The Kicks You Wear, Vol. 156 — Uh uh, you can't tell me nothin
Kanye wore Nike again and that's a pretty cool thing!
Good morning, family. Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear. Thank you so much for tapping in with yerboi, once again.
It’s still giveaway SZN. Let your folks know to subscribe so they can win some kicks!
Let’s jump in.
Kanye does what he wants when he wants to
(Photo by Axel Antas-Bergkvist on Unsplash)
Kanye West was spotted out in LA again and it gave me a laugh. First of all, he’s dressed like he’s ready for a North Dakota winter. But also, he’s in Nike. Again.
Look at this dude.
He’s wearing Nike’s Vandal High “Terminator” in this picture. It’s a pretty rare, but simple, silhouette that doesn’t really move the needle if Kanye isn’t wearing it.
But that’s the thing. This is Kanye West wearing it. That’s why this is a big deal.
Imagine Michael Jordan wearing a pair of Yeezys. Or what if we saw Travis Scott wearing a pair of Stan Smiths. That just doesn’t happen.
And there’s an obvious reason for that — it’s not ideal for your biggest endorsees to endorse your competitors’ product. Period.
But Kanye doesn’t care about that. He never has. This isn’t even the first time he’s worn Nike in the last calendar year. He even pumped up the ISPA Road Warrior for them.
Part of me feels like this was a negotiation tactic — a few weeks later he argued he should be on the board with Adidas and GAP.
There’s this other part of me, though, that thinks he really loves design. And that’s cool.
The latter point is how things should be. Yes, Nike and Adidas are competitors. But they both push the entire industry forward in design, innovation and thought. Creativity is a must.
West and Yeezy know that. That’s why Yeezy always pushes design boundaries. It can be hit or miss, but you can never say they don’t try. And it seems to me that West appreciates it when competitors do the same thing, even though they’re competitors. It’s beneficial for everyone.
That’s pretty cool to see, as a fan of the culture overall. You can be a fan of your competition. That’s OK! So, yeah, I think it’s dope when Kanye wears and praises Nike. I hope it happens more.
I wish we could see MJ in some Adidas, too. If only just to clown the funny bootcut jean look over some 700’s.
Welcome to KYX World
(Courtesy of KYX World)
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: The sneaker game today begins and ends with accessibility.
It’s more difficult than ever before to cop hyped releases. I mean, even regular Air Force 1’s are increasingly difficult to come by. Everything is scarce.
Because of that, consumers are overpaying for everything on the secondary market.
That’s where KYX World comes in — a newly launched online sneaker subscription platform where users can actually rent out shoes. Here’s how it works:
Subscribers pay a fee and get sneakers to rock every month. At the end of that month, they choose to either keep rocking the same pair, buy them outright or swap for another pair.
Subscriptions start at $49 per month for a pair of shoes up to $250. You can get up to 4 pairs for $400 monthly. No set return dates.
The shoes are fully sanitized and cleaned by KYX World before subscribers get them.
I know, I know. Renting shoes sounds absolutely nuts. I get it. It’s sort of jarring. You generally don’t rent sneakers — you rent cars.
This is something you’d do with a buddy — borrow a pair of their kicks for a weekend or two. It feels weird when you give it this sort of structure. But, honestly, in a game where solutions are coming few and far between, this is one. And it feels like a good one for the consumer.
In a sneaker game driven by FOMO, this gives folks the opportunity to participate with plenty of options. And that’s what this is all about. Options and access.
So, sure, is it a bit weird? Yes. But…the game is broken. There’s no putting the toothpaste back in the tube on the sneaker game. And we’re going to have to get a little weird to fix it.
So here’s to getting weird.
SPECIAL DELIVERY: Zion Williamson beats Michael Jordan in this one thing
Don’t get me out of here so fast, MJ fans! Let me explain.
Zion Williamson is Gen Z’s first signature shoe athlete. We explore what that means and how that might change Jordan Brand forever moving forward. He can tap into an audience like no one else at Jordan Brand can — including MJ himself.
OH YEAH. And I DUNK A BASKETBALL.
Just call me the Big Dunk Champ from now on.
Speaking of Ye…
Adidas ain’t the only folks who let this man do anything. Can you believe people are really going to buy these joints?!?!
Y’all really be letting Kanye do anything, fam. This joint looks like what would happen if a Swedish Fish had a baby with a Dr. Mario Pill. It’s awful.
Somebody get this man.
What’s droppin, bruh?
Nike Air Max Pre-Day “BeTrue” — Monday, June 7
Reebok Question Low “Grey Toe” — Tuesday, June 8
A Ma Maniere Jordan 3 (SNKRS DROP) — Thursday, June 10
Yeezy Boost 700 “Enflame Amber” — Friday, June 11
Air Jordan 1 “Fusion Red” — Saturday, June 12
Thank you so much for rocking out today, once again! Hope you have an amazing week. Let’s chop it up on Wednesday.
HOUSEKEEPING: KYW is out this Friday but we’ll be back Monday. Time for a beach trip.
Peace and love. Be Easy. Be kind.
-Sykes 💯
Awww man, those Nike slides are barely bisexual at all!
THANK YOU for saying it... those new yeezys are so dumb. I think we're past the point where no one is able to give Ye constructive feedback on these designs. He's made some very unique and interesting kicks - some I really don't like - but still interesting.
These are just whack. Looks like some time of shell you knit a shoe around. Like he's trying to sell us a shoe tree or something.