-The Evolution of 8

I must start by giving a shoutout to the folks over at Nike Brand, especially Jason Petrie, for continuing to be trailblazers in this industry. As you all may remember I was a HUGE fan of the LeBron 7 and could be quoted as saying "these will guide us back to the golden age of sneaker culture". Well call it sneakerhead intuition if you please, but I may have been right on target. Continuing the trend from last season, with the LeBron 7 PS, Nike has expanded on the general concept that a player's shoe should evolve throughout the season just like the player does to counter the grind of 82 games. In the video Petrie talks about transformations that will take place in the LeBron 8 specifically for different stretches of the season. Hopefully there will be at least four versions of the LeBron 8 but for now here are the first 2 stages of the its metamorphosis.

-Word To The Wise

Just a word to the wise: When you're an up and coming artist most times you don't have much of a following, besides the few friends who you weren't embarrassed to perform in front of, nor do you have the luxury of a proven track record. With that being said it's very important that you give it 100% so that you leave a good first impression. Speaking of first impressions, make sure your cover art is on point. As a person who visits mixtape websites daily and often decides whether to pass or listen based on a cover, I can't stress enough how important it is. Before the listener gets a chance to hit that download button or even read the comments, they come across your cover art. Who knows this could be the difference between you making it into the iTunes library and not.

As if Glen Davis wasn't having a hard enough time shaking the "Big Baby" moniker.

-AJKO Embrace or "Improve"?

Lately I've been seeing a lot of posts about how to remove the yellowing from the Retro AJKO which was a bit puzzling in my opinion. I must admit I think we're being a little ungrateful on this one. I've always felt like the AJKO and yellowing was a package deal simply because every picture of the AJKO I've ever seen had some sort of yellowing which is in part why we all fell in love with it in the first place. I think its about time JB is connecting with the culture by capturing that nostalgia and the true essence of the AJKO instead of delivering a watered down version which, by the way, would be criticized just as much, but to each their own. As long as the shoes don't come with a vintage odor I'm good... Leave Your 2Cents!

-Do Your Part!

By now you all know of the mass destruction caused by the Earthquake in Haiti. Now is the time to step up and get involved! The easiest and most convenient way is to simply text "YELE" to 501501, by doing so an automatic $5 will be charged to your phone bill which will be donated to the Haiti releif efforts. Check out these videos from two familiar faces for other ways to get involved.

-HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! 2010!

In the event that I'm sleep the rest of the day I would like to take this time to go ahead and wish you all a Happy New Year!!!

-1 Air Jordan XII(12) White/Red

Throughout the making of this list I couldn't stress enough my obsession with the Air Jordan 12. Not only have I been waiting on this shoe for most of the year but I've been waiting on this shoe since 97'. The beautiful part about this is that its not really selling out, which I can only attribute to the amount of hype surrounding the "Space Jams", meaning I can go pick up another pair or two as soon as my tax money comes...LOL

-2 Air Jordan XI(11) "Space jam"

It seememed as if the day would never come considering we've known the "Space Jams" were coming every since the beginning of the year. JB sure let the anticipation build this time with blatent diregard for the bootleggers. Now that the day has come and gone, it was everything I expected plus a few headaches. i was literally a day late and a dollar short but in the end it all worked out for the best. With a much better fit than last year's countdown XI(11) there's sure to be many more happy campers (literally).

-3 Nike Air Max Lebron 7

The Lebron 7 is just what the game's been missing. I truly expect that this shoe will be one that leads the sneaker culture into another golden era, reminiscent of the 90s, where hype didn't influence every purchase and it was about what actually looked good. Jason Petrie, in true Tinker like fashion, has managed you capture the perfect balance of style and function.

-4 Nike Foamposite "Eggplant"

As if a cosign from one of the hottest young up and coming rappers in the game, Wale, wasn't enough to sway you judgement of the Foamposite. Nike gave you even more reason to love the shoe by adding an Eggplant paint job, made famous by the Foamposite's first cousin, the Flightposite. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come and we really are headed back to how it was.

