Легендарный атлет BMX Найджел Силвестер сыграл камео в финальном сезоне сериала «Raising Kanan»

Nigel Sylvester is in a state of gratitude. It’s an early afternoon in June, and the legendary BMX athlete is relishing his recent appearance on Power Book III: Raising Kanan. After making a cameo in the third episode (“Tricks”) of the hit Starz series’ final season, Sylvester expresses his appreciation for the experience and how far he’s come since first falling in love with a bike. “Growing up in Queens and riding my bike has now led me to opportunities like this,” Sylvester, 38, tells VIBE. “There was an array of positive feelings and positive sentiments, and it’s one of those things where if you put your mind towards something, and you move with love and great intention, you never know what other opportunities may come from it.” Raising Kanan, which is set in his hometown borough, makes Sylvester’s guest spot even more fitting, as the streets and avenues depicted on the show served as an early breeding ground for the bicycle motocross skills that would take him across the globe. The BMX prodigy turned multi-hyphenate translated the grit, grind, and perspective gleaned from his formative years in the Jamaica and Laurelton sections of the borough and channeled them into a personal brand of athletics, fashion, music, entertainment, and more. What were once dreams and aspirations shared with childhood pals are now the passion projects that support his lifestyle. Queens gets the money, no doubt. His love for his neighborhood and the sense of community it fostered within him inspired GO Ride, Sylvester’s community cycling experience, with a goal of “bringing riders together to explore their city, celebrate bike culture, and inspire the next generation.” With GO Ride events slated for this week — one hosted by rapper and philanthropist Trae tha Truth on “Trae Day” (July 16) in Houston, and another hosted by BMX athlete Deezy Bike Life and Bloc Boi Fame at Syd Kronenthal Park in Culver City, Calif. on July 17, Sylvester is looking to spread positivity while continuing to build on what has been a landmark year. Below, Nigel talks about GO Rides’ backstory, how he connected with 50 Cent, his viral “The Weight of Progress” installation with Jordan Brand, working with Jeezy and Stove God Cooks, and more. VIBE: You’re activating local cycling communities and transforming urban streets with GO Ride. Can you tell us about that and how it all started? In 2023, I wanted to create a platform that galvanized bicycle communities around the world. The idea is to be in two different cities on the same day and use that as a mechanism to help bring light to bicycling and the BMX cycling communities in key cities around the world. We call it a GO Ride.  For the first one, we did two cities in 24 hours. We did London and New York City. That was a magical moment. At first, people didn’t understand the concept. They were like, “How are you going to ride in London and ride in New York on the same day?” They weren’t thinking about the time difference, and I was. Once we executed it, people were just in awe. What GO Ride proved was just how powerful the bicycle is, and how the bicycle is the most universal and accessible mode of transportation in the world. It brings people together from all walks of life. We think about how powerful a bicycle is. It crosses race, geography, social class, and whatever other beliefs. We’re using GO Ride as an opportunity to celebrate bicycle riding and bicycle communities, and to galvanize people who were the driving force behind the event. Now, we’re going into our fourth year. We’re doing Houston, and we’re doing L.A. in 24 hours. I’m very excited about it. It’s a platform that I’m proud of, and that people look forward to every single year. I’m going to continue to grow GO Ride and continue to bring it to cities around the world. What was the conversation like when you were invited to be on Power Book III: Raising Kanan? 50 Cent and I had connected a couple of years back. We had a pretty dope conversation, and that’s how I got introduced into the fold. Then, his team reached out, maybe a year later, and was like, “We got a spot on Raising Kanan for you. We’d love for you to show up and help us out with this scene.” For me, if the opportunity is right, I’m going to participate, and it’s one of those situations where it just makes sense. I was definitely honored. I was excited because Power is also one of my favorite shows. It’s been such a staple within the culture since it came out. It was actually one of those moments where it was a bit surreal to be on set. What does it mean to be from Queens and represent the borough? I’m proud to be from Queens and to be a Queens native. The borough, the different neighborhoods, the environment, the people. The love there helped shape and raise me. To be where I’m at now in my life and career, I wear Queens as a badge. It’s important to me to continue to give back to Queens, whether I’m speaking about it, referencing Queens in a story, or a product, or a piece of content that I’m making. Whether it’s actually just giving back to the next generation through my foundation, or through the things I’m doing. I’m just proud to be from Queens, man. It’s such an incredible place. One of the most diverse boroughs in the world, probably the most diverse in the world. My family’s there, my friends are there, so many memories are there. Many things I hold very close and dear to my heart are from Queens, still in Queens, or are products of Queens. I’m gonna continue to rep it for as long as I possibly can. Your art installation, “The Weight of Progress,” had that big brick crush the BMW in Soho. That caused a big stir on social media and beyond. What was the origin of that idea? “The Weight of Progress” was such an ill moment, man. It was part of the [Air Jordan 4] “Brick After Brick” sneaker rollout. Art is one of those things that is so subjective, but it’s around us all the time. It’s so beautiful to have this platform that allows anyone and everyone to express themselves freely. There’s freedom in art, and I grew up appreciating art of various mediums my entire life. When we had the opportunity to use art as a platform and a lens to tell the “Brick After Brick” story, that was the origin of how to progress. I wanted to do something that would be jaw-dropping and stop people in their tracks. Those are some things that articulated the story in the physical form. And when you think about the environment of New York City and how the majority of the city is lined in