The Fully Flared icon and enjoi founder helped shape modern street skateboarding
The skateboarding world is mourning the loss of Marc Johnson, one of the most influential street skaters of all time, who has died unexpectedly at the age of 49.
News of Johnson’s passing was confirmed through an emotional tribute published by Thrasher Magazine and written by fellow pro skater and longtime friend Louie Barletta. A cause of death has not been publicly revealed.
Known to most skaters simply as “MJ,” Johnson completely changed the way people looked at technical street skating. His style was creative, loose and endlessly inventive, helping push skateboarding into more artistic territory during the late ‘90s and 2000s.
His closing part in Fully Flared is still widely considered one of the greatest skate video parts ever filmed, while appearances in classics like Yeah Right! and Pretty Sweet cemented his legacy.
Johnson also founded enjoi, the skate brand behind the iconic panda logo that became a huge part of skate culture through the 2000s. Alongside crews like Tilt Mode and brands including Lakai and Chocolate Skateboards, he helped define an entire era of skateboarding.
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In later years, Johnson was open about his struggles with alcoholism and mental health, often speaking honestly about the pressures of professional skating and his journey into sobriety.
In the tribute, Barletta described Johnson as “a genius and a tortured soul,” adding that “everything he did was art.”
Tributes have since poured in from across the skate world, including messages from Mark Appleyard, Jagger Eaton and Sage Elsesser, with many calling MJ the blueprint for modern street skating.