-5 Patta x Nike Air Max 1 Series

The store thats consistantly loyal to the culture celebrated five years in 2009. What better way to celebrate than to put together a beautiful collaboration for the people. What more can I say the colors, the materials, the silhouette everything is on point.

-6 Air Jordan III(3) White/True Blue

For many sneakerheads across the globe the Air Jordan III(30)True Blue would be considered a grail, so its no surprise that the blogosphere went nuts when word dropped that there was possibly a re-release on the horizon. At the end of the day these kicks never made it across the pond. They were an Europe only release, but if you were lucky and your local sneaker shop put in some extra legwork you may have gotten your hands on a pair.

-7 Nike Air Yeezy

It would be hard to argue that any other single person had more of an impact on culture, whether it be fashion, hip-hop, or pop, over the past 2 years than Kanye West. But in 2009 he made a particular splash in the ever growing sneaker culture. As he performed on each leg of his tour and even at the Grammy's wearing a mysterious shoe that seemed to be glowing the chatter started. The rumors continued to grow until Kanye himself, as only he can, spilled the beans about his secret collaboration with Nike. Shortly thereafter the three styles were released in limited retailers worldwide and marked one of the first time a major athletic company collaborated with a non-athlete on a signature shoe.

-8 Air Jordan XII(12) "Flu Game"

Adding to my obsession with the Jordan 12, in November Jordan Brand released the Jordan 12 "Flu Game" obviously to commemorate MJ's epic Game 5 performance in the 97' NBA Finals where he led his team from behind to defeat the Utah Jazz all while suffering from a stomach virus and wearing these Jordan 12s. Though JB added a nubuck upper which I could do without, I still felt that these should stand alone on the list.

-9 Nike Hypermax "Tennis Ball"

The above photo is the actual first photo that I saw of the Nike Hypermax "Tennis Ball", and i must admit it was an instant infatuation. This picture was originally posted with pictures of the, now infamous, McFly Hypermax. Though the latter never hit retailers stateside sneakerheads were given a treat when the "Tennis Balls" were still released, and the best part is that they were released in a city near just about everyone.

-10 Reebok Pump 20 Collection

Though Reebok may be seen to many as a dead brand, I don't think anyone would rush to discredit the impact their Pump Technology had on the game and as a result, the sneaker culture. If there were one Reebok that created a cult-like following it would have to be the Reebok Pump. So 20 years later Reebok took that very piece of information and decided to go all in. They teamed up with 20 of the most popular and influential sneaker stores in the world and let them create their very own Reebok Pump. Though they released in quantities of only 31 pairs per, many sneakerheads still decided to pull out the camping gear in hopes of becoming one of the lucky few to get their hands on a pair.

-11 CLOT x Nike Air Force One/ Mayor Bespoke Air Force One "Nesquik"

Ok I had to bend the rules a bit in order to fit these on the list. Though I'm not a huge fan of the Air Force One the fact should not be ignored that these 2 pairs are the most beautifully crafted AF1s I've laid eyes on this year if not ever. The appeal of the CLOT AF1(top) is that the foil material can be pealed to customize the shoe to your liking. The appeal of Mayor's Bespoke (bottom) is the brilliant choice of color and material combination and how it was so beautifully executed.

-12 Eddie Cruz x Nike Air Force One "West"

For this particular shoe Nike teamed up with Eddie Cruz, co-owner of UNDFTD, to bring us a finely crafted piece of art as part of the EAST vs WEST pack. Though I might be a little bias considering I'm a Lakers fan, I must admit that there was an instant attraction with this shoe. I'm personally not a big fan of the Air Force 1 but this particular make-up definitely does it for me.

-13 DJ Clark Kent x Nike Dunk "East"

God's favorite DJ also happens to be a MAJOR player in the sneaker game. Here DJ Clark Kent teamed up with Nike for a Dunk that took the overly used Gucci colorway and somehow gave it a nostalgic energy.

-14 Nylon Magazine x Nike Dunk Pack

For some reason I have a thing for Nylon Dunks, so naturally when i saw these I was very excited. I must add that I was a bit frustrated with all the confusion about if these would be released or not all the way up until they were released only at Urban Outfitters in select colors.