Good morning, folks! Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear! Thanks for giving me a bit of your time on this glorious Friday morning!
Fantastic news! It’s giveaway time again. We’re right on the cusp of 2,000 subs which is absolutely incredible. I’m grateful for every single one of y’all. So y’all know what it is. Once we hit 2K, I’m copping a couple of you a pair random drawing style. Tell your friends to subscribe! They don’t want to miss out.
Let’s jump in.
“Tell em Cactus Jack sent you”
(Photo by David Lezcano on Unsplash)
Not sure if saying that when you pull up into a McDonalds drive-thru actually amounts to anything, but hey, it sounds good! It’s one of the dope aspects of Travis Scott’s McDonalds deal that took the internet by storm on Tuesday.
This collab is absolutely insane — but in a fun way. Last Friday I called it a collaboration just for the sake of collaboration. Travis Scott and McDonalds doesn’t make sense. And, keeping it a buck, I do still feel that way.
In a sense, I was right. There’s no history here. McDonalds will get a quick bump from it, but it won’t last outside of this month. But the hype train is on the move, nonetheless.
McDonalds and Travis were two of the biggest trends on the internet on Tuesday. Everyone was talking about this.
They were also selling burger boxes on Grailed for $40 and posters for $225. It was wild.
But I was also wrong. I stopped there in my thinking — only thinking about what McDonalds could stand to gain from it. But that’s just the surface of where this thing stretches.
For Travis Scott, this is a fan appreciation move. And it’s a massive one. Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but Scott’s shoes aren’t easy to get. This burger? That’s easy. All you have to do is pull up to the drive-thru, spend $6 and you’re apart of this.
And he’s treating this as if it were a sneaker drop. Here he is, shirtless, in Houston at McDonalds being mobbed by a bunch of fans.
This is big for Scott as a brand, too. He officially just attached himself to one of the most quintessential and recognizable brands in the world. That’s a big deal.
It speaks to his status. Everyone doesn’t get this. Scott is the first celebrity to have a McDonalds meal named after them since Michael Jordan in 1992. That’s no coincidence.
McDonalds is palatable for White, corporate America. They only touch certain people. That’s why people were complaining when they broached the subject of Travis Scott.
We’re already seeing him reap the benefits from the merch he’s dropped to just having a McDonalds commercial being broadcast worldwide. That’s a big win for Scott and an easy W for his fans.
On the flip side, McDonalds is, uh, obviously not the greatest, healthiest choice. And you’d love to see this partnership taking that into consideration — especially in the midst of a global pandemic when health is extremely important.
But, ya know, the bag is the bag, I guess. Either way, this is a sign of more things to come for Travis Scott and his growth as an American brand.
Y’all let me know when the Outback Steakhouse x Travis collab is on the way. I’m all the way in.
Giving back to the culture
(Photo by James Eades on Unsplash)
Profound is the only way to describe this very moment we’re living in. There’s a social movement reshaping this country — a movement that has America embracing Blackness in ways it has refused to previously.
That movement has stretched across industry, including the sneaker business that we love so much. Brands that have remained silent on these issues before are, all of a sudden, publicly speaking up and embracing Black folks in ways they haven’t before.
One of those brands is Finish Line. They’ve done good work over the last few months in the way of amplifying Black voices.
They launched the “Community Voices program” a weekly Q&A program that drops every Friday completely dedicated to amplifying Black folks’ platforms in and around the sneaker industry on issues that matter.
They’ve featured lots of NBA players so far with the league’s players being at the forefront. They had Tobias Harris on a couple weeks ago and John Wall on to talk about how important giving back is. Here’s the complete list of other folks, too.
This is an extremely young platform — it’s only existed for about three months, now. But it’s one that is also extremely important.
There is no sneaker culture without Black culture. Black folks are the foundation of this business. For so long, all companies did was take and take and take. Think about all that Black creatives have given.
There’s no Yeezy. There’s no Jordan. There’s no Travis Scott x whoever. The Air Force 1 isn’t cool. There’s none of that.
But these brands have used these same folks and their culture for so long without, you know, hiring people who look like them. Or giving back to their communities. They just drain them.
This blog is just the beginning of the work that needs to be done, but it’s sending the right message directly to the sneaker loving community that needs to see it.
Don’t know about y’all, but I think that’s dope as hell.
MOAR IVY PARK
We’ve seen just about every sneaker coming up in the Ivy Park fall/winter collection for 2020.
A couple months ago we got a look at a bit of the collection. It featured a Frozen Yellow Ultra Boost, the Adidas Forum, and another triple black version of the Super Sleek 72 that was the feature of the previous collection.
Apparently, there’s a Nite Jogger coming, too, if this leak from Yankee Kicks is correct.
If this all comes to fruition, that would put five different pairs in the collection. That’s a good sign for anyone looking to cop any of these. The last time we got Ivy Park pairs, they were sold out in literal minutes.
More is obviously better. But the real win would be a wider release for the collection. Time will tell, but in the meantime the collection looks good. Hopefully, we get some legit release info soon.
Shouts to PJ Tucker
Man, listen. For years, PJ Tucker has been wearing other player’s signature sneakers and other player’s exclusives with other brands. He’s never had his own to choose from.
Until now, that is. Shouts to PJ. He’s finally got his own player exclusive.
Y’all know how I give it up for PJ Tucker here. Bruh has been on the grind for years in the NBA. Between his play and his sneaker collection, he’s become a household name. This shoe solidifies it.
Shoutout to em, man. Absolutely love to see it. Hate to see a 3-1 deficit to the Lakers, tho.
#TheKicksWeWear
THE VIBES. Y’ALL KNOW ‘EM.
First, the homie JB came through with some Air Max 90 heat on tap.
Of course, the homie Andy followed that right up with more AM 90 vibes.
Continuing with our AM90 vibes, the homie Storm popped out in the SAFARIS.
The homie Hardly Clerkin popped out with the Hulk AJ1 mid joints and a monster — mad appropriate, btw.
Then the homie Aron hit us with THE GLOVES.
The homie RLee came through with straight up ART on tap for us. My word.
The homie Eddie Factzz popped out in the All-Star Brons. HEAT.
The homies Sumeet and Tosh popped out in the Shantell Martin x Puma Clydes
The homie Spriggs popped out here in the Wolf Grey 5’s going crazy.
The homie David popped out in the Riccardo Tisci Dunks. Straight up art, folks.
My good man Jummy showed out in the HENNY DUNKS. Damn, I need these.
Then the homie Tynes sent us home in the Summit White Sacai joints (or jawns, in his native Norf Philly language).
SO ICY.
Issa wrap, y’all! Thanks for checking in with your boy today. I truly, truly appreciate it. And I appreciate you.
Make sure you subscribe if you haven’t already! And tell your homies to do it, too! It’s giveaway time. Two pairs. 2k subs. Let’s get right to it.
As always, family. Peace and love. Be easy. Be well. Be kind.
Signing off.
—Sykes 💯