Image via Complex Original
11.
In 2019, sneaker hype is nothing new. Nearly every weekend has a sneaker release that causes people to rev up their bots, resellers to wait in online queues, and shops to implement raffles. This has grown over time. The 2000s saw a few shoes that helped build this reselling and hype economy, mainly Nike SBs and the first Air Yeezy. But it really grabbed its foothold in the 2010s. Brands got hip to the hype and have it down to a science.
A lot of sneaker hype is calculated by the aftermarket price on a shoe. And that’s an easy way to look at things. But what about the anticipation that leads up to a sneaker, with blogs posting and would-be customers foaming at the mouth? So we looked into which sneakers had people going crazy before their drop, looking for every bit of release date info, and ultimately had a huge release. We broke down the 10 sneakers that caused the most build-up prior to their release.
10.Air Jordan XI "Concord"
Year: 2011
The hype all started two years prior. Jordan Brand, for the holiday season of 2008, decided to release the black/red Air Jordan XI in a two-sneaker pack, with the Air Jordan XII, two days before Christmas. The shoes sold out, caused lineups, and caused commotion. The next year saw the Air Jordan XI “Space Jam” rip the world apart and become one of the biggest and most hyped releases at that point. Then the “Cool Grey” XIs came. Was it as good of a shoe as the Space Jams? No, but people were after the seed that those sneakers planted and wanted in on all of it. How would Jordan Brand follow up three solid years? Bring it all back to where it came from: the Air Jordan XI “Concord.” The shoe, which first came out in 1996, had last dropped in 2006 in another two-shoe pack called the “Defining Moments Pack,” also featuring a black-and-gold Air Jordan VI. That was a release that had an undeniable buzz right smack in the middle of a sneaker and streetwear resurgence. Also, the public was more interested in these shoes. Some had grown up with them, but most knew that the XIs at the end of the year were the cool thing to have. People who weren’t even into sneakers were going after them. And it caused sheer mayhem. Think Arnold Schwarzenegger trying to get a Turbo Man in Jingle All the Way. Malls from the East to West Coasts saw disorderly mobs of customers and violence break out. Someone was stabbed at a mall in Richmond, California. Police had to use pepper spray to quell the crowds in Seattle, and a woman in Atlanta left her kids in a car while she tried to get the shoes, which prompted the police to smash her car windows.
Nike even released a statement saying, “We are extremely concerned to hear of the reported crowd incidents around the launch of the Air Jordan XI at some select retail locations. Consumer safety and security is of paramount importance. We encourage anyone wishing to purchase our product to do so in a respectful and safe manner."
Crazy, right?
It proved that sneakers were more than just sneakers, especially if they had a strong past. Brands could sell it to people who had never heard of them before, but the people wanted to buy in on it, even if the cost was blood, sweat, and tears. —Matt Welty
9.Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 "Turtledove"
Year: 2015
Kanye West getting his own sneaker with Nike might have been the biggest sneaker moment of the 2000s, but him leaving the brand for Adidas could be the single most impactful sneaker moment of this decade. The moment that cemented his legacy with Adidas, which started in 2014, was the release of his first sneaker with huge mainstream appeal: the Yeezy 350.
It was unlike anything West had ever done. It was a low-top. Had the brand’s Boost technology and a sock-like Primeknit upper. It was a wearable sneaker, not a high-end take on daring basketball silhouettes. You could put it on every day, and it was comfortable.
The first colorway was the Turtledove. Unlike his bright sneakers of the past, this was toned down. It was a new Kanye West. It was grey, black, and white, and not as confrontational as his high-top, boot-esque Yeezy 750, his first shoe with the brand. And people wanted to buy them. He was able to unify a sneaker world that was typically split on his designs. Even if you didn’t want to dress like him, you wanted Kanye West’s sneakers.
The shoes dropped in limited numbers at select sneaker stores and on the brand’s Confirmed app, which turned into a mess. And their resale value quickly jumped to over $1,000. The sneaker would live on and have multiple colorways of the 350 drop, then morph into the 350 v2 and become the new favorite knockoff sneaker, building a legacy for Kanye West beyond just Adidas and his fast track to becoming a billionaire. —Matt Welty
8.Sean Wotherspoon x Nike Air Max 1/97
Year: 2017/2018
A ton of people love Nike Air Maxes. They love them so much that Nike even gave them their own “holiday” in 2014, Air Max Day, which falls on March 26, the release date of the original Air Max 1 1987.
As part of the celebration in 2017, Nike held the “Vote Forward” design contest that allowed fans to vote for the Air Max design they wanted to get an official release the following year. The winner of the 12-person contest was Round Two co-founder Sean Wotherspoon, who fused an Air Max 97 upper with the Air Max 1 midsole, and covered it in colorful corduroy inspired his love for vintage Nike caps.
