Matt Varga Many streetwear imprints stake claims about being “more than a brand,” but Free The Youth earnestly makes good on that promise. The Ghanian collective has grown from spotlighting their home country’s style via social media into a multi-armed conglomerate spread across their own apparel designs, NGO work, and campaigning as a creative agency. Though their rolodex has grown deep over nearly a decade of operations, it’s hard to argue that they’re staring down their biggest opportunity yet, joining up with the Jumpman for the Free the Youth x Air Jordan 16.
While any mock-up imagery has to be taken with a grain of salt this far out, @zsneakerheadz purposefully notes to expect this color blocking; a combination of silver tumbled leather on the exterior, black trim, a neon green heel tag, and an orange interior mesh collar, one of many spots where the collective’s branding shines proud.
This leak comes on the heels of the Jordan 15 “23RE,” an intriguing shoe on its own merits but one that also heralded the return of the post-Bulls era of Jordan models. Of course, the Air Jordan 16 is very much a part of that cadre, and the Free The Youth design at hand is expected to be one of many features for the often under-appreciated chapter of MJ’s legacy.
On a final strategic note, this factors in as we’ve seen Beaverton focus on expanding their overall collaborative register. Sure, you can still expect names like A Ma Maniere, Union, or Trophy Room to dot the newswire, but Jumpman collaborations with the likes of Tela D’Amore/Who Decides War or Infinite Archives and Swoosh link-ups with Kids of Immigrants or Slawn represent an overall Nike, Inc. embrace of the “next generation” of streetwear imprints.
At the time of this writing, the Free The Youth x Air Jordan 16 is due out in Summer 2026, a window that’d place its launch somewhere between April and June. Catch initial mock-up images included below and keep our Jordan Release Dates page within reach for further updates in the coming months.
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- Free The Youth x Air Jordan 16 (speculative mock-up) Sneaker Files / @zsneakerheadz
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- Free The Youth x Air Jordan 16 (speculative mock-up) Sneaker Files / @zsneakerheadz
