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When Ye left Nike for adidas in 2013, the multi-hyphenate superstar was elated to finally have full control over his sneaker designs. The partnership between the two has been fruitful for both sides, bringing hype and brand recognition for adidas and lifting Ye from 50 plus million dollars in debt to being a multi-billionaire in just 6 years. Recently, however, Ye has gone on multiple rants in regards to his partner, claiming the Adilette 22 Slides are “Fake Yeezys” and showcasing displeasure with his contract limiting him to only releasing footwear with the brand. Now in the middle of Yeezy Day 2022, Ye messaged a fan on Instagram and shared his thoughts on Yeezy Day and his opinions on how adidas is mistreating him.
In the message, Ye claims that “adidas made up the Yeezy day idea without my approval” as well as releasing older colorways without the approval of the man himself. All of this adds up as Ye has shifted his design language from contemporary and retro styles to futuristic and organic influences.
He even claims that adidas had hired a GM for Yeezy without his approval, stole his style and material approaches, and took talent from the production side and shifted them over to adidas Originals. On top of this, he alleges that The Three Stripes collaborated with Balenciaga to “bully Gap” and slow down the production of Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga footwear. Based on Ye’s contract with adidas, he is allowed to produce casual shoes such as his Yeezy Season line, so more footwear through his partnership with the Gap would be allowed.
Even though we’ve been getting continually restocks of Yeezy Slides, Ye wants to ramp up production on the silhouette, though the GM “lied to my face” and told him that adidas didn’t have the capacity to produce as many pairs as he wanted. Considering that, at least according to Ye, 68% of adidas online sales come from Yeezy, these transgressions could cost adidas a big chunk of revenue.
This continues to add fuel to the fire that Ye is planning on leaving adidas once his contract is up in 2026, but with how erratic Ye can be, he may find a way to end his contract. For updates on Ye’s future with adidas and more in the sneaker and streetwear world, keep it locked to our Twitter andMobile App.
Image via chaseseesghosts
Sneakerhead from South Florida who turned his passion into a career. Concerts, music, trying new restaurants, and catching the latest movies are some of the things I enjoy when not writing for Sole Retriever. Email: nick@soleretriever.com
