His style isn’t all in his hat
Pharrell Williams pairs with Adidas on sneaker/jacket line.
Pharrell Williams and Adidas have partnered on a sneaker and jacket collection that’s rolling out slowly.
At a launch party celebrating the shoes in early December, Williams expressed his enthusiasm for the endeavor.
“I’m a super-fortunate guy,” he continued, “because where I come from these opportunities are not afforded to too many people and it’s not often that big huge brands like Adidas would allow a musician to do things outside of music and actually consider it art. But they do — and I appreciate that.”
The Adidas Originals = Pharrell Williams project mines Adidas’ heritage in two ways: the low-top sneaker riffs on the brand’s now classic Stan Smith tennis shoe silhouette, circa 1973, and the Superstar track jacket with the three white stripes running from shoulder to wrist are a nod to that garment’s now iconic pop culture status.
The first fashionable fruit of the collaboration — three sneakers and three track jackets — dropped earlier this fall, with additional takes on the pieces rolling out each month. The most recent pieces, which hit retail Nov. 28, have a cheerful-looking polka dot theme; leather sneakers and satin track jackets in background colors of yellow, blue and white are printed all over with red micro dots barely the size of a pencil eraser.
Coming early next year is a “Big Polka Dot” collection featuring larger white polka dots, each about the size of a 25-cent piece. The larger-size spot helps invoke the notion of tennis balls — which perfectly ties together the vibe of the “Happy” singer with the tennis roots of the Stan Smith shoe. Sneakers and suede track jackets in blue, red and black will bear the larger-sized spots (embroidered on the shoes, printed on the suede jackets).
The “Polka Dot Small” track jackets ($120) and shoes ($120) are available at Adidas Originals Stores and at adidas.com/ pharrell.