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YEEZY by Kanye West x Adidas

YEEZY is a unisex fashion line of footwear and apparel designed by famed rapper Kanye West in collaboration with German sports apparel and footwear company Adidas aptly named after the rapper's nickname "Yeezy". The collection began first with the release of footwear products throughout 2015. The YEEZY line announced its first line of apparel on February 12, 2015 as part of New York Fashion Week's Fall/Winter 2015 collection and officially launched on October 29, 2015 with a second season planned to launch in early 2016.

The release of the first product of the line were the Yeezy 750 Boosts which was showcased in New York City on February 12, 2015. The initial release of the sneaker was limited to 9,000 pairs in New York City via Adidas' smartphone app; the sneakers sold out within 10 minutes. The shoes later launched worldwide on February 28, 2015 and were limited to select boutique stores, online retailers and Adidas flagship stores.

The collaboration has been reported to help improve Adidas' brand reputation exponentially. With the ever-increasing demand for the collection, products such as the Yeezy Boost 750, which retails for $350 USD, sold out in minutes and has since carried a resell value of as much as $7,000 USD on eBay.

History
Kanye West previously collaborated with Nike that gave birth to the release of two limited models: the Nike Air Yeezy 1 and the Nike Air Yeezy 2, both available in various colours. The famed rapper decided to cut ties with the brand due to the lack of creative control over his sneaker line and Nike's refusal to offer any type of royalties.

On December 3, 2013, Adidas officially confirmed a new collaboration deal with West with a rumoured price tag of $10 million. On February 5, 2015, Kanye West posted a link on Twitter to his website dedicated to his collaboration with Adidas known as yeezy.supply that would launch on February 12, 2015. The website serves as a promotional platform and an outlet for the latest news of West's collaboration.

Season 1 Apparel
The first season of West's fashion line features clothing with muted and earthy hues; neutral tones are used such as camel, olive, khaki, chocolate brown and grey.The silhouette of the products carry a theme of over-sized tops paired with tight bottoms. The line is a collection of many articles of unisex clothing spanning jackets, coats, sweaters, knit tops and sweatpants.

Yeezy 750 Boost
The Yeezy 750 Boost was the first limited footwear product from Kanye West and Adidas. Initially released on February 28, 2015 for $350 USD, the high top sneaker sports a grey suede upper with white laces and a dark grey mid-foot strap on top of a white midsole that is vertically ridged.

A second colour of the 750 Boost is scheduled to release sometime in December, 2015. The next colourway is expected to sport an all-black design with a black midsole under black suede.

Yeezy 350 Boost
The Yeezy 350 Boost was the second footwear product to be released as part of YEEZY Season 1 and features a low top knit material on the upper. Three colours have been released with a retail price of $200 USD.

The Turtle Dove colourway released on June 27th, 2015, the Pirate Black colourway on August 22nd, 2015 and the Moon Rock colourway on November 14th, 2015.

Yeezy 950 Boot
The Yeezy 950 Boot is a winter-ready boot that combined a rubber outsole with a mesh and nylon upper and suede accents that have been designed to handle water and snow. The boots released alongside YEEZY Season 1 apparel on October 29, 2015 and comes in three colours: Moon Rock, Chocolate and Peyote.

Season 2
On September 16, 2015, YEEZY Season 2 was announced during New York Fashion Week in New York. With a promotional video uploaded on yeezy.supply, the documentary showcased the second fashion collection from Kanye West. The line features a similar aesthetic to the previous season of muted and earthy hues on oversized and raw items. Season 2 is also set to bring new footwear options as new colours of the 750 Boost sneaker and 950 Boots were shown. Most importantly, Season 2's apparel will not be produced by Adidas, signaling the end of the Kanye West x Adidas collaboration in the clothing space. Adidas is still set to produce the footwear of Season 2.

Reception
Consumer reviews of the Season 1 apparel line have been mixed. User reviews praised the design aesthetic of the clothing line but stated that they were simply too expensive with jackets priced at $2,500 USD. This has been the general reception for the clothing line, a creative success but only adamant fans were willing to partake in the collection.

According to Nice Kicks, West's footwear collaboration with Adidas has been more popular than his collaboration with Nike. Influences point to the shoes' limited quantities making the sneakers more coveted as well as the influence of the Kardashian family who are regularly seen wearing West's shoes. The sneaker site also praises Adidas for keeping control of the conversation and leaks of information compared to West's sneaker collaboration with Nike.

During the 29th Footwear News Annual Achievement Awards on December 2, 2015, the Yeezy Boost 350 shoes were awarded the Shoe of the Year Award.