bricks, and the story that we’re telling is “Brick After Brick,” having a brick be this larger-than-life massive object crushing a car that people have a relationship to. People understand how big and how powerful cars are. For a brick to smash the car, that brick must be this massive thing that carries so much weight. So, putting those two things together and putting them in the environment that we put them in, it just made so much sense because it fit. You walk around New York City, and there are cars everywhere. There are bricks everywhere. So it’s something that people are already familiar with, right? And then, having them placed in the way we had them, it just made so much sense. Even though it’s still subjective, it’s very self-explanatory. It articulated the story to a T. When you think about progress, as you progress more and more in whatever you’re doing, the weight of that progress becomes heavier and heavier. When you combine that thought with the physical elements of this massive brick smashing a car, it just articulated the story in a way that I know people would instantly get. It would serve as a conversation, and it did exactly what I wanted it to do. It created a frenzy on social media and in Soho. People were coming from all different parts of the city to see this art installation. To be able to articulate myself in a way that also lends to this thought that I want people to understand that I’m more than just a BMX athlete, that’s very important to me. Don’t define me by just BMX tricks; there are so many other things that are important to me. There are so many other things that I do at a very high level; that was just an example of how else I like to express myself and how else I like to create and how I storytell. I’m happy that piece turned out the way it did and that Jordan Brand, as a partner of mine, gives me the opportunity to do things like that that celebrate our partnership and celebrate how we want to continue to be disruptive in the world. You dropped new music, “Brick After” with Stove God Cooks and Chello. You’re also partnering with Jeezy for a Bike Air lookbook. Was it intentional for this “Brick After Brick” campaign to have hip-hop artists involved? Everything we do has intention behind it. The shoot with Jeezy and to have Jeezy be the face of the look-book is a super insane moment. Him and I have been building on a friendship level of respect for one another as creatives in our respective fields. Growing up, riding the Brooklyn banks listening to Young Jeezy’s music, to then have Jeezy at the Brooklyn banks, modeling the “Brick After Brick” apparel, again, another full-circle moment that’s similar to the 50 Cent moment. I think Jeezy means so much to hip-hop and to culture in general. His contributions and innovations changed the landscape, so I was honored to have him featured in the lookbook. It was one of those things that said so much without even having to say much. [In] doing the “Brick After” song, music is such an important element in everything I do, whether I’m writing, designing, or creating a song. This time, with the “Brick After Brick” campaign, I wanted to do a track and tap in Stove God Cooks and Chello. Having Conductor [Williams] on the production was one of those moments that tapped into what I love. It tapped into music. It tapped into storytelling, friendship, and being disruptive. That song symbolizes those things and so much more. I’m a child of hip-hop, man. I grew up in Jamaica, Queens [Laughs]. Hip-Hop, from the music to everything that hip-hop is, I’m a product of, so the things that I’m doing now, I’m tapping into the things that I grew up on, things that matter to me. The things that educated and informed me. Hip-Hop is one of those things. I’m just tapping into those things and expressing them in my own way. One of the most memorable moments from the “Brick After Brick” campaign was you personally delivering the sneaker to Michael Jordan. What was going through your mind in that moment? The entire brick journey thus far has been phenomenal. To take this concept of a brick and completely redefine it within culture is a big feat. There’s so much that’s happening in the world right now; there’s so much information. So many things that are being sold to people, so many stories that are being told to people. When you have something that actually cuts through in the way that the Brick journey has cut through with “Brick by Brick,” “Brick After Brick,” “Bike Air,” the partnership with Jordan Brand, that means a lot. Coming off of the success that we had with the Brick by Brick AJ4 in 2025, damn near the unanimous sneaker of the year. Going into “Brick After Brick,” there’s definitely a little bit of pressure there, which is good. Pressure either makes diamonds or busts pipes, right? As we went into this Brick After Brick journey, we needed to make sure that we did this right. One of the things we decided to do as a team was to link with MJ and talk about the journey, the partnership. I wanted to gift him with the “Brick After Brick” AJ4’s. I wanted him to be the first person to have a pair. We’re kicking it, and I presented him with the shoe. He took the shoe out of the box, put the shoe on top of the box, and admired it before I told him the story about “Brick After Brick.” His reaction instantly let me know that this continuation of this Brick journey is just as good. Brick By Brick is the story of starting at the bottom, developing a foundation, and working as hard as you can to achieve that first moment of success, right? It was also a tribute to New York City. When we look around New York City, we see that red brick everywhere. It’s a continuation of that: once you reach that first level of success, it’s about the consistency and discipline to sustain success and gradually build upon it. Also, when you look around New York City, the second most colored brick you see a lot is a whitish tan brick. Again, a tribute to New York City, which is such a big part of my life, my brand, etc. When you put these two together, you’re telling a powerful story about having radical self-belief, dedication, discipline, and just striving for greatness. I know that’s something MJ has done and continues to do, and it’s something I’ve done and continue to do as I cement my legacy and footprint within culture. It’s these levels and layers of storytelling, connecting with community, and living out your dream. Never forgetting your past, but also living in the present, and always striving to do more in the future. It all culminates in what everyone is seeing now.