Bun B's 50 Favorite Sneakers

Bun B'sTrill O.G.

"The Pro Wing was a sneaker created by Payless. It was a $15 or $20 tennis shoe, and at one point, it was the only kind of shoe my mother could afford, and I dreaded wearing it because it was basically the fake version of what everyone was wearing at the time. But God bless my mom for putting something on my feet back then. I understand it a lot more now than I did then, because I have children who want $100 Jordans, and sometimes I just wish I could buy them a pair of Pro Wings and leave it at that. You want to make sure the kids are focused on the right things. But if you were wearing them back when I went to school, you were a sucker. And I had to bite the bullet on that for a couple of years. But I never gave my mom shit about it. I couldn't stand them, and I hated putting them on, but I didn't want my mom to feel fucked up because she was doing the best she could. And eventually, things turned around, she remarried, and I got back on my feet—my shoe game stepped back up. I definitely had to put these on the list because Pro Wings got just as much time on my feet as any other shoe that I talked about on this list, if not more. And we're not gonna hate on it at all. We're gonna include it all and I mean, it's a time in my memory. I'll never forget the time in my life when I had to wear Pro Wings, and it makes me appreciate Jordans a little bit more."

"Yeah, back in the day, my brother would wear a lot of Sergio and Vanderbilt, Guess, and all that kind of shit—back when it was only the sleeveless vest shirts and stuff like that. My brother was a very cool cat. He was really like the black version of, uh who's the guy that was in Karate Kid that who was the preppy asshole? He's in Hot Tub TIme Machine, too. That guy. It's William-something. But anyway, that's how my brother used to dress and look. And he wasn't an asshole, but he had the asshole uniform. And Le Coq Sportifs were the shoes he used to wear, and I used to love it because it was a French shoe. It had a different name, and was such a different shoe. And nobody at school were wearing that type of shit. And one day, he let me wear them. They were probably two sizes too big, so I put on some socks and wore them every day. And everyone would ask me, 'What kind of shoes are those?' Then he never let me wear them again, because I got them dirty. So everyone was like, 'You need to rock those shoes! Wear those shoes again!' And then people realized they weren't mine. From that point on, I didn't wear anyone else's shoes."

"Roos as a brand. Not even a specific colorway. I was a LatchKey kid growing up, and my mom was always nervous about the key-around-the-neck thing. But at the same time, I lost shit all the time, and keys were no exception. So it was easier for her to just give me these shoes, which were pretty cheap. Just put the key in the pocket, and you were good. 'Roos' was short for Kangaroos, because the shoe came with a pouch. And it's not like you could put a pack of cigarettes in them, but it was just enough room for a kid to put a house key, a dollar bill or a couple of quarters in there to buy some candy."

"I love the Beepers. The white ones. Again, this is one where you'll see an artist taking entrepreneurship to an entirely new level. And for him to be doing this in-house was cool. Ice Cream originally starteded with Reebok and then Pharrell and the crew went off to do their own thing. It was really just crazy to watch the phenomenon build around that. And of course, this was around the same time as G-Units and SDots, and it really brought us into a whole new movement of what we can sell. We're seeing all these other different companies trying to market and sell products, but if we're gonna use our imaging and our fame to sell a product, it might as well be ours."

"This was really one of the first Timberlands I loved. I'm not really a big boot guy, but this shoe was clean. I thought they did a great job, Frank the Butcher and the guys over there put together a crazy shoe. The whole Black Ops package was crazy, but the boot in particular was great. It was winter time, I had a lot of overseas traveling to do, and I found that a Jordan is not necessarily the best winter shoe to wear. I needed something thicker and heavier, and just in time, Concepts came out with the boot. It was crazy because it hit right before the whole all-black-everything craze hit. The timing on this boot was bananas. And once again, another great job from Concepts, who always do incredible collaborations. Usually Frank will call me to say, 'Yo, we've got this shoe coming, and it's hot.' So I'll see what it looks like, and for this one I was like, 'Yo, as soon as you get that shoe, send it over.' He was like, 'Really? Bun? Timbs? 6" Timbs?' I'm like, 'That's a badass boot, homeboy. I will put some black 501s on top of that and break they ass off with this. That's a lifetime shoe."

