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NIKE AIR FORCE 1 MUSIC PROJECT CELEBRATES 25 YEARS OF A CULTURAL ICON
NEW YORK, NY. (December 10, 2006) – Music history will be made tonight in New York City when artists Kanye West, NaS, Rakim and KRS-ONE take to the stage together at Nike’s celebration of the Air Force 1’s 25th year anniversary.
In celebration of this 25th anniversary those who made the Air Force 1 are honored by those who continue to define it. KRS-ONE, Rakim, Kanye West and Nas have come together with legendary producer Rick Rubin to create an original track that will be performed live for one time only.
For the first time ever a collection of 1,040 unique pairs of Air Force 1’s, assembled from the Nike archives and key collectors attending the celebration, will be on display. This one time only collection will feature some of the most sought after shoes from the Air Force 1’s past and the yet to be released Air Force 25.
MTV cameras will be recording at the Air Force 1 event as this never-seen-before foursome pays respect to the culture that created and continues to support the Air Force 1. The performance will air on MTV in January 2007 as part of a program exploring the connection between the Air Force 1 and the communities that have made it their own.
Twenty-five Years of Perseverance
Twenty-five years ago Nike released the Air Force 1 to satisfy the demands of the most uncompromising and forceful players in the game of basketball. In 1982, the Air Force 1 became the first basketball shoe to feature Nike Air technology. The comfort and protective qualities of the Air Force 1 changed the game forever and created a platform that launched Nike’s long-running legacy in performance basketball.
At the same time, music critics were quickly asserting hip-hop music was just another fad, a genre that couldn’t be sustained beyond its underground following. Twenty-five years later, both have graduated from being performance breakthroughs to icons transcending communities and people.
“Those that know the history of KRS-ONE’s recordings will recall a song called “Advance.” We signed to this label to put this single out. And what I remember was the advance, what came back from signing this contract was a pair of AIR FORCE 1s,” said KRS-ONE. “You know, believe it or not, we were satisfied. We got a fresh pair of Air Force 1s and it was dope. I rhymed, and I got a fresh pair of Air Force 1s. The mentality was that my rhymes bring value. And the point was that Air Force 1s had value.”
Embraced and revered by the basketball community the Air Force 1’s impact was felt way beyond its hard court roots. The shoe was created for basketballers. It was adopted by the basketball community and then progressed into the music scene of the East Coast, particularly along the I-95 corridor between Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York City.
In celebrating the Air Force 1, 2007 will see the introduction of a new innovative performance basketball shoe, the Air Force 25. The Air Force 25 will be worn by some of the new generation of great players. Built upon the same craftsmanship and informed design principles as the Air Force 1, the Air Force 25 delivers a revolutionary era within the Air Force story.
GOTHAM HALL - THE EVENT PLACE
Bobby Jones
Sandy Bodecker
Patrick Ewing
Nate Robinson
NIKE celebrates the Air Force 1’s 25th year anniversary with 1Thology
Launched in 1982, the Air Force 1 was originally intended to satisfy the demands of the most uncompromising and forceful players in the game of basketball. The Air Force 1 became the first basketball shoe to feature NIKE Air technology. The comfort and protective qualities of the AF1 changed the game forever and created a platform that launched NIKE’s long-running legacy in performance basketball.
However with its signature profile and smooth lines its impact was quickly felt well beyond the hardwood. With the Air Force 1’s ideal blend of authentic performance and unrivaled aesthetic, connoisseurs instantly recognized it for what it was – an icon in the making.
After 25 years, the AF1 has evolved from a breakthrough performance basketball shoe to a full-blown cultural phenomenon. To commemorate the 25th year anniversary of the Air Force 1, NIKE will introduce the 1Thology – the largest-ever unique AF1 collection on display – at NIKE’s 1 Night Only event in New York City on December 10, 2006. More than 1,000 different styles of AF1 will be on display.
However, none of this would be possible without a few essential contributors.
The Master
Before there was the shoe and well before there was the collector, there was Bruce Kilgore. Kilgore is the craftsman responsible for designing the most iconic basketball shoe in the history of the game. He did it all by following one simple obsession: making the athletic experience better through functional design. At NIKE that means designing with a purpose, and understanding the sport and the culture that surrounds it. From this working theory, Bruce Kilgore developed the AF1 and thus drew the blueprint a legacy was built from and wrote the constitution a nation of style has been based upon.
The Aficionados
Bruce Kilgore struck the first chord of the Air Force 1 anthem in ’82, and since then the chorus has been taken up by athletes and connoisseurs from across the globe. Recently, Hawaii Mike Salman, Emz, DJ Clark Kent, Udi Avshalom and Grandmaster Caz were invited to a special viewing of the 1Thology and asked to select their Top 100 AF1s. These five, who have devotedly supported the AF1 for year, were like kids in a candy shop as they beheld the vast spectrum of AF1s in front of them. After much impassioned debating they chiseled the thousand-plus collection down to their Top 100. What was their favorite pair? It was a beat up version of Bruce’s original shoe. Their reasoning was simple. It’s the shoe where everything began and without it there would be nothing else.
Their Top 100, as well as the entire 1Thology, will be on prominent display at 1 Night Only, when those who made the AF1 are honored by those who continue to define it. No other basketball product has ever received this much love. This is a shoe that, figuratively, is not just owned by NIKE, but is owned collectively by the culture that embraced it and made it a legend.
This unique collection of Air Force comes full circle to the future of NIKE basketball as the Air Force 1 confidently moves from an innovative performance product to a cultural icon back to its roots as an innovative performance product in the Air Force 25. Built upon the same craftsmanship and informed design principles as the Air Force 1, the Air Force 25 delivers a revolutionary new era within the Air Force story
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