Nearly a week after debuting a custom "Don’t Trip" pair of the Nike Cortez silhouette for Kobe Bryant's jersey retirement ceremony, Kendrick Lamar and Nike have announced their intent on officially releasing the first pair of sneakers to come of their collaboration on Sunday, January 28, 2018—Grammy Night.
Set to drop at 7:30 p.m. EST, the "Cortez Kenny" will be made available for a comfy price of $100. It was back in October that a rumored red-based pair surfaced, reflecting a theme surrounding Kendrick's DAMN. album, but Nike would later confirm that this mock up did not match the final product.
The new sneaker maintains the element of the DAMN. motif with the album title showing up on the tab of the sneaker's tongue, but according to the preview, the base will be white with Gym Red being an accent color this time around.
This new collaboration was only a matter of time considering Kendrick's long-standing affinity for the Cortez. The Compton rapper first got his feet wet in the world of sneaker partnerships when he joined on with Reebok Classics in 2014, producing a few collections reflecting a call for unity in his hometown through the incorporation of red and blue colors.
In August, however, Kung Fu Kenny would announce his newfound partnership with Nike, signaling what may be a much more organic space considering the history and significance that the Cortez silhouette holds in the Los Angeles area especially.
