NIGO's Levi’s x Nike Air Forces Are Literally a Faded Denim Enigma
Nike and Levi’s are on a tear. And for their next trick, they’re bringing Japanese streetwear pioneer NIGO into their land of beautifully faded jeakers (otherwise known as denim sneakers).
NIGO has somewhat claimed the Nike Air Force 3 shoe as his own, being the sole collaborator releasing new takes on this sneaker deep-cut. His dedication to making stylish Air Force 3’s has been unrelenting over the past couple of years, and now he’s got the world’s biggest denim brand in to help.
NIGO is wrapping the Nike Air Force 3 in Levi’s denim. Well, two distinctly different kinds of Levi’s denim, to be precise.
One colorway features a faded denim base, overwashed to have a depth of color normally only found on denim that’s lived a life. The other option leans the opposite way, with a crisp dark denim finish overlaid by brown suede panels.
A white Levi’s label hangs from the side of the shoes. Every different-colored Levi’s label represents a different line (the similar-looking SilverTab label, for instance, is a collector's favorite of wide-legged jeans from the late '80s and early '90s), and this white tag was initially reserved for corduroy jackets and jeans. It’s a label rarely found on modern Levi’s releases.
Nike and Levi’s aren’t taking a break after launching a sell-out Nike Air Max 95 collection earlier this summer, where the duo made jeans for the first time. Much the opposite, this collaboration and talk of an upcoming Jordan 3 release tells us that two of America’s biggest fashion exports are working together closely behind the scenes.
The Nike x NIGO x Levi’s Air Force 3 is expected to arrive later this year, but neither party has released any information at the time of writing.
After launching blinged-out and ruggedly hairy takes of the shoe, NIGO is giving the Air Force 3 a fresh pair of jeans.
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