"For the ladies. I had to put this in here because this is one that, obviously, you wouldn't see me wearing, but it's one that's always good to see in the crowd because you knew the women were around. Summertime in any major city, any country, you're gonna see these shoes. Usually it's the pink or the white, and like I said, this model is never going to die. Ever. And women are still gonna wear it, chew gum, and put their hand on their hip and give you attitude. And you're gonna love it. Haha."

"I mean, c'mon. KAWS is one of the greatest designers and artists we have out right now. And it's hard for me to support, because with Original Fake, I can't fit into that shit. Unless you're skinny or French, most people can't fit it. But I mean, he always makes great stuff and I always love to support him. Every now and then, he'll put out a $100 New Era, so I'll get that. But this was a shoe that I had to have, because I could've gotten the Force, but the guy who had a pair wanted so much for it that I couldn't. These were a lot easier to get, they didn't cost as much, they're just as clean, and they have the xx's, so I'm good."

"I know it seems strange that this shoe is low down on the list, but by no means is it any worse than others. This was a shoe that was in high demand, and I thought it was incredible that these guys did a Dunk Hi. I think it spoke to an entirely different demographic. And seeing this shoe gave me a little insight as to how Nike thinks. They wanted to do a shoe with somebody, and the fact that they picked the right shoe and the right group says a lot. I think a De La Soul Airforce 1...eh. But this Dunk is crazy. There's two: a high and a low. The low is sick in itself, but I think this high was huge. If I wanted, I could get them signed, and I just haven't really pushed that issue because—I know he wouldn't mind, but I don't like to stand around my homeboys like that. But if you guys are reading this, you guys really did it big with this shoe. I have so much respect for De La Soul as a group. Especially me being a southern lyricist, and being where I'm from, people wouldn't assume I'm a De La junkie. I definitely was, and shout out to De on that. I'm still waiting to see a Q-Tip shoe. I don't know why they haven't done one. The Tribe Jordan was cool, but I'd love to see a Q-Tip Blazer or something like that. He'd give a real interesting take on that shoe."

"Vans Vault did a lot of collaborations with different stores around the country: Bodega, DQM, Fred Segal. This one, I was able to get. I have a great relationship with Omar over at Commonwealth, and it's very seldom that I pull that card. Omar will tell you, any time he wants to send something, I've already bought it—thank god for online stores. But I knew that there weren't many pairs of this one. I think 8 to 12 pairs of each one with the matching jersey. And it was something I really wanted to have, and there were a lot of colorways that were cool, but that grey colorway was clean. That one and the Baltimore Orioles colorway were the cleanest ones, shoes that I felt could live outside of baseball season. I put red strings in mine to make it hit a little bit more. But I really thought this was an interesting collaboration. Big shouts to MLB and to Vans on this one. The good thing about Vans is that they've been finding a lot of ways to, not reinvent the brand, because they're still selling all the classic models and colorways, but they're finding ways to find people who aren't necessarily beach guys and skater guys to get involved with Vans."

"This is the second half of the DJ pack with AM, and I hate that this kind of went down so far on the list, but by no means is it any less significant than any other shoe on here. I definitely give props to Nike for giving Premier this kind of look. He's a sneakerhead on the low, and he helped pick the materials on this. Orange is a good color, and it's a big color for him, but this is another shoe like the Black Friday where you'd almost never get this quality of materials for the price point. Premier was adamant about incorporating as much as he could into the shoe without people having to blow their pockets out to get. He wanted a hot shoe, and he wanted it to be fly, but without having people pay $200 for it. And this was a great compromise. I'm so proud of him for that and, again, shouts to Nike for putting out an incredible package on this one. I've got two pairs of these, because I have the pair that was given to me, but then I went and bought another pair of Premiers. It's a shoe I want to be able to have, because it definitely says a lot and marks a time in history for me."

"Man, trying to get that shoe was probably one of the hardest things. It was not a joke. There were only 23 in the city, and it was a process, and they had the line, they had an auction. It was intense, and there was a lot of money people threw around on this. I was there, I was prepared to throw the money down. And right before I put a couple of stacks on the line for it, I got a text, like, 'You're good.' But I literally spent about $1,500 on that shoe. And the guy that got it for me spent more than that to get it. But just to see that 23 Finale, I was like, 'You know what? I've been down since the first shoe. So it'd be stupid of me, a person who actually went to the store and bought the first numbered Air Jordan, to not go to the store and buy the last one.' I got the bookends, as they say."

