National Lowrider Hall Of Fame

Darryl Dixson was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. He graduated from Washington High School, Class of 1974. He was the Vice President in 1992 of the Washington High Alumni Association, organizer, of the Washington High Alumni Football Game in 1982 and 1983, and founder, part owner and player of the West Los Angeles Falcons Simi Pro Football Team from 1984-1985. Darryl is a member of the PHI BETA SIGMA Fraternity. He was Senior Vice President of A.L. Williams Insurance Company, 1986-1991, now called Primerica Financial Services. He was also a marketing director with WMA now called World Financial Group. Darryl’s love for lowriding was inspired by his cousin Keith Kirksey in the early 1970’s and Keith Porter in the late 1970’s. Darryl was the first African American centerfold in Lowrider Magazine March 1980.
Lowriding has a distinct and unique place in the history of Whites, Blacks, and Mexican Americans in Los Angeles. After WWII, many of our fathers and grandfathers worked in the automotive assembly plants and in the aerospace industry in the Midwest, the South, and in Southern California, which helped fuel the growth of Lowriding on the west coast, in Los Angeles, California.
During this time, the popularity of Lowriding accelerated with Americans. It played an important part in innovation in the lowriding movement. The height of lowriding took place in the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s when young Americans (youths) of all economic backgrounds began utilizing Hydraulic lifts from aircraft parts to raise and lower the body of their vehicles, to lay on the frame. Believe it or not that’s engineering without a degree!
However, lowriding was not just about hydraulics. There was a style to lowriders that has imitated cars from the 1950’s and subsequent decades. Lowriders had distinctive paint jobs. Many cars were painted in a style that was referred as “metal flake,” and flake with patterns, all flake no candy, then came candy’s. Candy flake with patterns and multi candy color with patterns. “The diamond tuck and biscuit tuck and tuck and roll interior were made popular with lowriders”.
The OG lowriders from back in the day had chrome rims that sported moons, supreme’s, rockets, craigars, and wire spoke rims. Now today’s sounds are just the next generation of entertainment. Back in the day the lowriders listened to their music from phonograph car record players that played 45 records, later came 4 tracks, 8 tracks, and cassettes players. There were no CD’s, IPOD’s or USB’s back then. Lowriders lit their interior with strobe lights and black lights, powered by his/her OG oldies and his/her color bar danced to the beat of the music, and lowriders were inter connected across the city and formed a lasting brotherhood of car clubs that enjoyed their cars and lowriding, but also were leaders in the community since many individuals looked up to them.
The lowriding culture in all communities may have subsided, but it never died. I give respect when its due and Mexican American and Japanese have taken lowriding to another level worldwide. Lowriding in Japan now is almost as big as it is in the United States. The OG SUPERIOR’S Car Club, was founded in June 1976 by Darryl Dixson AKA “Wild Cherry.” Darryl was later inspired to create the NATIONAL LOWRIDER HALL OF FAME to give all races of lowriding The Respect They Deserve Nationwide.
Today lowriders are celebrating a special time in the history of our city by celebrating the inaugural class of the 2014 National Lowrider Hall Of Fame. In preparing for events every two years, we are celebrating the past, acknowledging the present and preparing for the future. The National Lowrider Hall Of Fame will be a repository of information, history and culture. It’s mission will be to keep the light ever shining on the youths to become someone that can be looked up to in their neighborhoods. Lowriding history should not and will not ever be forgotten.