Crazy, Cuddly, Cute: The Weezy/Scott Bromance
By
March 29, 2011
Pop stars with a penchant for zany visuals—Rihanna, Katy Perry, and Nicki Minaj—often profess their love for Jeremy Scott, but Lil Wayne might be the eccentric designer’s most audacious famous fan of all. In fact, we’ve been keeping track of his wardrobe whereabouts, and Weezy’s brand loyalty runs endearingly deep: upon his well-publicized release from Riker’s Island last fall, he made a direct beeline to Vegas, where he indulged in Scott’s collaboration with Fruition boutique, rocking a Bart Simpson sweater from the collection and an impish grin for the press. But as anyone familiar with hip-hop’s fervent sneaker culture must know, a trip to Weezy’s shoe closet is where the ongoing Weezy/Scott bromance comes into full, eye-popping focus.
Like many rappers, Wayne occasionally sports the requisite high-end high-top from Louis Vuitton or Rick Owens, but, naturally, his most memorable footwear comes courtesy of Scott’s successful collaboration with Adidas. Unsurprisingly, Wayne favors the biggest and boldest offerings that partnership offers. Among his greatest hits: the Triple Tongued 2010 sneaker (worn in various hues in front of many a sold-out crowd); the violently purple and gold Metro Highs, and even customized versions of Scott’s “Winged Victory” sneakers. But any performer in the age of Ke$ha can rock zany colors and outlandish silhouettes—how many are fearless enough to sprout teddy bears from their toes?
Aside from Lady Gaga and an inevitable handful of Japanese popstars, we can only think of Weezy, who shot Jeremy Scott x Adidas’ Teddy Bear sneakers to instant infamy when he wore them to BET’s New Year’s bash. The furry footwear style—literally a stuffed bear stuffed into a sneaker tongue—quickly became so blogged about they’re now routinely referred to as “the Lil’ Wayne sneakers.” As with Gaga’s McQueen “lobster heel” armadillos, people just know what you mean. At $328, the shoe is priced for hard-core novelty collectors, but apparently that hasn’t affected their popularity at retail: the teddies now also come in “pink” and “panda” varieties. With Weezy already more or less Scott’s unofficial celebrity ambassador, we can only ponder what electrifying visuals a full-blown collaboration would allow the two mavericks to create in the pop lab.