"The S.Carter was a big moment, not just in the sneaker world, but in the hip-hop world. Shout out to the Gucci model that it's based on, which actually just got re-released a couple months ago. It was a great look and opened up a lot of opportunities for artists to maximize on their brand besides just rapping. When it dropped everybody wanted that shoe. The G-Unit was a shoe I wanted to make this list too, and before I was on any sneaker 'list' 50 put me down and made sure I got the G-Unit's. But for this, I remember getting my pair handed to me from Jay-Z, and it was a special moment."

"Man, that was a great shoe. Definitely opened a lot of doors for a lot of people. I don't know how long Mark Ronson had been talking to Gucci about doing that thing, but when things like this happen, they generate a lot of cash. Obviously, other people are gonna follow suit, but I think they did a really good job on the colorway and the materials on these shoes. And the Jasper model was probably the most coveted out of all of them. Don't get me wrong, the red low—everyone wanted the red low—but then once you started getting them and putting them on, and seeing how they sat, a lot of people went crazy for the Jaspers. And at this point, it's probably one of the most copied styles. There's a lot of brands coming up right now using that model as a base to try and break into the market. Obviously the price point between that and a regular sneaker is massive. I think these shoes were starting at $800 or something, so it wasn't a shoe that everybody could get. But once again, I think Kanye did a great job of getting the shoe out there and starting a buzz, and like I said, the Jasper model was the one for me. Shout out to Iben on that shoe."

"I love it. The Valenzuela is definitely one of the most comfortable shoes available right now. It's the Hundreds breaking off into the shoe game, and I've always been a big supporter of Bobby and Ben. They'd send me tees, and they'd do a collaboration and one time he was like, 'Yo, we just started some shoes. We wanna send you a couple pairs.' My son loves them. But yeah, it's a great shoe, it's a comfortable shoe, and of course, its based on a great model, but still stands out on its own. And like I said, I really wish these guys the best, because they've been doing a great job so far, and I know they're gonna keep doing a bigger push into the shoe game. Shoutout to all the lifestyle guys out there trying to keep it going."

"This shoe was an exclusive for the opening of the House of Hoops in Houston, which was a very big moment in Houston for the sneakerheads. There were so many instances where we'd have to call out to other stores in other cities to get a lot ofo stuff. But when this store opened, it was the first time where I had people from New York calling Houston, saying 'Hey, can you help me get this shoe?' You have no idea how many times I've had to call someone in New York, LA or Chicago. Like, 'Yo, can you run to House of Hoops? Can you run to Mercer? Can you run uptown and get me something?' But this one was where people were calling me, like 'Yo, B.' Cause there was also a Fusion 4 for the grand opening, and a couple other releases. It was a clean shoe: white, candy—both of them were patent leather, and both had the blue and red specks in them. I mean, they really killed the game with this shoe."

"Gumball 3000 is probably one of the greatest experiences of my life. I was able to hang around with such cool people in such great circumstances. I mean, we had a ball. James Bond [of UNDFTD] in particular. We were able to build a great relationship, and just be out hanging and seeing the world. This was a shoe that Puma and Undefeated created specifically for the Gumball. It's a great shoe, a clean shoe, and a good shoe for me to have, personally because I have such great memories participating in Gumball 3000. This is like a sleeper shoe if you can get your hands on it. And the Compstars are one of the most comfortably-designed shoes, period. In a city like New York where you're doing a lot of walking but still wanna look fresh, that's a great shoe to have."

"Yes. That's a great shoe from a great designer. Clark Kent. if we talk about sneakers, Clark Kent is always gonna come up in the conversation. This was an extremely limited shoe. You had to be a friend of a friend, and not only that, you had to be fresh. And me just being inducted into the ATF crew—getting my shirt and my shoe—it felt good. I was very proud. My fresh has been...affirmed. It's a very exclusive group. Shout out to all the ATF homies. Be on the look out for a lot of other collaborations between ATF members and different brands. It's not just gonna be a Nike or a Jordan thing. We're gonna really span the globe with this ATF movement."

