Daewon Song Net Worth

What is Daewon Song's Net Worth?

Daewon Song is a Korean-American professional skateboarder and entrepreneur who has a net worth of $3 million. Daewon Song is the co-founder and co-owner of Thank You Skateboards, and he also co-founded and co-owned the now-defunct Almost Skateboards. Among his various other endeavors, he co-founded Matix Clothing, Deca Skateboards, and Artafact.

Early Life and Education

Daewon Song was born on February 19, 1975 in Seoul, South Korea and was raised in the United States in Gardena, California. Due to the aggressive and often abusive behavior of his parents, he was largely brought up by his older sister. Song began skateboarding at the age of 14 and attended the 135th Street school in Gardena. He grew up in a rough neighborhood around gang violence.

World Industries

At the age of 16, Song earned sponsorship from the skateboarding brand World Industries. He went on to appear in a number of videos for the company, including the seminal "Love Child" (1992), in which he recorded the first hardflip on film, and "New World Order" (1993), which marked a significant evolution in skateboarding culture. Later in the decade, Song suffered an ankle injury that caused him to think about ending his skateboarding career. He ultimately returned to the fold with the help of his mentor Rodney Mullen. Song left World Industries in 1999 to focus on his business endeavors.

Business Ventures

In 1998, Song co-founded the apparel company Matix Clothing with fellow professional skateboarder Tim Gavin and brothers Kevin and Brian Dunlap. The next year, he co-founded Deca Skateboards, which produced a couple videos before shuttering in 2002. Song went on to launch the new companies DGK and Artafact after that; the latter lasted less than a year. In 2003, Song and Rodney Mullen co-founded Almost Skateboards, which manufactured skateboard decks employing 7-ply, 8-ply, and carbon fiber constructions. The company released some videos, including "Round Three" and "5-Incher," and produced a series for Tony Hawk's RIDE channel entitled "Almost Famous." In late 2012, Song appeared on the cover of TransWorld Skateboarding Japan magazine performing a trick from the "5-Incher" video. He left Almost in 2018 and the company shut down in 2023.

In 2012, Song's Matix Clothing was acquired by Westlife Distribution, with Song and some of his other colleagues re-signing to the team. Song also joined Kevin Dunlap's footwear and clothing company DVS Shoes and was added to the team of the online skateboard retailer Brick Harbor. He later became a sponsored rider for Glassy Sunhaters, with which he collaborated on a sunglasses line called the Daeviator, and for Loud Headphones, with which he collaborated on earbud headphones. In 2018, Song co-founded a new company, Thank You Skateboards, with Torey Pudwill. In addition to his sponsorships by Thank You, Glassy, and Loud Headphones, Song has been sponsored by such brands as Adidas, Tensor, and Spitfire.

Other Appearances

Song has appeared as a playable character in a number of skateboarding video games, including "Grind Session," "Session: Skate Sim," and most of the main games in the "Tony Hawk's" series since "Tony Hawk's American Wasteland." For one of the "Tony Hawk's" games, he participated in a US tour that saw him skate at various parks throughout the country with other skateboarders who appeared in the game. Song has also competed in the X Games Real Street single-elimination tournament and the 2Up manual contest at the Berrics. He won the latter in 2014. Among his many other notable appearances, Song filmed an episode for the web channel of Vice magazine.

Honors and Awards

Often considered one of the most influential skateboarders of all time, Song was named Skater of the Year by Thrasher magazine in 2006. Following his 2Up victory in 2014, he was voted the year's most impactful skateboarder in an online fan poll. In 2017, Song was inducted into the Skateboarding Hall of Fame.

Personal Life

Song lives in the San Pedro neighborhood of Los Angeles. He has a son.

[The photo of Daewon that appears on this page was taken by Chad Santos and was licensed via Creative Commons/Flickr]

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