By pulling the iPhone into his own orbit — sometimes literally in his hand — he’s been reshaping the experience into something much more intimate and immediate. The ice is still the stage, but the perspective has changed.

That perspective anchored a recent stop in Apple’s Think Different series in Vancouver, where Baldé spoke about the intersection of movement, storytelling, and the tools that now allow him to bridge that gap.

One of the more compelling features discussed during the talk was Dual Capture — a function that allows creators to film simultaneously using both front and rear cameras. The result feels less like traditional documentation and more like participation. Think early BeReal energy — unpolished, present, and rooted in perspective — but with the control and clarity of a device designed for creators.

For Baldé, that shift in perspective is everything. Instead of being observed from afar, his skating becomes something you experience alongside him. The lens turns inward and outward at once, capturing not just the movement across the ice, but the emotion behind it. It’s a subtle but powerful evolution of the art form, one that trades spectacle for connection without losing any of its physicality.

Canadian figure skater Elladj Baldé discusses his creative journey with his “Wild Ice” series at Apple Pacific Centre in Vancouver, BC on March 26, 2026.

Throughout the evening, Baldé spoke candidly about his journey — the setbacks, the recalibration, and the ongoing process of redefining success on his own terms. His approach to skating now feels less like competition and more like expression, and technology has become a key collaborator in that transition.

Of course, this is still skating, and music remains at its core. When asked what tracks he’d want to perform to next, Baldé lit up. He spoke about his admiration for Rosalía, particularly her 2025 album LUX, and nodded to hip-hop as an ongoing source of inspiration, citing both J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar as artists he’d love to bring onto the ice. (If you’re curious, Apple Music has compiled a playlist of his current favourites, which you can listen to here.)

It’s an easy detail to gloss over, but it speaks to something bigger: Baldé isn’t just expanding how skating looks, he’s expanding what it can hold. Different sounds, different perspectives, different ways of being seen.

And in a space designed to showcase the future of technology, it was a reminder that the most interesting innovations aren’t always about the tools themselves — but what people choose to do with them.