Shot & Edited by: David “DRO” Rosario (www.davidrosario.com) Music by Madcon – Beggin’ (Instrumental)
This was a special event put together by the great people at Nike Sportswear, and the great people over at Shoe Gallery in Miami, Florida. Basically, Nike brought down the Jacket Nike ID machines and set up to Shoe Gallery for an entire weekend and let customers customize their own N98 track jackets. The opening night (which is where this video was taken) took place on Thursday January 28, 2010 and tons of locals celebrated with free food and drinks, along with their chance to iD their own track jackets. Press play for the quick recap of the night.
By any normal day, sneaker shop Air Traffic Control is usually filled with customers and sneaker aficionados looking for ultra-exclusive kicks. Well, on Saturday August 15, 2009 – Air Traffic Control was completely transformed into 1/3 sneaker shop, 1/3 art show and 1/3 lounge. Mi Gente Clothing along with various other sponsors, hosted an art show featuring the works of Big Doves, who you may know as the creator of Mi Gente’s infamous “Suck My Kicks” logo. The night was also extra special as it served as a mini-memorial and tribute to recently passed Miami graffiti legend, Oil aka Oiler, who passed earlier in the week. And ironically, the night of Big Dove’s art show was coincidently Oil’s birthday. A tribute canvas was displayed along with a pair of Air Force 1’s that Oil designed before he passed. Rest in Peace, Oil!!!
As far as how the night turned out – well, sneakerheads and art-lovers of all shapes, sizes and colors stopped by to check out the show. You even had complimentary drinks courtesy of Belvedere Vodka, and Amp’d Energy Drinks courtesy of the Amp girls that passed through. And before we called it a night we had to ask the owners of ATC if they had any exclusive sneakers in the shop – and with that, we ran into a pair of Jordan IV Retros UNDFTD “Military Olive Suede/Orange”, where there are apparently only 72 in existence. Then we ran into a pair of the KAWS designed 1World Air Force 1’s. Overall, it was a great night.
Photos of the entire event, along with people, sneakers, artwork and more by clicking below…
Sneakerpimps 2009 Miami was ridiculous. The Clipse and the Cool Kids tore it down! And of course, we have the exclusive look at how it went down. From the attendees, to the vendors and performances.We get an incredible HD video of the event brought to us courtesy …
Shout outs to Safe from Mi Gente Clothing, Rick (Abstrak), Alexis, and the rest of the Invazion family, Dave Jeff, Clark Kent, 004 Connect, Nepz, Like Mike Clothing, Last Rights Clothing family, the whole Shoe Gallery fam, Soles Inc, Plus Givens, Female Sneaker Fiends and everybody else we saw out there.
SHOE GALLERY release recap of the FLOMs & Hideouts
Words and Photos by David Rosario (www.davidrosario.com)
Saturday July 18th, 2009 marked the Nike LIVESTRONG release date for the Hideout x Nike Air Footscape Wovens and the highly anticipated Futura x Nike Dunk Hi “FLOM” (For Love or Money). Both are two of the last scheduled releases in the LIVESTRONG series. And Miami-based Shoe Gallery was one of the few retailers in the world with the opportunity to bring this release to the public.
Dozens and dozens of people flocked into Downtown Miami on a Saturday morning for their chance to receive a pair of the highly famed FLOMs. It might have seemed like an ordinary sneaker release, but unbeknown to everybody waiting outside – Shoe Gallery celebrated the release by putting together a special surprise visit by Futura himself.
Futura, greeted the lucky recipients of the sneaker and stayed around until the very last pair was sold. He talked with customers, signed autographs and even did a special impromptu piece on a shoebox for a young lady who bought a pair of the FLOMs for her brother. Even when the release wrapped up, Futura made sure to go outside Shoe Gallery to thank everyone for supporting this project and walked around to shake hands and personally greet everyone who came out for the release.
This will definitely go down as one of the more special releases at Shoe Gallery. And with all proceeds going towards a great cause, each shoe that is part of the Livestrong series is even that much more special.
Click below to see photos. You can also use the Left & Right keys on your keyboard for easier navigation.
