Unreleased merch found in Frank Ocean’s website source code
Thanks to the Fader, we have a look at what could be some fresh new merchandise to coincide with Frank's new album. After updating his website today, a peak through the source code bore images of three new pieces of merchandise.
First, a t-shirt with a NASCAR-inspired stripe logo. Second, a white hoodie with the same logo down the left arm and a racing checkered flag design down the right. Lastly, and most interestingly, a pair of never-before-seen kicks.
According to the source code, the “Stripe Box Tee" will sell for $30, the "White Stripe Hoodie" will go for $60, and the "Yohi Yamamato Y-3 Sneakers" will be available for a cool $50 when they drop.
The caption on the shoes is interesting. According to Hypebeast:
Y-3 is a collaboration label between adidas and Yohji Yamamoto; a Japanese designer known for his avant-garde designs and striking silhouettes. His collaboration with adidas aims to bring Yamamoto's sartorial aesthetics to the adidas brand by fusing high fashion with advanced sportswear.
Complex is certain these are not Adidas, but Vans.
Earlier we reported the possibility that images of Frank Ocean's official merch for his as-yet-unreleased followup to channel ORANGE may have leaked. Included in that imagery was a sneaker in a mostly yellow colorway that definitely looks like a banana. Any savvy sneakerhead can easily tell it's a friggin' Vans Sk8-Hi.
That didn't stop The Fader, who were the first to leak the images, from mining the site's source code and coming to the improbable conclusion that the shoes are somehow a pair of Yohji Yamamoto-designed homages, under the Japanese designer's Y-3 line. The Fader writes:
There are these very yellow "Yohi Yamamato Y-3 Sneakers." According to a page on the site, they will apparently be sold for $50.
Huh. Go on...
It's worth noting that Y-3 shoes normally retail for around $300. The site also spelled the designer's name "Yohi," when it is actually Yohji. The logo on these shoes does in fact appear to be the Vans logo, but a reverse-image search on Google Images does not turn up a pair of shoes exactly like these.
Hate to break it to you guys, but these are friggin' Vans. A source close to the project confirms that these Sk8-His originally weren't slated to go into production, and the banana-like colorway was designed by Frank Ocean himself. Besides, that alleged $50 price tag is more fitting for a pair of Vans than a Y-3 sneaker. Not to mention the California-based sneaker company collaborated with Ocean's bestie Tyler, The Creator on a series of bubblegum pink-soled Old Skools just last year.
There's no news yet on when these designs will be available.
Update 2016-08-20:
This merchandise was ultimately scrapped. Photos of Frank Ocean wearing the shirt and hoodie are found in Boys Don’t Cry magazine.
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