Watch Lil Wayne + Mountain Dew "DEWeezy" Webisode

Lil Wayne loves to skate.

In honor of National Go Skateboarding Day, Lil Wayne and Mountain Dew (DEW), announced last Thursday that the DEWeezy Project Skatepark will be located in New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward district. The location was hand-picked by Lil Wayne, who grew up in New Orleans and has become and avid skater and proponent of the rebuilding of his hometown. The DEWeezy Skatepark build marks the next phase of the DEWeezy Project, a collaboration between Lil Wayne (aka Weezy) and DEW that will focus on skate- and music-themed activations.

"When the DEW team approached me I told them that the only way DEWeezy would work would be if it reflected my life," said Lil Wayne of the project. "Bringing Skatepark to my hometown is the ultimate way for me to say ‘This is How I DEW.'"

"DEWeezy is not your typical brand-artist sponsorship deal – it's a true partnership that will explore areas that are passion points for Mountain Dew, Lil Wayne and our fans," said Brett O'Brien, Vice President of Marketing for Mountain Dew and Flavored Soft Drinks. "As Wayne said when we announced DEWeezy down in Austin, ‘it's not what you do, it's how you do it that's important.' For the DEWeezy Project that will mean collaborating in a way that only DEW and Lil Wayne could. It means building a skate park so Lil Wayne can share a personal passion with his home city of New Orleans and building on DEW's legacy of consumer co-creation by giving them a chance to have a say in DEWeezy project creative."

In an effort to create a durable, professional grade park GLU Agency, the lead agency on the project consulted with the best in the business. Renowned skatepark developers California Skateparks and architects from the Make It Right Foundation collaborated on the design to reflect the landscape of the Lower Ninth Ward while also creating a space that accommodates both beginners and experienced skaters. On the West side of the park there is a linear area simulating the abstracted industrial canal near the site. This linear area consists of ledges, flatbars, manual pads and plenty of flat ground to practice flip tricks. To the North of the park, there is a bank with a shaded observation deck, surrounded by landscape resembling the bayou bienvenue outlook. The element to the East has blocky ledges and peeled back transitions that represent the impact of the tidal surge on the fortified walls of the Jackson Barracks. Lastly, the South is comprised of banks and transitions replicating the form of the Mississippi River upheld by mounds/hills similar to the river banks. California Skateparks also designed a central piece to be a floating stage area with rails and ledges mimicking the methods used in the above ground design and construction of the new green homes in the area by Make it Right.

The DEWeezy Skatepark will serve as the New Orleans destination for all action sport lifestyle enthusiasts, giving residents in the community as well as visitors an opportunity to "DEW you" on and off the various skate features. The park's ribbon cutting ceremony is slated for August 2012. To celebrate the announcement and get the neighborhood ready to skate, GLU Agency, worked with the International Association of Skateboard Companies (IASC) and the Tony Hawk Foundation to produce various community-driven events. One of the events is a "Go Skateboarding Day" skateboard giveaway and skate lesson demonstration in the Lower Ninth Ward.

In conjunction with the announcement, Mountain Dew has launched the first in a series of webisodes chronicling the DEWeezy project. This episode is the first of ten installments that will be released throughout the DEWeezy skate park project and available on the DEWeezy Tumblr page.

Watch the webisode below:



Do you skateboard? Drink Mountain Dew? Listen to Weezy?

—Maggie Pannacione
06.29.12