"Mayor killed this. I mean, there's a lot of shoes that we can get into with Nike's Bespokes program. Within that world, there's a lot of Mayor Bespokes we can get into. He killed it, and I don't know what's fresher, the shoe or the name. Just the whole flip on the suede. Me, personally, I was a Quik kid. I was a Nestle Quik kid all day, and I like strawberry over chocolate, so for me, it's a special place in my heart. I'm from that generation. Pop the top, put the spoon in there, and make that shit. So that has a special place in my heart. Besides it just being a clean-ass shoe, I get where it comes from. If there's anybody's shoe that I would want to copy, that would be it. I love originality, and I love shoes that stand on their own, but that shoe there? I'm jockin the Mayor on that shoe."

"To me, the Jordan XI is one of the cleanest-designed shoes, and I don't think there's a colorway that's wrong. You'd probably have to do plaid and tie-dye to fuck up an 11. And being in Houston, the patent leather shoe is king, because of the whole candy car culture. We call patent leather shoes 'candy shoes.' When you've got a shoe with candy on it, when you've got a car with candy on it, you're doing it. I remember when the first 11s came out, it was really a problem on the street. I mean, the 11s were the first shoe that I remember people close to me actually being threatened over. This was the shoe that I saw robbed from a guy. I don't understand that concept really, but for that shoe? I wouldn't do it, but I understand. The re-release of it was one of the first instances where I saw parents and kids trying to get the same shoe. I saw a lot of dads. And that's another thing you really see with Jordan. You see a lot of parents and the kids both being into the shoes."

"I think that's an incredibly designed shoe. The fact that the standards department at Nike let this shoe even happen, and then that they dropped it on 4/20? Man. Somebody, I'm sure, is kicking themselves in the ass over this shoe. Nike always does a good job of telling stories with shoes. It always does a good job of getting the point across without having to say, or do very much. And just looking at this shoe, and seeing the name of it, it said it all. One store had a hydropronic set up with the shoe on sticks, under lights. It's one of those moments where everybody was in on an inside joke in the sneaker community. This shoe is still highly coveted. I know a lot of people that are pissed off that they missed this shoe."

"Spud Webb is the only person smaller than me that I ever wanted to be. Most people, when they're growing up, they want to be taller and bigger. Spud Webb actually made me want to be smaller and faster. I mean, coming up and watching people dunk, even when you're old, watching people dunk is an incredible physical feat. But you expect a person 6'5" or 6'6" to be good at it. But when a 5-footer comes up, and can command the air like that, I mean, watching Spud Webb slam dunk in slow motion is really unlike anything else you could see. A lot of people wore Ponys back then. Pony was that price-point shoe that everyone could get, and then they started making an effort to go out and compete with the Converses and the Nikes of that time. Y'know, they didn't get a lot of things right, but the City Wing shoe was always a good shoe, and the Spud Webb shoe was great."

"Here's the thing: everyone who's ever wanted this shoe still wants this shoe. There's some shoes that you want, but after some time has passed, you didn't worry about it anymore. But if you ever wanted the fucking Jordan 4 Undefeated and never got them, you still want it. When I saw James Bond and I did Gumball, and one of the first things that I said to him was, 'If you've got any of those 4s...' He's like, 'Anything else you need, let me know.' [Laughs] But I keep holding out, I keep telling him, 'If I make the Christmas List, that's what I want.' [Laughs] Shout out to an amazing company, Undefeated, who's done some amazing things in the sneaker and lifestyle world. I think this would probably rate as one of the craziest things they've ever done. This and the Gold Joints, I think, are my two favorite shoes. But this shoe here, my God, that army green 4, you can't really beat that. And the orange accents on it really killed it. The crazy thing is, in the closet, I have an old school army green jacket with the orange lining in it that would kill that shoe. Everything else is deep in boxes, but that jacket stays close to the top just in case."

"Oh yeah, this whole part of the list is getting to the homies, you know what I'm saying. The Black Friday shoe was the first shoe whose design I saw before it was actually made. I was actually able to comment on the shoe. Nothing was changed based on what I said, but just the fact that someone let me into the process, and let me see a little bit more behind the scenes of what's going on, and how they were getting prepared to market it, and just seeing how much impact Clark Kent really has on the market. A lot of stuff that he does, people don't even really know that he has his hands on it. Now that I know his style, I can kinda look at different stuff and say, 'Clark, did you do this? Did you touch this?' But when this shoe was teased, people were really going ape shit. The elements on this shoe, the materials, the design, the fact that it was so affordable, considering the materials, and then bringing that on a Black Friday when everyone's going shopping anyway... This was a perfect shoe to put on the shelf to clear them out. I gave this shoe to my nephew, and he cut grass in them. So he doesn't get anything else from me but advice."

