Sneaker News Long before Ye was releasing $20 Yeezy Pods and creating a billion dollar category for adidas, he was collaboration with Louis Vuitton back in the 2000s. The Kanye West Louis Vuitton sneaker collection truly marks an important time in sneaker history as shoes climbed up the charts in terms of price and public awareness, and it set the domino effect in place for Mr. West to arrive where he’s at today.
There is likely a bevy of unreleased samples from that LV era, and close pal Don C just shared an inside look at some unreleased samples of footwear and lacelock charms that never saw the light of the day.
What obviously stands out to us is the high-top sneaker, which at immediate glance draws a ton of comparisons to his first shoe with Nike, the original Nike Air Yeezy 1. The thick mid-foot strap, the rounded toe-guard, and peaking collar at the tongue — these are all ingredients of what made the Nike Air Yeezy so great…only it could’ve been a Louis Vuitton shoe first.
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- Kanye West x Louis Vuitton Samples @chicagodonc
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- Kanye West x Louis Vuitton Samples @chicagodonc
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- Kanye West x Louis Vuitton Samples @chicagodonc
All of Kanye’s Louis Vuitton sneakers, as well as the original triplet of Nike Yeezys, dropped in 2009. That would mark the final project between the the Chicago native and the French fashion house. He would later drop one more design with Nike — the Air Yeezy 2 — before notoriously splitting with the company, starting a lucrative partnership with adidas, and once again parting ways in unceremonious fashion.
