KJ Dillard on Skateboarding Aesthetics, Sunscreen, & Getting Emotional as a Man

About this episode

KJ Dillard is the definition of a multi-hyphenate. Before he became a Summer House fan favorite, KJ was a professional skateboarder, genre-defying musician, and model. How has he managed to achieve all of these dreams so fervently? He won’t allow anyone to put him in a box. Growing up in Kansas and Arizona, KJ learned early on how to adapt to different circumstances. Initially, he was part of a well-to-do community, but his parents' divorce shifted everything, and he soon found himself in an entirely new world. KJ leaned into his interests and started a band with friends from church, where he rapped and sang as their frontman. He also began to take skateboarding seriously, even though it wasn't very popular. KJ became engrossed in skate culture, obsessing over its rebellious nature and style. His interest blossomed into a nearly ten-year career as a professional skateboarder, during which he inadvertently invented a never-before-seen trick and attracted the attention of the entire skating community. Like that accidentally career-defining moment, KJ seems destined for greatness, no matter the medium. As the first Black male Summer House castmate, KJ had to learn to navigate the new