11 clues Kanye West has dropped about his new sneakers

If you visit Kanye West’s new site, Yeezy.Supply, looking for information about his new sneakers, all you’ll see is a countdown clock and obscure grainy footage of who-knows-what. Kanye is toying with our emotions. None of us fan boys and girls are any closer to solving the Yeezy 750 Boost enigma code.

Kanye has been sprinkling digital breadcrumbs around the Internet and on social media for a few weeks now, teasing the imminent unveiling of his shoe collection with Adidas. They’re just scraps of clues, and it’s still unclear what Yeezy’s latest installation project will look like when it materializes.

Making sense of it all may seem maddening, but the content strategy is a distinct and unique one that is worth noting. We decided to attempt to put the pieces together with a cumulative round-up of the top 11 Boost Clues that leave us confused, but still excited. Of course, we’ll update as strategy and mood changes become available.

Photos via Rahmon Ehlen, Kim Kardashian, Kylie Jenner, Ibn Jasper’s Instagram

1. The first rumors

In the fall of 2013, Kanye West’s fickle relationship with fashion appeared to be on the mends, as the rakish rapper announced his official, non-official, official design and creative partnership with Adidas, the home of the shelltoe.  Are leather jogging pants a possibility? One can only hope.

Months later, a hoax pair of West’s Adidas collaborative efforts appeared on the Internet. They were insultingly bad — a poor man’s Wallabees — and wildly panned. The shoes were quickly debunked — they were NOT a part of West’s collaboration with Adidas. Phew.

2. The sneak peek

As reported by Complex back in November of 2014, a grainy, zoomed-in image of the Yeezy Boost prototype surfaced and it was the first of its kind. An anonymous source tipped the site off to the then-named “Yeezi”, which was captured aboard a plane the rapper while the rapper was jet-setting. Though not confirmed by Adidas, the suspected collab demo was described as having:

…a tan upper, that looks like nubuck, mid with a zip up the side, with a loop, fabric lacing system. A ribbed single unit sole reaches from end to end. Like all Yeezys/Yeezis we’ve seen, there’s a strap across the laces.

3. The no chill NYFW invite Insta-leak

Rumblings regarding a NYFW unveiling of West’s Adidas collaboration were confirmed about a week ago when Boutique Renaissance menswear buyer Rahmon Ehlen showed absolutely no chill and posted a (since-deleted) screenshot of the Kanye West and Adidas invite onto his personal Instagram page on February 3rd. Appetites were now whet with anticipation, when another Boost Clue would emerge that same day….

4. The Adidas reservation app

The no chill Insta-leak would work in tandem with Adidas’ announcement that they will be launching a new product reservation app, aptly named “Confirm,” that will allow its New York-area customers to purchase merchandise straight from their phones and confirm for in-store pick-ups at city-wide Adidas locations. The app is hoping to not only revolutionize an industry-wide complaint with product launch, but it will also serve as the platform to help unveil the now confirmed and long-awaited Kanye West collaboration. Be sure you have strong Wi-Fi access, though: Yeezy Boosts are reportedly retailing a $350 and only 3000 pairs have been produced. There’s always something.

5. Yeezy.Supply

Like all great modern media, Yeezy’s next clue was released in the middle of the night via Twitter. A riddle of a missive, it simply provided a link to new site, Yeezy.Supply, and a date. Like a dutiful stan you were to follow the link and be both giddy and baffled by what you saw, which at the time was simply grainy footage of a moving conveyor belt with a running countdown clock splashed across. Apparently time was ticking away to the zero-hour in which his NYFW presentation would be unveiled: February 12th at 4pm.

If you listened closely you could hear the soft hum of warehouse machinery and the murmurs of fashion geniuses, congregating, in the background. Otherwise, ‘Ye offered no other details.

6. The snitching barber

A serious breach in security and trust occurred when ‘Ye’s barber of the last 19 years, Ibn Jasper, posted pics of the elusive Yeezy Boost 750 on his personal Instagram account Friday afternoon. As you can imagine, social media erupted into sheer pandemonium over the photos’ authenticity, with Tweeps either lauding or maligning the shoe’s distinct design.

Rapper Theophilus London later confirmed Jasper’s IG post, by explaining the shoe only has one colorway – “Yeezi grey” and can be worn in 5 different ways. I do love the sounds of that: y’know, a girl needs choices.

Wifey/Yeezy team member Kim Kardashian is apparently on gift-distribution duty: She posted this shot — of what appear to be sneaker boxes — to her Instagram account that same day. Looks like Puff, Jigga, and Big Sean are getting some special care packages in the mail.

7. Grammy weekend stuntin’

With images emerging the day before and Twitterscape torn asunder over the design, Kanye just said, ‘To heck with it!’ and began brazenly sporting the Boost shoes all around LA this Grammy weekend. Whether brunching it up with Michael Bolton and Jigga at the RocNation Pre-Grammy brunch, snapping a shoe-selfie with sister-in-law Kylie Jenner, or rocking a pair on stage during his “Only One” performance, he “let Nori and the entire world know” the sneaker’s super-secret design was out of the bag.

**Some thought the velour jumpsuit Kanye wore during his “Only One” performane was yet another piece in his Adidas collaboration, but it was later confirmed that the two-piece throwback set was from the Haider Ackerman collection. Womp. The trail is getting hotter and colder at the same time.

8. The Adidas storefront and the enlightenment of the youths

Monday morning, mere hours after the Yeezy Boost’s on-stage debut, the shoes were front-and-center in the windows of the New York flagship location in Soho, as seen by GQ. At this point, fan boys and girls are hitting peak thirst levels. What could possibly be next? A Yeezy act of kindness!

According to TMZ, the rapper gifted a lucky civilian a pair of the mysterious Boosts, after noticing the young man’s strong shoe game. Yeezy explained he simply wanted to “enlighten” the brother. Enlighten me, Yeezy! Enlighten me! Peep the footage from the exchange here.

9. Release date confirmed

Rest easy: Adidas has our best interests at heart and confirms the Yeezy Boosts will be dropping February 14th. Valentine’s day is about love, after all. But are shoes all we get? If you’re looking for some clothes — or at least T-shirts — Yahoo! reports grainy footage on Yeezy.Supply suggests the latter are being mass produced. My wardrobe is pleased.

10. The Adidas NYFW presentation

Activity from Yeezy’s Twitter account on Tuesday afternoon mentions “castings”, which means hiring models for a Fashion Week show. Yeezy.Supply began streaming live coverage of a hallway filled with would-be hopefuls — all of whom have most likely shown up to 380 Broadway in an attempt to impress West for whatever fanfare he’s got planned for February 12th’s NYFW presentation. With only a few days until the countdown clock zeroes out, prep is certainly underway for the big NYFW unveiling.

11. The All Star weekend free concert problem

Always rattling someone’s nerves, be it Beck or Shirley Manson, Kanye West  announced a free concert this Thursday in New York’s Flatiron district and set off the fury of the neighborhood’s tony dwellers. A part of the RocNation All-Star weekend festivities, the performance is both benevolent and an annoyance. As is whatever Kanye does. So why are people even surprised?!

Note to Flatiron dwellers: do yourself a favor and just open your windows or go to your building’s roof and have some fun.

Marjon Carlos is a style and culture writer for Fusion who boasts a strong turtleneck game and opinions on the subjects of fashion, gender, race, pop culture, and men’s footwear.