"Well, again, I'm a little biased. But it's not just that this is such a good shoe. It's a great shoe, it's an incredible design. It's a good flip on the jail design. But also, my good friend Matt made this shoe. And I was very proud of him. This was the first shoe given to a blog, so it's a history-maker. But there is nothing like the first, and this is the first. Like I said, Matt made a crazy shoe. The design, colorway—it goes right back to the logo for NiceKicks.com, and I really like the split tongue, really kinda killed it. He's working on another shoe right now, and I'm sworn to secrecy on it, but if you liked the Gel Lyte III, the next version you're gonna love. It's really crazy."

"How could you not look at that shoe and say, "That's the shit?" You see a lot of VIs, and you see a lot of colorways. It's almost impossible to fuck the VIs up. It's such a clean shoe, and a clean model. This pair in particular, my god. It's a sick shoe, at a sick time, when Jordan was really at his sickest. He was really getting busy, still doing dunk contests and annihilating people. If you pull this shoe out today, you're king. There's very few rooms you're going to be in where people are going to have on shoes that are gonna stand out as much as a VI does. It really just parts the crowd, every time I've seen someone wearing them. Everybody looks cool in a pair of Carmine VIs."

"Again, another shoe that exemplifies being a sneakerhead. If you're really about shoes, and you have a conversation with someone about shoes and this one doesn't come up, none of you know what you're talking about. It's obviously one of the cleanest shoes ever, definitely set Diamond off completely. Nick did a great shoe, no doubt about it. The company is still living strong off the one design of this shoe without having to imitate the design or the colorway. Literally, it's one of the most classic shoes of all time."

"Phi Slamma Jamma was a University of Houston Cougars nickname for the year that Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler and those guys were all starting on the team. Their air game was incredible, so they were calling those guys 'Phi Slamma Jamma' and they recently released a shoe through House of Hoops. It was probably about a year and a half ago, and I had it, but didn't go pick it up, and somebody sold them, and now there are none left. It was there on hold for me, and it was ready to go, but I just didn't pick it up! I love the design, and I love that they pulled out the whole 'Phi Slamma Jamma' logos for the shoe. I think they did the team and the University justice on that one. Just a nice nice shoe."

"That was probably one of the first really, really insidery shoes that I was able to get based on who I was, and the fact that people respected me as a sneaker head. A lot of other times, to be honest, money kind of made it happen. But this was one where people were like, 'Yo, my man wants to make sure you get this shoe. It's just a hot shoe in Houston.' Then after that is when you get on 'the list' and start getting a lot of other stuff. And I didn't think there was any way I was going to get my hands on this shoe. I didn't wear it until the 25-year Air Force 1 Anniversary party that they had in New York, because I wanted to make sure I had the most gangster Texas shoe that was made."

"I was approached by Nick Loftis about doing the shoe. I've been supporting Greedy Genius since it first came out. Nick came with the black, and it was gunmetal and it had some white in it. So I thought, 'This would be a lot cleaner if we just went with the black and the gunmetal gray.' We wanted to do something different, and gunmetal was a perfect way to give the shoe a little accent without taking away from the model. For me, when you're doing shoes with a company, it's important that the model stand out. We could put any color we want on it, as long as people like the shoe, and it was important for me that people like the shoe. We made thousands of these shoes, and again, it's one you can't find anymore. You hear that, Jordan? I can sell thousands of shoes!"

"I picked this one because it's one of the shoes that I always wanted and didn't get. My mom wouldn't get it for me. I don't know if I was being ignorant, or what was going on, it might have been a financial situation. It's one of those shoes that I can have now, but don't want. I guess it's the one that got away. For me, it's all about the search, about going out and getting it. They were there, they were accessible, but she just wouldn't give me the money, and I was too young at the time to do different things to get money myself. As I got older, I made sure that if there was something I wanted, I was able to get it."

