Pharrell and longtime collaborator Adidas have been in dialogue quite a few times, re-imagining classic Adidas silhouettes like the NMD and Adidas Superstar. After last year’s launch of the Humanrace Samba in leather and suede, the duo is back with six vibrant, eye-catching colorways called Humanrace Samba Colors by Pharrell. The luxury collection is an embodiment of the Humanrace DNA. The new collection reimagines the original Samba coming in all monochromatic Yellow, Orange, Pink, Lilac, Red, and the friends and family exclusive Green. Rather than the original suede toe-cap, Pharrell opts for an all-around high-end leather for the lining and shoelaces in addition to the toe-cap. The leather is from ECCO Leather, premium leather sourced from raw materials in the Netherlands. In an effort to be more sustainable, it saves 20 liters of water per hide to create the shoe with water-conserving tanning technology.
More deviations away from the original shoe include a lover tongue to pay homage to the brand’s longstanding history of sports heritage, particularly football. Rather than a white or black base, Pharrell went with an entirely monochromatic color scheme for every show. The Samba is undoubtedly one of the most popular sneakers and has been part of generations. Pharrell’s rendition is a ubiquitous reminder that time and fashion are circular. “We’re instilling high-quality materials and craftsmanship back into footwear,” says Pharrell. Previews of upcoming colorways, Charcoal, White, and Terracotta, will be announced later.
The summer-friendly collection will be available for pre-sale on April 28th through the 30th at Something in the Water and globally on May 6th on the Adidas Confirmed app, on humanrace.com, and in-store at Extra Butter New York, and Offspring in London.