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If you love extreme sports, you’re probably familiar with Luke Spud. As a downhill shredder, filmmaker, and content creator, he covers death-defying downhill runs in stunning global locations. Luke connects with crazy individuals, chasing raw moments with people who put it all on the line. Many of these videos are beyond mortal comprehension, with people risking life and limb as they descend tarmac roads on four tiny wheels and thin plywood planks.
From steep jungle roads to snowy mountain peaks and remote coastlines, Luke documents raw life stories defined by freedom and motion. Each skater brings something special to these films, and each descent is a moment in time never to be repeated. Luke Spud’s incredible work is a homage to downhill shredding at its purest. Each video uses high-quality filming and creative editing to showcase the scenery while staying focused on the madness.
Luke and his production crew use music to make these videos pop. High-energy songs are used to soundtrack death-defying adventures, with drums and basslines blending with screeched wheels as another corner is carved. In this article, we’ll learn more about Luke Spud and look at the music he uses to bring his videos to life.
Downhill thrills
Many of the videos created by Luke Spud are focused on one thing and one thing only — downhill skateboarding in its purest and most devastating form. These are the videos that made Luke famous, and they still make up most of his channel. Luke creates lots of urban content, but most filming takes place in the mountains where this specialized form of skating shines. There are videos in Puerto Rico’s hidden back roads, mind-boggling descents down Sierra Nevada in Spain, and even crazy adventures down Pakistan’s border roads.
Luke and his skater friends really get around, so these videos are a great way to see the world. Extreme content like downhill skating and fixed gear bike riding has become its own genre — a new form of ultra-fast yet scenic slow TV. While there’s no plot line, you can’t look away as talented skaters risk it all around every bend. As the scenery moves by gently in the background, long hair flies and wheels rotate rapidly at speeds up to 100 km/h. This new video genre is ripe for YouTube, and it absolutely rips.
Travel and adventure
Along with Luke’s standard fare, he also makes long-form videos mixing downhill skating with travel content. He was traveling around the world anyway, with these videos allowing him to focus on expeditions, food, and vlog-style travel content. Luke works with a fantastic team of crazed, high-energy skaters, and he takes them across the world to shoot content and share adventures with a growing audience.
Some of the notable names in his travel videos include Lars Troutwine, Diego Poncelet, Alex Tzouganakis, Yanis Markarian, Max Heaton, Josh Evans, Owen Fox, and Linus Marsh. It’s not all about the talent, however, as skaters speak to locals and learn more about culture and cuisine. These travel vlogs have been a great addition to Luke’s channel, still focused on downhill skating while attracting a broader audience.
The music behind the madness
Along with death-defying downhill runs and global travel adventures, Luke Spud’s videos have become known for their music. He uses energetic tracks to build tension, matching the vibe of the skateboarding with high-impact beats, melodies, and rhymes. The following two videos are a great example of how Luke Spud uses licensed music to grow his YouTube channel.
This One’s For Me
In this video, Luke Spud goes beyond urban streetscapes to film in the mountains. Some of the craziest downhill skaters in the scene can be seen bombing mountain roads, including Alicia Bond, Noah Fischer, Kavon Zamanian, Lars Troutwine, Owen Fox, and Adrien Paynel. This video makes for majestic viewing, as downhill skaters flow with ease down mountain paths amid beautiful scenery. While the roads are mostly empty, you see the occasional car passing by in disbelief as skaters zoom on by.
In This One’s For Me, Luke chose licensed music to avoid getting demonetized. He used a number of songs for this video, including “Something to Rap About” by Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist featuring Tyler, The Creator. This hard-hitting track comes from the album Alfredo, and it’s absolutely perfect for the video. With compelling storytelling and raw energy, it builds a heavy atmosphere to backdrop the video content. The samples blend perfectly with soulful shouts and churning drums, which Gibbs uses as the foundation for his rapid-fire delivery. Other licensed tracks used on this video include “White Bronco” by Action Bronson, “Sunshine” by Atmosphere, and “Time” by Free Nationals.
The Coolest Skate Event You’ve Never Heard Of
This video was filmed at the Komerío Skate Festival, which happens in March each year in Puerto Rico. Content from the festival is showcased throughout the video, and Luke captures it all with style. Along with the great skating and colorful people, viewers get up close and personal with a stunning location. Tropical rainstorms create pretty sketchy conditions at times, which skaters use to slip and slide down the mountain paths.
Luke uses a single track for this 5-minute video, “New Shoes” by Paolo Nutini. Once again, this song is licensed to keep everything above board. This catchy track is all about feel-good vibes, with the artist blending ’60s/’70s soul-pop with classic rock swagger. This song comes from Nutini’s debut album, These Streets, which was released in 2006. “New Shoes” is a standout track from the album, and its infectious energy is perfect for Luke Spud’s skateboarding content.
What is Lickd?
Luke Spud uses licensed music from Lickd on many of his videos. Lickd is the biggest mainstream and stock music platform on the market, and it plays a valuable role in modern content creation. It allows Luke Spud and other content creators to use known tracks by commercial artists without risking demonetization.
Lickd holds the biggest catalog of music for contemporary creators, including 1.4 million mainstream tracks and royalty-free songs. Creators have access to music from some of the biggest artists in the world, including The Weeknd, Ariana Grande, Sabrina Carpenter, Coldplay, Bruno Mars, Post Malone, and many others.
As a YouTube partner, Lickd includes built-in protection from all copyright claims. The platform integrates directly with YouTube’s Content ID, with scripts used to send permission for each licensed track. If YouTube makes a mistake and decides to put a claim on a video, the Lickd team will squash it like a bug. This growing platform is a great example of music licensing, which benefits artists across the music spectrum and makes life easier for content creators like Luke Spud.
Whether you love flying down mountain roads on a skateboard or watching extreme videos from the comfort of your armchair, Luke Spud’s YouTube channel deserves your full attention. With over 500 videos, more than 350k subscribers, and some of the best music/video matchups available, his unique blend of raw stories and downhill freedom is the epitome of creativity in motion.