Project 1992: The Ultimate Surf & Hip-Hop Cultural Video Contest

When legendary producer Thes One (of People Under the Stairs) brought his vision of 1992’s hip-hop revolution to Chemistry Surfboards, magic happened. 1992 wasn't just a pivotal year that transformed the golden era of music—it completely revolutionized the lines, curves, and progressive style of surfing.

To honor this cultural paradigm shift, we launched Project 1992—an exclusive, hard-hitting surf video contest celebrating the intersection of 1990s music, art, and raw surfboard performance.

The Concept: Four Boards. Four Surfers. One Epic Year.

Out of 18 invited local riders, four final contestants were selected to participate in this unique design and film challenge. Each surfer was granted exclusive access to one of four custom, period-correct replica 1992 surfboards handcrafted specifically for this event by head shaper Jason Bennett.

The Mission: Capture the speed, style, and attitude of a generation. Each rider had a dedicated production window to film and produce a compelling 90-second video edit showcasing their progressive surfing on the retro replica board.

The Judging Criteria & Fan Voting

This isn’t your average surf contest. Because Project 1992 is deeply rooted in both sound and style, the video edits are scored on a 30-point scale across three distinct, evenly weighted categories:

• Music Selection (10 Points): How well does the soundtrack channel the raw, golden-era energy of 1992?

• Surfing Performance (10 Points): Technical execution, critical rail game, and power on the replica shape.

• Artistic Creativity (10 Points): The overall vibe, editing style, and cinematic storytelling of the 90-second edit.

The Prize Purse & Collective Event

The contest culminated in a live celebration at the 3rd Annual Chemistry Collective Event, held at the Tremont Collective in Oceanside, California. A total $2,000 prize purse was distributed across our four final contestants to reward their style and creativity:

Check out all 4 contestants video edits below: