The Nike Shox might be a y2k icon, but did you know it was first conceived as an innovative idea back in the ‘80s? Today, its unorthodox, spacey silhouette – which uses a space-age design that looks both futuristic and a y2k icon at the same time – is one of the most popular sneakers in the industry, having had some interesting moments across its time.
A man with a vision in the ‘80s and y2k rockets
The Shox started out as a concept by Air Force 1 designer Bruce Kilgore in 1984, who had the idea of putting mechanical cushioning on running shoes. But, Kilgore’s prototype looked nothing like the Shox we know today: it basically looked like a trainer with a back brace and a suspension spring in the back.
It wasn’t until 2000 that Nike finally released the first Shox shoe. Nike designers Aaron Cooper, Greg Thompson, and Brian Farris looked to astronauts’ spacesuits for detailing and used rocket boosters as a reference for the piston-style heel. The design team first experimented with steel springs in the sole, but settled on a hollow foam spring-like pillar design as it provided better bounce and support. After 16 years since its original conception, the Shox R4 hit the shelves in 2000.
The Shox takes over the Sydney 2000 Olympics
During the 2000 Sydney Olympics, US basketball player Vince Carter – who had just signed with Nike for his first signature shoe: the BB4 Shox – dunked over a 7ft French player in his fresh pair of BB4 Shox.
His massive dunk, which was dubbed the “dunk of death”, played a major role in the Shox’s advertisement, spiking the popularity of the shoe and leading to its global success with wearers hoping they can jump like Carter.
And in 2018, the legandary shooting guard decided to bring his BB4s back on the court as an homage to his career.
A grime icon
The shoes became popular across different subcultures in the world. The Shox R4 was a hyped shoe in Brazil (see Neymar’s Shox collab from 2019). In Italy, the sneaker was originally pushed to bodybuilders, but up here in Northern Europe it was adopted by football fans, as it somewhat resembled a football boot.
Among your usual Air Maxes and black Air Forces, the 2003-silhouette Shox TL and the R4 became synonymous with British youth subcultures, especially the grime scene. And although the shoe was kind of lost in the archives for a few year, in 2018, Drake, when he was going through his grime phase, posted a photo of himself wearing R4s.
Skepta brought the silhouette back in a collab with Nike in 2019, releasing the SK Shox TL, and teasing it in his music video for “Bullet From A Gun”. His choice of silhouette came from his memories of the Manny street scene: “When I used to go to Manchester, all the kids were rocking Shox,” Skepta said on his Shox drop back in 2019. “It was a real street shoe there. I liked their swag – the windbreakers and the Shox.”
But even in 2019, the y2k silhouette couldn’t compete with the Dunks and the Jordans, which were immediate sell-outs. The Shox had to wait a little longer for its main character moment.
Martine Rose reimagining the silhouette
There’s been a few collaborations that have brought back the Shox – the 2018 Comme des Garçons Shox TL is a noteworthy mention, and Supreme’s Shox Ride 2 in 2022 – but it was Martine Rose that gave it its major comeback.
The British designer known for celebrating British subcultures within her designs took to her Nike 2022 collaboration, which showcased Brit football culture, to reimagine the cult Shox silhouette. The Martine Rose MR4 heeled mule style propelled the Shox from its underground niche to a cult fashion it-shoe status. The collaboration is currently reaching £7k on StockX and other resell platforms.
It reached grailed-piece fame when it was repped by Kendrick Lamar, who wore the blue and purple ombre colourway to the 2023 Grammys, where he received multiple awards (including Best Album) for Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers. The rapper seems to be a fan of the Shox silhouette – this June he wore a pair of R4s on stage.
Today, the Nike Shox has come back in full force, with Nike releasing multiple colourways of the updated TL since last year (adding moulded overlays to the original shoe), and reintroducing the R4 to the main line.
Featured image Nike©
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