The obvious was stated yesterday. Kanye West made his triumphant return to Power 105's The Breakfast Club, after 2013's contemptuous conversation with Charlamagne Tha God, and said, "Humbly, I'm the most influential person in footwear right now." And no one can disagree. He just released his first sneaker with adidas, and it's the only thing that people have cared about for the past few weeks. It dwarfed Nike and Jordan Brand's All-Star Weekend plans, and it happened off the strength of 9,000 pairs and a fashion show. People had already decided that they would like whatever his next sneaker would be, or at least wanted a pair, when they first heard rumblings that Kanye was splitting with Nike and heading to adidas.
This Kanye worship is the Same thing that's counterproductive to his dream of spreading his designs to everyone.
Almost a year ago to this day, me and a few of my colleagues at Complex put together a list on the 25 Most Influential People in Sneakers Right Now. The biggest discussion was whether Kanye had more sway with the general public than Nike CEO Mark Parker. At the time, their dispute over Kanye's design talent was a hot topic. Parker is largely responsible for pushing Nike in its current, forward-thinking direction. He's the Steve Jobs of the sneaker industry, someone Kanye frequently compares himself to.
But Kanye won out. No one really cares what Parker has on his feet, unless it's an unreleased Nike sneaker. And his HTM collaborations aren't solely his own, although they're vital to the brand's progression. On the flipside, anything Kanye touched instantly became popular, and I'm not mad at that. I just wish his influence didn't incite an insatiable desire to consume anything he's tied to. It literally sucks the fun out of—and the chance to think analytically or critically appreciate—anything sneaker-related he works on. I'd appreciate if Kanye didn't know how to pull everyone's strings so well.
I don't hate Kanye by any means. I've religiously listened to his albums and have a constant eye on his footwear choices. It's the fanfare around everything he does that gets to me. People blindly want to associate themselves with any sneaker or piece of footwear Kanye makes or wears for the simple fact that he's now made it cool, even if they were great models from the start.
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He was able to do that with the Air Jordan 1 and VI, Air Flight 89, "Independence Day" Air Max 90s, visvim FBT, adidas Pure Boost, and even the classic Timberland 6-inch boot. I think every one of those pairs is great. I even silently clapped to myself when he wore the adidas ZX710, or when he had a brief fascination with the United Arrows x New Balance 997.5, so much so that I had our art department put Kanye-inspired colorways on the New Balance 997 when the sneaker retroed for the first time ever last year. These moments didn't convince me to go out and purchase either sneaker, but I respected Kanye for stepping out in something I didn't expect and was already interested in.
I've never felt the urge to buy the Nike Yeezy series or the Yeezy 750 Boost for the same reasons I didn't hop on any of the aforementioned sneakers. I didn't want to be lumped in with everyone else who bought them to either a) follow every footstep that Kanye makes, or b) to stunt on others with a visual display of wealth because of their high resale values. And the former can be applied to the majority of sneakers that Kanye wears in public. I just don't want to be that guy who looks like he copied his style. Not because it's in poor taste or worn improperly, I just know there will be legions of people who pick them up simply for the fact that they want to be associated with Kanye—and that goes against my mantra of "wear what you like," which is my definitive view of sneaker culture.
This Kanye worship, the same thing that drives the hype towards his sneakers, is, sadly, the same thing that's counterproductive to his dream of spreading his designs to everyone. As he said on The Breakfast Club, "I don't want [the Yeezy Boosts] to be limited. I want as many people to get them as possible. I don't want to play this sneaker culture game, where they can resell them for high prices. I just want people to have what I make."
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But even if adidas makes pairs in the tens of thousands, they're still going to sell out with people hoping to resell them. That's because of Kanye's influence; that's something he can't quell. To be truthful, I do like the low-top adidas Yeezy Boost, and I wouldn't mind getting pair strictly off the aesthetic alone. But I know that's not going to happen—not just because I'm not willing to pay resell prices or fight people online to get a pair, but I know how these things work. Everyone else will want Kanye's newest creation, and I don't stand a chance. Which, at the end of the day, makes me not want them at all.
Like Kanye said, "No one man should have all that power," and the same goes for his reign over the sneaker kingdom. If everyone toned it down a dial, we'd be able to enjoy the Yeezys for what they are: good sneakers.
Matt Welty is a staff writer at Complex and you can follow him on Twitter here.
