Sneaker Style Profile: Jay Z

Name: Jay Z
Brand of choice: Air Jordan
Instagram: C'mon son. Too cool for that.
Staple pair: Nike Air Force 180 High
Surprises: Radii Moon Walker

Jay Z has moved blocks and squares, apples and pears, worked pots and pans, just to cop some Airs. His devotion to fresh footwear has been a shoe game changer; he's helped stir up even more hype for retro ball boots, has legitimised designer sneaks with the rap pack, and even pioneered a truly collaborative sneaker brand partnership. He loves Air Jordan and reps all of the classic shapes on the reg, but he's not afraid to spread his sneaker wings (not into Jeremy Scott Wings territory though), sporting Loeey Vs, Timberlands, LeBrons, Reebok Kamikaze IIs, some Supra and even the Radii Moon Walker (check the fifth pic in the gallery above for that money shot). Hova is all about that paper, of course, so he's laced up the shoe attempts of his own Rocawear brand in the past and inked a deal with Reebok for his own signature sneaker in 2003. There was a bit of a twist to this endorsement though, most artist deals around this time required the talent to wear the brand's gear pretty much exclusively. Jigger man was having none of that though, so he negotiated a 'partnership' with Reebok where he would put in some of his own bank  and get a fatter cut of the proceeds. The shoe was an unashamed rip-off of a Gucci tennis casual model, and there was some serious pandemonium leading to its release. Heads soon realised that the sneak wasn't really that dope though, and there aren't many calls for a retro recall of it today – you certainly won't catch Jay wearing them. One massive positive to come out of the Bok deal is the commercial below, featuring 50 Cent and Jay Z rapping together wearing hella baggy clothes. Check it out, they even touch each other's chests, it's super cute.

http://youtu.be/_brR74KPtrc