"Most people tend to go with the black colorway, but I like the cement. I like the white. It's a much cleaner shoe, but that's just my personal opinion. Everyone's got on a pair of blacks, thanks to Kanye. I like the white, because it's a little bit different, it's a little cleaner and if I have to choose a shoe based on a black or white, even though black is my favorite color, I'll still go with a white shoe. If you can come out with a clean white shoe, especially one that's older or deadstock, then you're doing right. It represents you. It speaks thousands of words with just a picture."

"The Alife Everybody Hi is an all-purpose shoe. It's a really comfortable shoe, and I prefer it without laces actually. It's also a very clean shoe. I just wore a pair of white-on-whites when I performed at the VH1 Hip Hop Honors. You can't really see my shoes, because I had on jeans, but those were Alife. If I'm ever stuck as to what to wear, or don't really have the shoe that I want to wear on a particuliar day, then I'll just fall back on a pair of Everybody His."

"The black colorway is great, but I'd choose the gray because, outside of the people in his immediate camp, I was one of the first people that was able to rock them. It was a great moment for me—actually, a funny story about that. I got them and wore them for SXSW. I got them and wore them that Friday, and Kanye had a show that Saturday, so he didn't get in until the next day. So I'd already broken them out first. And when he came, I was actually at SXSW, in the back. And he walked up to me like, 'What's going on?' Then he looked down at my shoes, looked up, looked down, looked up and was like, 'Yeah, nice shoes!' So I said, 'They'd be nicer if you signed them for me.' So he said, 'If I sign them, you're not gonna wear them anymore. I want you to wear them.' I was like, 'Well, you can sign the box or something.' [Laughs] But it was kinda funny. It was definitely a moment. As a sneakerhead, I don't think I'll ever forget that moment walking up on Yeezy with the Yeezys."

"Man, I thought that was one of the cleanest shoes. The green, red, and white Gucci colorway always stands out, all day every day. When they teased it, everybody I know was looking for it. It actually brought a lot of people out who hadn't done Vans in a while back to them. I called Dennis from Crooks & Castles personally when I saw these. Most of the time, I try to go out and cop, I try not to cheat. But on this one, I had to call in a favor, like 'Yo, I need that shoe—when's it coming?' 'Well we're gonna release it in blah blah blah.' I was like, 'Okay, so can I get it early?' and he was like, 'Bun, you're killing me.'

"R.I.P. to DJ AM, an incredible DJ and a very well-known sneaker collector. I think that this shoe was a great design. I didn't know that there was a special edition Serato pack until after I'd requested the packs. When I realized there were two versions, I started trying to call back and they were gone. So I called Primo and he was like, 'Yo, I just gave my last pair away, bro!' I seriously considered buying the limited edition one from Flight Club. But I try not to be greedy, and try to let these cats breathe. So if you've got a pair of 10.5 DJ AMs, you're welcome. [Laughs]"

"I was approached by Dame Dash, after he purchased the company, and was offered the opportunity to make shoes. We did several pairs, we did the UGK shoe, the Bun B shoe, and then the Free Pimp C shoe. I think the colorway that everybody liked was the white, the O.G. Astro. This was my first time being even remotely involved in the design concept of anything. I was very proud of this collaboration, and I think it was a great shoe. It wasn't necessarily done for me, it was done to be appreciated by other people. The guys that I gave my pairs to still wear them. They keep them clean and everything. This was my first venture, and it won't be my last."

"Mr. Cartoon is one of the greatest tattoo artists ever, and one of the greatest artists ever. This is another shoe that really caused a little bit of a storm, because it's one of the first shoes that I saw which was heavily bootlegged. There were a lot of people who came around with the fake Cartoon's, and the fake Playstation's, that were trying to use that as their calling card. I think a lot of cats got fucked over in the barbershops of America with these shoes. The original, which is extremely hard to find and extremely valuable, is a great shoe."

"Easily the cleanest shoe released in the last year. I mean, the color's incredible, I think the design, the strings on the logo and everything. This was just a combination you couldn't beat. I even bought the t-shirt and the jacket early, because I knew I was gonna get this shoe. This shoe is a classic and that burgundy is always gonna stand out."

