‘I believe in Joseph Biais.’
Backside nosebluntslide, Paris: Ph: Clem le Gall.
With the days of Joseph looking like The Little Prince (see his Skatepark of Tampa profile pic) well and truly behind us, I think it’s safe to say few professional skateboarders are as embedded in the ‘adult’ world as Mr Biais. Not that he doesn’t step into our little neverland at any given opportunity (he’s as driven as they get when it comes to missions), but he manages to navigate his skateboarding career with one foot firmly rooted in his other responsibilities, aware that time is not elastic and that you need to make what you do with it count.
So, knowing that he’d probably already have a lot crammed into his tight schedule and that we’d done a Q&A with him for issue five, we decided to get in contact with some of his friends to see if they would be down to do the talking instead. Some got sentimental, some got introspective, some got cheeky… One person even tried to decline but in doing so let seep through so much of their love for him and his peculiar ways that we felt compelled to print it… Either way, all the submissions unanimously pointed to one thing: the fact that much like Saint-Exupery’s tiny blond bundle of innocence, Joseph had learnt that relationships are what make life worth living. That and that he needs to rein in the productivity a bit, he’s making the rest of us look bad.
– Arthur Derrien
Wallie to frontside tailslide, Paris: Ph: Clem le Gall.
Patrick Franklin:
Initially, when Arthur reached out about contributing to this piece, I had some concerns that I lacked the qualifications to speak on the man that is Joseph Biais.
Being fairly new to Rassvet (compared to the rest of the team) and him living just over nine thousand kilometres away, our interaction with each other has been few and far between.
That being said, the closer I got to actually sitting down and putting the metaphorical pen to paper, I was surprised to find myself an authority on the subject in a rather roundabout way.
You see, as an admittedly self-involved individual I often find myself lost in the mental maze known simply as ‘compare and despair’.
Joseph is consistently, and rightfully so, the source of my désespoir.
Val (Bauer) wrote recently with news that Joseph had filmed a trick that morning for the upcoming Rassvet video, before having to clock in for a full day at the Carhartt WIP offices.
This independently would have been sufficient enough to send me swirling, questioning my own work ethic and reevaluating my place within the brand.
Unfortunately for me, this was coupled with the fact that he had repeated this difficult task upon leaving his
workplace that afternoon.
Even more unfortunate still, and if history does in fact repeat itself, this would have been on a day that I am frequently prone to facing, consisting of sleeping past my alarm, scrambling through tasks bestowed by my employer, eating an entire Domino’s pizza, and watching Zodiac for the umpteenth time until falling asleep fully clothed.
Productivity on your skateboard is shockingly difficult when adhering to such an arduous schedule.
These self-imposed expectations I’d formed around Joseph, with him being an exemplar of how I should be navigating the world, have only been confirmed over time.
Countless stories have been shared with me personally, many by some of your favourite skateboarders, highlighting Joseph’s positive impact on their careers and lives.
His influence is presumably endless, only to be measured in desirable trousers and sour gummy bears.
With a preoccupation of oneself comes an acute allergy to believing in something that does not, in turn, believe in you.
Joseph seemingly believes in each and every one of us.
I believe in Joseph Biais.
Backside nosegrind, Paris: Ph: Clem le Gall.
Alix Malnati:
A very long time ago, when I’d just started skating, rumours were going around about Joseph: HE WAS GOING TO GO PRO FOR VANS.
I remember thinking: ‘But Joseph Biais is already pro, no? I saw him on a Sugar poster once!’
Until the big revelation: Joseph was not pro, and the rumours around his Vans pro model were actually just rumours. Strange though, because he fit the bill so well: he’d been in skating forever, very good at switch (I think), good with people, shirt always buttoned up where it
should be buttoned up, and jeans that would fall really well on his shoes… How could he not be pro?
That’s when I had an idea. I decided to study Joseph to know exactly what not to do so that I’d one day be able to turn pro!
I trained secretly at the skatepark for three years to infiltrate Vans and Rassvet. Once integrated, I managed to crash a two-week trip to Russia, and that’s where I pulled out my little notepad to observe his every move as I followed the sessions.
