All of those shoeless outfits worn by Kanye "Ye" West over the past few months have finally paid off with an appropriately sock-like YEEZY sneaker. Seemingly dubbed the YEEZY AQUA 50, Ye's new slip-on shoe has big Foam and Knit Runner vibes.
However, as notable as the YEEZY AQUA 50's design similarities are, the big takeaway here is that this is apparently the first YEEZY shoe of the post-adidas era. If it's even real, of course.
Ye's AQUA 50 shoe was first revealed through a series of convoluted leaks that involved both a Ye-obsessed subreddit and the enigmatic new @0.0archive account, which surfaced on Instagram with the coordinates of Ye's LA YZY store and previously never-before-seen photos of Ye, YEEZY products, and even daughter North West wearing an unreleased jacket from YEEZY SEASON 9 (you know, the show with those "White Lives Matter" T-shirts).
Obviously, neither Ye nor YEEZY have officially confirmed that these leaks are legitimate but they're pretty impressive nonetheless.
Anyways, the YEEZY AQUA 50 debuted in a photo showcasing three styles of squishy, laceless shoes alongside a lengthy all-caps production note. Note that these are prototypes and not necessarily indicative of the finished product, though they're seemingly a riff on a Speedo water shoe.
"Ye in love with shape and color," the note says. Ye "likes Speedo construction [reference] — can this be low cost?" Just like with the intended adidas YEEZY availability, YEEZY sock shoes will soon be available for all!
If anyone actually wants to wear them, that is.
Recently, Ye has been seen wearing nothing but sock shoes, MMA-style kneepads, or, well, just socks in place of sneakers or his tall Balenciaga boots.
This suggests that the next step for Ye's YEEZY brand will be to ditch the adidas YEEZY sneaker formula and instead indulge in weird footwear with the potential to alienate casual YEEZY fans.
Hard to imagine that most of the YEEZY-buying population will share Ye's fascination with Sand Socks, for instance
Either way, despite Ye currently in Tokyo with wife Bianca Censori, Ye's YEEZY brand has been quietly progressing towards its next evolution.
Ye held an impromptu YEEZY SEASON 10 fashion "show" at the beginning of summer 2023, the prelude for his new YEEZY store (or headquarters) in Los Angeles.
While in Japan, Ye has been spotted hanging out with disgraced Los Angeles Apparel founder Dov Charney, who has reportedly been appointed the new YEEZY CEO.
All that being said, it's obviously unconfirmed that the YEEZY AQUA 50 will ever see the light of day or where the shoes currently are in terms of production.
For example, these first-look photos might've been shot months ago and there's no guarantee that the the AQUA 50 shoes actually will be released when complete.
Still, if that LA YEEZY store ever does open, pretty likely that'll it be stocked with something akin to these laceless rubber shoes. At least they're marginally more wearable than Ye's beloved socks.
