Pharrell Williams is man of many talents. He’s one of the best music producers in the game, successfully taken over the house of Louis Vuitton, and is just an all-around Good Businessman. Another talent? Wearing very large sneakers without making them look entirely cartoonish.
Specifically, Pharrell wore a pair of puffed up adidas Superstar sneakers in the classic black and white colorway on a recent trip to Tokyo.
It's easy to be distracted by everything else happening in the Instagram photo where he debuted the giant adidas shoes — Yayoi Kusama infinity room backdrop, guest appearance from fellow Tiffany & Co. ambassador Rosé — but pay attention! Pharrell just secretly revealed his next giant Humanrace x adidas collab. Literally.
As if Superstars weren’t round enough, the oversized versions take it to another level, as if Pharrell is literally walking on air.
A Humanrace representative confirmed to Highsnobiety that Pharrell's new XXXXL adidas Superstar sneakers, barely visible beneath his signature bootcut jeans, are a "forthcoming" Humanrace footwear collab (on the same day that Pharrell debuted his first-ever Tiffany jewelry line, no less).
No word if Pharrell is also bringing Louis Vuitton into the mix.
Why LV? Well, let’s not forget the bulbous Louis Vuitton Maxi Trainers that Pharrell produced for his debut Spring/Summer 2024 menswear collection, the ones that he was once seen wearing everywhere.
They're large in every sense of the word, with exaggerated uppers that recall classic '90s skate shoes and chunky soles begging for a wide-legged pant to sit on top of 'em.
Very reminiscent of Pharrell's new Humanrace x adidas Superstar, if you ask me.
To be fair, even Pharrell's Humanrace x adidas Sambas seemed to have a wider look to them, though that might be mainly due to their monochrome tonal colors.
We should have known that Pharrell was a fan of big shoes. Remember his famously, ridiculously large Vivienne Westwood hat?
The aesthetic translates just as easily to his footwear taste.
With previous Humanrace x adidas collabs, for instance, Pharrell has taken the sleek design of both classic and cutting-edge adidas shoes and beefed them up with sculptural, platformed soles, though his previous Superstar was comparably slim.
Because, now, Pharrell's adidas Superstars are oversized in all the right ways, without going full-on MSCHF Big Red Boot on us. They’re not strictly art or ironic in similar ways, though they are fun.
And, compared to Kerwin Frost's Superstuffed Superstar and Tommy Cash's ultra-long Superstar, they may be the most wearable huge Superstar in adidas history. Maybe.
