DISTINCT LIFE and PUMA Present Future Rider "Inspire" Collaboration
The yellow and black sneaker is also accompanied by special T-shirts.
Metro Detroit-based creative agency DISTINCT LIFE is teaming up with PUMA once again for a Future Rider “Inspire” collaboration. Led by footwear industry veteran Rick Williams, DISTINCT LIFE has worked with PUMA on a myriad of releases that range from Isiah Thomas’ signature Palace Guard to a t-shirt capsule — and the Future Rider “Inspire” was created as a follow-up to the two’s California collaboration from 2020.
Dressed in DISTINCT LIFE’s familiar yellow and black color scheme and modeled above by Williams and his wife Yolanda, the Future Rider “Inspire” supplies plenty of sporty style. Its upper is build of a ripstop nylon that’s overlaid by suede on the mudguard, Formstrip and heel, while laces are embellished with a special toggle. DISTINCT LIFE’s “Talented Tenth” branding appears on the midsole brick and works with PUMA’s signature leaping cat on the rear as well. Down below, white EVA foam midsoles and disk-equipped yellow rubber outsoles complete the look. The “Inspire” is also accompanied by two T-shirts with bold DISTINCT LIFE x PUMA iconography.
“At DISTINCT LIFE, it is our mission to emulate [the history of Detroit by] inspiring people to do better,” said Rick Williams, Co-Owner and Creative Director of DISTINCT LIFE. “The Puma x DISTINCT LIFE INSPIRE Collection is an extension of our commitment to championing Black entrepreneurship, celebrating Black freedom, and honoring our ancestors who paved the way for me as a Black designer to even be able to work with companies like PUMA.”
The DISTINCT LIFE x PUMA Future Rider “Inspire” and its matching t-shirts will release via Foot Locker Detroit on June 18. It’s part of DISTINCT LIFE’s “Inspire 2021” week activactions in Detroit, which also feature everything from Black-owned food trucks to a pop-a-shot basketball tournament. Williams has also recorded an experimental album titled THE geezyTH EXPERIMENT to accompany the release.
Elsewhere in the world of footwear, Billie Eilish has received her first ever sneaker collaboration.