Notes taken in my notepad in 2021:
1. Joseph’s wardrobe consists almost exclusively of chequered shirts, white tank tops and Sk8-Hi’s. He seems to also require hate for his shaved head, which makes things easier for me as I have long hair.
2. He also appears to be a handrail and blunt enthusiast, which for someone over 30 was very impressive.
3. One day as we were walking in the metro, the Russian police confused Joseph with someone they were looking for. I think it maybe wasn’t a mistake, and that he’s at the head of a secret organisation, which would explain why he can’t turn pro… But then at the same time, I know he works full-time in an office already and is productive… This one might need further investigation.
4. Joseph seems to enjoy telling a lot of anecdotes and is very funny. This isn’t ideal for me because I also like to have a laugh… Oh well, I’d rather be pro than be funny.
Now that I knew what not to do I was ready to apply it all scrupulously. Goodbye rails and Sk8-Hi’s… As time went on I got to latch on to more trips and sessions, developing my theory further and further, up until one day, or evening actually, where to my astonishment, Joseph turned pro before my very eyes! So long Joseph Théorie.
Frontside bluntslide to fakie, Paris: Ph: Clem le Gall.
Valentin Bauer:
For years, when the whole getting- a-board thing would come up Joseph didn’t really seem to care. Last January, I put a lot of work into organising the best surprise we could for his Rassvet board. It was the very first time I’d ever had to plan that kind of thing and I have to say it was very stressful all the way up until the moment he finally entered that restaurant. But that whole evening and the few days that followed, Joseph appeared to be very emotional about it, and seeing him revert to his former 14-year-old self meant the world to me. It really felt like getting my first board a second time. It also made me realise that for the past few years, his position on the matter had also probably been a way to protect himself from being disappointed about never turning pro, which I think is cute, and proof of just how much Joseph cares about his skating.
Backside tailslide, Paris: Ph: Clém Le Gall.
Bertrand Trichet:
Hey Arthur,
I’m not going to be able to do this, sorry… I love Jojo but I’m also not very good at writing.
Joseph told me the story of how he broke his foot though and it’s definitely worth looking into + it shows just how dedicated he is to skating; it’s a bit of a long story but not too long.
Basically (just so you get an idea of it): it’s been this ongoing thing for the last 5-6 years where he sees this spot in Belgium in a video, in the suburbs of Brussels. For ages he looks for this thing, but when he finds it the whole neighbourhood is under construction, so you can no longer see the spot. Years later, Google Street View – > turns out the spot is actually still there. So the next time he’s out there on a trip with his wife, he decides to check the spot out while she’s busy doing something else. The spot’s taller than he thought, but Jojo, despite being on his own, psyches himself up to skate it (it’s this rail down some stairs that you pole jam into). So he tries a few, puts his phone on the ground to film himself, a guy walking past starts asking him questions, Jojo keeps going and eventually lands the 50-50. Only the guy that had just chatted to him had moved the phone so he has to go again, which he does and finally manages to film it. But the real objective is to switch fifty it, so when he gets back to Paris he organises a mission back out there, finds a filmer, and they head to Brussels just to get that one trick. He does the normal one fine, then tries a few switch and… It’s a fracture (confirmed two days later by X-rays after a chaotic train journey home).
Anyway that’s the story, but Jojo tells it way better than I do 😉 with some extra jokes details.
He really is a nutter that Jojo.
Other than that, 2-3 safe topics you could go into:
Grub: it’s quite an obsession for him.
But also more importantly his quest for fun, having a laugh and messing about, which are the main things that drive him and that make him someone great to spend time with.
Nap man: self-explanatory.
Grub: it’s quite an obsession for him.
But also more importantly his quest for fun, having a laugh and messing about, which are the main things that drive him and that make him someone great to spend time with.
Nap man: self-explanatory.
Good luck, Bertrand
Kickflip frontside noseslide to fakie, Paris. Ph. Clém Le Gall.
