B.Y.O.A. = Bring Your Own Afro

Whenever I am asked what inspired the creation of Rollerstar, I usually  begin launching into a rapid rundown of each and every live performance, music video, private party, summer concert series or other event I, or any other skaters I know, have been asked to perform in over the past twelve years-- only to explain that 99.9% of them were centered around a 70's Rollerdisco theme... as if, after 30 odd years, a celebration of that era remains the ONLY occasion for which one might throw on a pair of quad rollerskates.  Ever.  

Now, don't get me wrong.  I myself am a product of the 70's and feel insanely nostalgic whenever I recall unwrapping my first real pair of rollerskates in 1979 and heading out on the smooth pavement to the tunes of Saturday Night Fever-- only to be swept up by Skatetown U.S.A., Roller Boogie, and Xanadu a year later.  I think it's safe to assume that any young girl growing up in the San Fernando Valley at the time was a certified devotee of rollerskating.  The rollerdisco phenomenon that swept the country resonated strongly with Valley Girls as we were surrounded-- north, south, east and west-- by roller rinks.  But unbeknownst to the rest of the world, rollerskating actually survived the rollerdisco era and evolved with popular music into contemporary genres like pop, neosoul, house, electronic, rap and hip-hop-- in fact, it continues to evolve to this very day, in unimaginable ways.  


People's imaginations continue to take a turn down Disco Lane because they haven't been afforded the opportunity to glimpse into the subcultures of roller rink and recreational park skaters that have thrived since 1980 and witness the modern adaptation of the art form into freestyle, artistic, street and jam expressions set to the popular music of TODAY.  Rollerstar was created to show the masses all that the world of entertainment is missing by looking to the past every time it pays homage to rollerskating.  The party is over here, in 2010.  And it's far more fly than the tired afro you've been wearing since 1980.  


Rollerdisco Hall of Fame:


Austin Powers Goldmember Rollerdisco Scene


WAMU Rollerdisco Commercial



Flight of the Conchords - "Ladies of the World" music video



Madonna Goes To The Disco on Skates for "Sorry" Video



Jessica Simpson -- 70's Rollerdisco!!!