"A little bit high for Texas. Down south, it tends to be kind of hot, and we don't really have boot weather. But the one boot you will see on people's feet besides cowhides and shitkickers is the Polo boot. The Polo leather boot with old-school calfskin jackets used to be the shit back in the day, and I've seen it coming back now that the leather boots are making a comeback."

"Eggplant is the best color for a tennis shoe. If I had to do a shoe, eggplant would be the first choice. Unfortunately, it isn't available at Bespoke yet. I wanted to do a Foamposite, but I wanted to do an eggplant colorway with the dirty copper swoosh, gum bottom. Not like the Foamposite they have now, using more classic colors. I'm putting it out there—that the Bun B colorway is eggplant and dirty copper, so go and get yourself another one."

"One of the most classic shoes ever created and easily one of the most recognizable shoes on the planet. It's really the only safe place that a grown man can have any color of neon on. It's the only excuse and pass you get for wearing neon, period. For all you fruit cakes out there who want to wear some neon and need a good excuse, my suggestion is to go for the 24/7 because it gives you a lot more of a neon coat. [Laughs]"

"The classic UGK sneaker. That was the shoe Pimp and I wore everyday for the first 8 or 10 years of our career, and especially for performances. In Texas, we call them the 'Gangster Nikes,' which you have to be careful about, because a gangster Nike in Texas is a Cortez. In Louisana, a 'G-Nike,' another term for a gangster Nike—is an Air Force 1. The Texas gangster Nike is a staple of UGK. It's the shoe of choice for street hustlers because it's sturdy enough to handle most gates and fences, but light enough for you to make that fast getaway if needed."

"The shoe was dedicated to an incredible person, Jam Master Jay. He, along with Run DMC, helped make the Adidas Superstar Shell Toe what it is today. I think the choice of black was perfect as well, because if anybody knew Jay, black was his favorite color and black was what you usually saw him in. adidas really gave the shoe over to him, they didn't try to worry about keeping adidas qualities. The shoe really is a true dedication to him. I've got the jacket as well. They went all the way in on this project, and I was happy to see that."

"I think it's a lot of people's first shoe, or at least the first one that they can remember buying. The Converse Chuck Taylor is the easiest shoe to get your hands on in America. It's the only shoe I know that isn't just sold in shoe stores. You can go into a store that does not sell any other kind of shoes and they'll have Chuck Taylors. It's a shoe that crosses all lines. It's a casual shoe, it's a sports shoe, it's a lifestyle shoe, it's all things in one. It serves every purpose."

"Well, I am from the hood and this is the shoe—always has been, and always will be. I think you'd be hard pressed to find another shoe as popular among people. It's the safest bet in the shoe world. If at all you don't succeed, put on a pair of white-on-whites. You can get by, because it goes with virtually every outfit ever conceived by man. Some shoes actually look a bit better when they're worn in, like an SB, but not the white-on-whites. That first wear is always the best."

"I think for sneakerheads, this is the original O.G. shoe. I dare you to find any other models besides the Jordan I or the Air Force 1 that still stands the test of time, and still has people going crazy 25 years later. Out of all the O.G. shoes that may come up, in this conversation or other sneaker conversations, this is what we call the triple O.G. O.G. color, O.G. shoe, O.G. representer."

"Anybody that knows me knows that I'm a jeff staple stan, and that I'm into all things Reed Space. For everybody who's a collector, this is the one that introduced the sneaker culture to the outside world. You know, everybody was standing around like, 'What are these kids standing around for? What's going on?' And then they were like, 'Oh, it is for a sneaker.' Ever since then, I think the world has learned about our subculture and they're interested in it."

"I think I made a great shoe, this caused a lot of discussion. Big shouts to Izzy over at Mercer for helping put it together, because it was really just a thought, and he helped make it a reality. It took us a while to go through the different things. The mesh is really the backside of a leather and the whole shoe is actually based off the Space Jam XI design. When I wanted a pair of Space Jams and couldn't get them, I did the next best thing and made myself a pair."

"To me, this is a no-brainer. This is my favorite shoe, because of all of these shoes, it was the one I didn't know about. It was something Reggie Sanders and Jordan Brand sent to me. It was their way of honoring Pimp. There's also a Jordan VIII in honor of Pimp. I gave the Jordan VIII to Pimp's oldest son, because he and I wear the same size shoe. This is probably the only shoe that I own that I would never wear."