Image via Complex Original
Renderings by Quintin Williams
Late last year, Drake caused a lot of hype when it was made official that he was a member of Team Jordan. A month or so later, and we got a look at the exclusive "OVO" Air Jordan Xs and XIIs, but there's been no word on an original Jordan Brand sneaker for the Toronto rapper.
With Drake hosting the ESPYs tonight, we took the liberty of rendering a signature Jordan sneaker for him. We took not only colorways and materials that make sense to Drake's life and career into consideration, but also his preference towards silhouette and cut of sneaker. It's always fun to imagine what "what ifs," so what if Drake a had his own Jordan sneaker? Using inspiration from iconic silhouettes in the Air Jordan line, designer Quintin Williams took his best shot. Here's Imagining a Jordan Brand Signature Sneaker for Drake.
RELATED: Things Sneakerheads Do After Buying Shoes Online (Explained in Drake GIFs)
RELATED: Imagining Classic Nike Colorways on the Nike Air Monarch
Snow White
The "Snow White" colorway would be inspired by the male snowy owl's natural body of pure white feathers with hints of black. the upper would consist of premium, white calf skin leather, black stingray, and rich black nubuck. - Quintin Williams
Raptors Home
The home colorway would once again take advantage of the performance properties of Jordan's woven upper. Drizzy would be able to bring these to the basketball courts to drop some buckets. - Quintin Williams
Raptors
This colorway was inspired by the Raptors' throwback jerseys. Being that Drake is now officially their ambassador now, it was only right. This upper would showcase the versatility of the upper's pattern with more athletic applications such as the newly woven upper of the Jordan XX9, which would be complemented with durabucks and Elephant Print panels. - Quintin Williams
Canada
Simply representing and celebrating Drake's Canada roots, the theme of this colorway would be "textures." The idea of the centerpiece of Canada's National Flag being the Maple Leaf, I felt like the textures the leaves carry would be a cool storytelling piece. The upper would consist of a red TYVEK material (which is sustainable and recyclable just as leaves are), black Elephant Print on the toe and heel, and black, perforated tumbled leather for the tongue. - Quintin Williams
Grammy
The design of Drake's shoe starts by taking note of some of the lines from his now famed OVO Jordan Xs and XIIs in the outsole/midsole construction with the legendary clear rubber bottom wrapping up the back heel. I pictured this outsole being able to perform on the courts with its full-length herringbone and carbon fiber shank. The design would be a mid-cut versus a low-cut due to Canada's snowy conditions. The side flap draws inspiration from the Jordan XVIII to provide real estate to showcase details surrounding the collection.
Also, notice the specially "OVO"-designed golden lace hooks. This particular "Grammy" colorway would celebrate Drake's first Grammy Award for "Best Rap Album" in 2013. The upper would consist of rich nubuck, perforated Nappa leather, and classic Elephant Print on the heel counter—a colorway he could easily rock on the red carpets with his Tom Ford suits. - Quintin Williams
Tuscan Leather
The last colorway would be the "Tuscan Leather." It's only right to pay homage to Drake's first track off of his recent Nothing Was The Same album. This colorway would give Drizzy the dress/casual appeal he wants, but still with an athletic Jordan-esque profile with ventilation windows inspired from the Jordan V. The upper would consist of an aged, premium brown leather with a burnished toe box. Simple and classy. - Quintin Williams