FRENCHMAN Remy Walter came to Jamaica for the first time 45 years ago with international record producer Chris Blackwell to do music. Today, his mission has shifted to promoting a skateboard culture on the island as a way to steer youth to a positive path.

“The prime minister [Dr Andrew Holness] has said we need a park in every parish but I am telling him that there needs to be a skate park in every parish because people need to gather somewhere to do more than just football and cricket. Some of them want to do something else, and skateboarding is a new sport for them that is really appealing and is part of the international arts culture,” Walter told the Jamaica Observer.

He pointed out that there are only two skate parks in Jamaica and argued that mayors and Members of Parliament (MPs) need to recognise there is real value in having skate parks in their towns and constituencies.

“Portmore, Mandeville, Port Antonio, Ocho Rios, Treasure Beach, and Montego Bay, all these places need a skate park for the youth. Only two skate parks exist right now in Jamaica — there is one in Bull Bay and one in Boston Bay. That is not enough,” he argued.

“We are promoting skateboarding and we want to tell some of the deciders like the mayors and MPs that making a skate park is not that expensive. It is just a piece of concrete but it can bring a lot to the youth and give them a place to play, have fun, socialise, and meet new people. It is also a tourist attraction,” Walter said.

He added that by having more skate parks the island would attract more visitors, creating an opportunity for locals to receive exposure to different cultures.

“It is good for the youth to mingle and meet people from different countries. Skateboarding is like graffiti. It is international culture and people love to gather around the passion and that is what we want to promote,” said Walter who is partnering with the French and German embassies in Jamaica, and others to promote skateboarding among youth through an initiative dubbed the ‘Germaican Tour’.

“The embassies of France and Germany as well as the Canadian High Commission are of great help for this project of skateboarding and spreading its culture. They understand the urgency and how it can be useful as a social tool. It is not only about it being a sport and making competition but it can teach the youths and give them something to focus on and drive them in good spirits because it is easy for them to fall into bad hands,” he said.

“Jamaica Skateboard Foundation was registered in 2020, we are here to promoting skateboarding through different projects,” Walter added as he pointed out that skateboarding became an Olympic sport in 2016 which give young Jamaicans something on a big stage to aim for.

He shared that Jamaica stole his heart in 1980 when he was a teenager and he is happy that he is involved with a programme focused on youth development.

“I am from Paris. When I came to Jamaica in 1980, I was 15 years old. I came here for music. I acted in a movie and Chris Blackwell’s girlfriend was playing in it. He heard me singing and he asked me to become a singer for Island Records. I travelled to The Bahamas with Blackwell and we became close.

“He was telling me that I have a Jamaican vibe so he said I should come with him on the private plane. He was going to do a tour with Jacob Miller and Bob Marley. I met Jacob Miller in the studio and sang on his last record called New Age Music and I became very close with Jacob as well,” Walter shared.

“I flew to Jamaica on a private plane with Jacob Miller and Chris Blackwell before they did a tour in Brazil with Bob Marley. I then landed in Kingston. I went to Strawberry Hills before it was a hotel and I went to Golden Eye. I was living with Chris Blackwell and then I met the Henzell family — Perry, Sally, Jason, and Justin. They are all part of my roots. I got caught up in the culture and now I spend more time in Jamaica than France,” he said, sharing that a few years ago he got married to a beautiful Maroon woman from Portland who makes him happy.

Remy Walter (right), founder of Jamaica Skate Culture Foundation, introduces German Ambassador Jan Hendrik van Thiel (second right), the ambassador’s wife Mrs van Thiel (third right), and French Ambassador Marianne Ziss (fourth right) to the team of skateboarders at Kingston Creative car park on Water Lane on Sunday, December 21, 2025.