Skepta’s Debut Puma Sneaker Is a Flash of Genius
Skepta’s debut PUMA sneaker has been a long time coming. The British rapper first penned a deal with the German sportswear giant almost two years ago (jumping ship from rival sportswear label Nike) and has been teasing the release of collaborative shoes and clothes pretty much ever since.
Following the deal being announced, there's been a music video featuring Skepta dressed head-to-toe in his upcoming collab, a finsta dedicated to its development, and a runway show that secretly gave a first look at what’s to come.
But the time has now arrived, the Skepta x PUMA shoe and collection is officially launching (it releases worldwide on May 18) and it stays true to the rapper’s uniform.
Fans of the musician will have seen him in an all-black tracksuit countless times, so it's no surprise he's dropping one with PUMA.
The tracksuit in question is made from shiny technical fabric with grey trims along the front and you might recognize it from the finale of the Mains SS24 fashion show, where Skepta ran down the runway with his daughter wearing the matching get-up.
The all-black, seven-piece drop also includes a matching gilet, a tight-fitting skully beanie, gloves, and, of course, a pair of sneakers.
The Puma SKOPE Forever sneaker is, at first glance, a relatively minimal affair. Inspired by early-2000s footwear, it has a curvy paneled upper akin to the Prada America's Cup (a shoe Skepta regularly wears) combined with elements of PUMA running shoes from its underrated archives and a chunky sole with silver detailing.
However, throw this shoe into a dark room with a flashlight and it becomes a completely different beast. The paneled upper is opalescent meaning it reflects a mirage of colors when in the right light.
This reflective, flash-light-induced feature is often seen in UK rave wear, a possible result of Skepta recently re-launching his DJ career, forming the duo Mas Tiempo with Jammer, and playing raves around the world.
It’s also reminiscent of the metallic finish on one of his previous Nike sneakers, the Air Max 97 SK. However, the big difference between this sneaker and the Air Max 97 (as well as his other releases with Nike) is that the PUMA Skope Forever is an entirely new silhouette created by Skepta, as opposed to him making a custom colorway using a shoe already available from the brand.
The freedom to create entirely new products is seemingly one of the things that lured Skepta into signing a deal with PUMA: the caption to his Instagram post announcing his partnership with the brand opened with “Cheers to creative control.”
This collection is just a first look at what Big Smoke has managed to cook up with that creative control, you can expect things to only get wilder from here.