Wotherspoon’s design instantly became a hot commodity. Before the shoe’s official launch, Wotherspoon dropped a limited supply at ComplexCon 2017 that caused pandemonium among guests at the Long Beach Convention Center. He also went on a multi-city tour in a hippie van from the ’60s painted up like his collab to sell pairs to lucky customers across the country. Everyone from LeBron James to Travis Scott would eventually lace up a pair at one point, further increasing the desire many already had for the colorful hybrid. After a nearly instant sellout on Air Max Day 2018, pairs were resold in the $900 range. Wotherspoon’s own consignment shops were even reselling pairs at an exorbitant markup.
Unfortunately, Wotherspoon and Nike had a falling-out, so we may never get to see what would have been a worthy sequel, but at least he gave us this stellar project before things turned sour. —Mike DeStefano
7.Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1
Year: 2019
Travis Scott has been on a recent run that will go down in history. Ever since his critically acclaimed ASTROWORLD album dropped in August 2018, the Houston-born rapper has been on top of the hip-hop game as well as the sneaker industry. Every song he touches climbs the charts, and every sneaker he drops sells out in seconds.
Of course, as is the case with most sneaker collaborations, it’s his Air Jordan 1 that created the most buzz. The release of Scott’s AJ1 was a six-month saga that began with a quick Instagram leak in October 2018 and ended with one of the most notorious SNKRS app fiascos back in April of this year. Only adding fuel to “La Flame” (I had to do it. Sorry, Welty), Scott laced up his Air Jordan 1s on a nightly basis during his wildly popular ASTROWORLD Tour.
With it now reselling for thousands and putting a cherry on top of one of the strongest collaborative sneaker runs of all time, there is no denying this Jordan 1’s spot on this list. Whether you are a casual Travis Scott fan, a die-hard rager, or someone who doesn’t really fuck with him at all, you know about this shoe and you’re probably a fan of it. —Ben Felderstein
6.Off-White x Air Jordan 1 "Chicago"
Year: 2017
Virgil Abloh lived in Kanye West’s shadow for a long time, and that was OK. They were business partners and Kanye was his boss. But after a few successful attempts at streetwear, Nike gave Abloh and his Off-White label their own chance. It wasn’t something minor. In fact, it was the most daring collaboration that Nike has executed to date. The task? Rework 10 different silhouettes, both old and new, and release them all at once. The biggest of the bunch, from a hype standpoint, was Abloh’s version of the Air Jordan 1 “Chicago.”
If you’re going to remix the sneaker that started it all, you better not miss. Abloh added an exposed-foam tongue, a Swoosh that was hanging on by a stitch, and his signature red tag. Purists and newcomers alike were both in on it. So were Abloh’s celebrity friends. Before the shoe’s release, he gave out personally signed pairs to the likes of Beyoncé, Michael Jordan, Drake, Roger Federer, etc. The popularity of the shoe instantly grew. It was genius marketing, and was able to make people want anything designed by Abloh, whether great or mediocre. Want a pair now? It will cost you damn near four grand. —Matt Welty
5.Nike LeBron 8 "South Beach"
Year: 2011
LeBron James leaving his pedestal as the hometown hero in Cleveland, and joining his buddies Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami to pursue his first NBA Championship, was huge for a number of reasons. Cavaliers fans burned jerseys, Heat fans rejoiced, but sneaker fans were treated the best after LeBron’s infamous Decision at that Cleveland-area Boys & Girls Club back in 2010.
With all of the hype surrounding the biggest player in the NBA changing teams in his prime, Nike had to deliver a moment just as memorable. They more than succeeded with the “South Beach” LeBron 8. The signature Miami Vice color palette of teal and hot pink was guaranteed to break necks. The vibrant pair was a solid changeup from the formulaic approach of debuting a player’s new sneaker in their team colors. The “Pre-Heat” concept was so successful that Nike has even continued the practice to this day of starting off with a more eccentric release to drum up some last-minute hype for its new signature models.
The sneaker community was very different back in 2010. Reselling was not nearly as big as it is today. Waiting in line for hours at your local mall was more common than tapping the SNKRS app at 10 a.m.. Still, the “South Beach” commanded attention on the aftermarket. Retailing at $160, pairs were selling for prices hovering in the $1,000 range. It was the sneaker everyone wanted, whether you loved LeBron or hated him. Even with the lifestyle appeal of basketball sneakers taking a dip at the tail end of the 2010s, people still want to own this one. It isn’t just LeBron’s best sneaker, but it’s arguably one of Nike Basketball’s greatest achievements, too. —Mike DeStefano
4.Nike Air Foamposite One "Galaxy"
Year: 2011
No sneaker better defines the early 2010s than the Nike Air Foamposite. It may have released in 1997, but it hit its peak nearly 15 years later. Its bold, bright colors and basketball silhouette fit in with the times. Any pair that Nike brought back was gold, but none was bigger than the “Galaxy” version set to release during All-Star Weekend in Orlando, where Penny Hardaway, who was given the sneaker, played most of his NBA career. There was madness at 21 Mercer in New York City over the shoe. Someone offered their car for a pair on the internet. There was a riot outside of a mall in Florida. All of that might seem like a modern sneaker release, but this was sneaker hype at its peak.
