Tyshawn Jones Drops Low Sequel Sneaker With adidas Skateboarding
The skater dishes on the collaboration, his personal style and his roots in skating.
21-year-old skating luminary Tyshawn Jones — winner of Thrasher‘s 2018 Skater of the Year award and star of the widely renowned “Blessed” Supreme video — has undoubtedly conquered his domain. Now, following the 2019 debut of his adidas Skateboarding Pro shoe, the King of New York is taking his legacy beyond the skate park with another collaboration: the adidas Skateboarding x Tyshawn Low signature sequel sneaker.
Done in a sharp white leather upper with collegiate green stripes, the staple shoe takes cues from typical basketball footwear, while also supplying ample durability for skating. Constructed with an added suede toe cap, EVA midsole and inner vulc wrap, the silhouette is equipped with high-impact absorption and grip performance. Rounding out the design specs, an updated, gold Tyshawn Trefoil logo plants itself on a form-fitting memory foam tongue for a comfort-maximizing fit.
“We went through a few designs, but we didn’t really go too off the radar with stuff,” Jones told HYPEBEAST of the collaborative process. “It was pretty close on all of the designs.”
“The Tyshawn Low is the next stone being placed in the legacy I am trying to leave,” he said. “This shoe has motivated me and I hope that it gives people out there the same motivation when they put it on.”
Emulating Jones’ multi-faceted lifestyle, the sneaker enlists distinct nods to his legacy in skate, while also pointing to his penchant for sports and his claim-to-fame on downtown New York City streets with an athletic, metropolitan design.
“I took inspiration from shoes that I’ve liked,” he said. “I like basketball and other sports, so we looked at basketball silhouettes and took inspiration from the streets of New York.”
On the topic of skating, Jones credits the sport for more than just his livelihood — it’s become a compass for his moral development throughout his adolescence and adulthood.
“I think skateboarding teaches you about life,” he said. “It teaches you about never giving up. Sometimes you can want something so bad, but it doesn’t happen right away, so it definitely teaches you patience and it teaches you how to apply those same things to your regular life.”
Fashion and skate have long been intertwined — their relationship traces back to 1990s when skateboarding (and by extension, streetwear) was a mere subcultures outside of mainstream pop culture. Although the sport often supplies riders with a predictable wardrobe today, Jones says his personal fashion sense is largely attributed to his inner-circle of family and friends.
“I would say growing up in New York and looking at my friends and family and what we wore to school helped determined the way I want to dress,” he said. “I started seeing pieces and clothes, just being in the streets, watching my dad and watching my mom.”
“I just like to wear whatever I think is cool,” he added. “If I think something is cool, then I’ll rock it.”
Celebrating Jones’ long-lasting impact on the skate park, the adidas Skateboarding x Tyshawn Low will be available to purchase on adidas’ webstore on June 26 for $85 USD.
Elsewhere in footwear, New Balance’s vintage 550 sneaker released in a new “White/Navy” colorway.
