me” and current single “Singles You Up” kept the crowd on their feet and dancing along.

Kip Moore; Photo by Nicholas Byrne

Moore closed the day’s festivities with a 40-minute performance that was heavy on new material from his latest album SLOWHEART. The project was released on Sept. 8 and fans in attendance already knew the words to every song. Anthemic tracks like “The Bull” and “Plead the Fifth” proved to be crowd favorites while rollicking standout “Just Another Girl” was assisted by songwriter Jeffrey Steele on guitar and vocals. Older hits including the energetic “Beer Money” and animated “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck” still resonated while Moore added new life to “Hey Pretty Girl” by singing a soulful snippet of John Hiatt’s “Have a Little Faith In Me” at the song’s start. Mid-set, he thanked those in attendance for donating money to benefit inner city kids and building homes for hurricane victims in Texas.

“You donated and raised money to build more skate parks for these kids [and] it does make a difference. The one that I built over here in Nashville, I’ve had moms and dads come up to me and say that it’s the only thing that is keeping these kids out of gangs,” he said. “I’ve had little kids come up to me and say that it’s the first thing they’ve ever been in love with and that gives them hope in this world where it feels like they’re against the eight ball a lot of times. So thank you for donating.”

For more information and to donate, visit kipskidsfund.org and tonyhawkfoundation.org. Fans can also continue to donate now through Friday Sept. 15th at 5PM CST by texting HAWK to 52182.