The shoes themselves were remarkable. A printed upper, a glow-in-the-dark sole. It was impossible to make the sneakers themselves look any more hype. Complex’s own Joe La Puma was even threatened with violence over the shoes for posting them on Twitter.
Nike really overdid it with the Foamposite after the Galaxy and the model died down. Maybe it was just a shift in trends. No one was really into basketball sneakers anymore, especially ones made out of plastic. But the Galaxy, after all this time, still holds up. They’re still reselling over well over $1,000. —Matt Welty
3.Nike Mag
Year: 2011/2016
The hype around the Nike Mag started way before 2010. In fact, you need to go back to 1989, with Back to the Future Part II, where Michael J. Fox’s character, Marty McFly, travels to the year 2015 and gets the shoes. They were something futuristic at the time. Auto-lacing. Light-up soles. They were a sneaker enthusiast’s dream. People had spoken about them on the internet for some time, hoping that Nike would make them a reality.
There was a petition that went around online asking Nike to make them. It finally made its way to the desk of Tinker Hatfield, who had designed the shoes for the film. And he agreed it was time to make them happen. He worked together with Nike innovator Tiffany Beers to create the sneakers that in 2011 would be auctioned off for charity to benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation.
One thing was missing, though: the auto-lacing. In 2015, Nike made it a reality. It seemed unreal that this was happening. What built the buzz around the shoe, however, wasn’t just sneaker nerds, but also actual nerds. Ones into gadgets and tech who had been obsessed with the sneaker for years. This wasn’t an average sneaker release, much like the first one. Eighty-nine pairs were made and $10 tickets were available to purchase to enter the raffle. All the proceeds went to fight Parkinson’s Disease once again.
After a year of generating buzz, Nike dropped them in 2016. Now they go for $25,000. Hard to get bigger than that. —Matt Welty
2.Adidas Yeezy Boost 750
Year: 2015
Kanye West’s departure from Nike is still one of the most widely talked-about topics in sneakers. All six of the sneakers he released with the Swoosh are oft-regarded as classics, but the rapper’s need for more creative freedom led to a new home with Adidas, where he could essentially be the head of his own Three Stripes sub-brand.
West first signed with Adidas in 2013, two years before the release of the first Adidas Yeezy Boost 750 colorway, only building the anticipation for his eager fans. It was at the 2015 Grammy Awards that he debuted the bold new silhouette underneath a red velvet sweatsuit while performing his single “Only One,” in true Kanye fashion.
Finally, the $350 sneaker released during NBA All-Star weekend that same year on a brand new Adidas app that was designed specifically for this sneaker’s launch. Some might say that the 750 silhouette has not aged well, but there is no denying the hype behind it, as it was West’s first project with a brand that he has now made world famous. More than a handful of sneaker designs later and Kanye West is set to become a billionaire off Yeezys. Here's the (not a) brick that laid the foundation. —Ben Felderstein
1.Nike Air Yeezy 2 "Red October"
Year: 2014
The Nike Air Yeezy 2 “Red October” was the perfect sneaker that almost didn’t happen. The all-red version of Kanye West’s second signature sneaker with Nike was teased on his Yeezus album in 2013. Kim Kardashian debuted them on Instagram. Kanye wore them during his SNL performance. Nike said they’d release later in the year. Fifty people got pairs from a contest on KanyeWest.com. Kanye wore them during the Yeezus Tour. Geno Smith wore a fake pair courtside. Foot Locker announced a later release date. Then Kanye started ranting about Nike CEO Mark Parker. Said he talked shit. And then the whole thing collapsed. Kanye was gone from Nike. He signed to Adidas. The sneakers were probably never going to come out.
Then they did.
Sunday, February 9, 2014. A day that will live in infamy. Nike shock-dropped the shoes at 1 p.m. EST on Nike.com. They instantly sold out. And Nike announced wouldn’t be a re-release.
It was the sneaker everyone wanted and very few were able to get. It wasn’t like Yeezys now. They were made in limited numbers. They sell for around $7,000. And they will, likely, never drop again. All the anticipation for the shoe was experienced by a large group of people who will likely never own the sneakers. —Matt Welty
Complex is celebrating the best in music, pop culture, style, sneakers, and sports this decade. Check out the rest of our 2010s series here.