Yesterday, we brought you the exclusive video recap of Sneakerpimps Miami 2009. Well as promised, here are some of the photos. There were Xbox stations, lots of female sneakerheads, lots of sneakers on exhibit and tons of vendors on the DunkXchange floor. And without needing to mention, there were performances and meet-and-greets by The Cool Kids and The Clipse. You also had a “keeping-it-real” moment when Dave Jeff and Clark Kent cleared up the Sneakergate controversy that has surrounded Big Boi during his the previous Sneakerpimps stop in Atlanta.
But once again, shout outs to Sneakerpimps organization for letting us cover the event. Shouts out to Safe from Mi Gente Clothing, Alexis, Rick (Abstrak) and the rest of the Invazion family, Dave Jeff, Clark Kent, 004 Connect, Like Mike Clothing, Bird Club Clothing, Air Traffic Control, Last Rights Clothing family, the whole Shoe Gallery fam, Soles Inc, Plus Givens, FemaleSneakerFiend.Com and everybody else we saw out there. Check the photos and the video below…
Photography by DRO – www.davidrosario.com
Nike challenged seniors at Miami’s Booker T. Washington High School, to create their own artistic expression regarding Black History Month through the art of spoken word. The finalists composed an original spoken word piece to interpret this period drawing upon such pivotal moments including the Civil Rights Movement. A panel of celebrities including popular Miami Heat disk jockey DJ Irie, former NBA athlete Alonzo Mourning, spoken word poet Ruth Tuffit and Nike representatives announced the contest winners.
Jazmine Snyder, the first place winner received a $1000 scholarship, and both Staresha Charles and Walter Peterson are the Second and Third place winners who each received a $500 scholarship. All three will also receive a pair of the limited edition Black History Month Air Force 1 shoes.
Sneaker Info: The Air Force 1 shoe is one of Nike’s most revered and iconic models. This limited-edition version is not for sale but rather a special product, proudly displaying the colors of the African American flag. Rich black leathers have been chosen to represent the essence of all color. Contrast stitching has been used to show an energetic pop of pride and perseverance. The centennial logo honors the long and rich history of the African American culture. Forty-four stars circle the outer perimeter of the logo to represent the celebration of the first African American to represent a people as well as the American government. The Swoosh has a luxury material of metallic black leather and the outsoles are marbleized like the courtrooms of the US Supreme Court – the place where many civil rights battles were fought and won.
Shoe Gallery Miami’s Jordans XX3 Finale Release Photos and Words by David “DRO” Rosario (www.davidrosario.com)
The red searchlights spun around the Downtown Miami skyline and could be seen from afar on the evening of December 23, 2008. The elusive “Finale” (final) colorway of the Jordan XX3’s were on their way to being released at Shoe Gallery. Since news broke about the release, a small group of dedicated sneakerheads made way to Shoe Gallery almost 11 days before the actual release. They set up shop for a camp-out until the sneakers were released on December 23rd. 22 other Jordan brand retailers around the country joined Shoe Gallery in releasing the final colorway of the XX3’s. A total of 529 pairs (23 per store) were sold worldwide, making them ultra-exclusive.
Shoe Gallery always goes far and beyond to treat their dedicated customers right and this release was no exception of that. Red searchlights greeted them and made Shoe Gallery the eye of Downtown Miami on the night before Christmas Eve.
Everyone who got their pair was grateful to finally be able to hold their prize and get to finally…well, go home. The first person in line was proud to be number “one” and Shoe Gallery gave him a few additional pieces of gear on-the-house in a show of their appreciation. It was funny that throughout the 11 days of the camp-out, a few of the people in line worked out a system were they would alternate going home and then come back in line and switch and etc. A great show of dedication mixed with a bit of maturity. With that, see ya next year with the Jordans 2009 coming soon!!
KOBE BRYANT SURPRISES A HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL TEAM. PHOTOS OF THE EVENT AND ADDRESS FOR SNEAKER PURCHASE BELOW.
As you may or may not know, Kobe Bryant recently unveiled his fourth signature shoe, the Zoom Kobe IV last week in Los Angeles. It was said to be the lightest basketball shoe ever, weighing in at 11.6 ounces. Since then, anticipation has been building as it was announced that he would officially bring them on to the court for the first time at tonight’s Miami Heat game against the Lakers.
Immediately upon arriving to Miami, Kobe had made plans in his tight schedule to make sure he visited one of South Florida’s premier high school basketball teams. That being, Dillard High School in Broward. The only catch was that it was going to be a surprise to all the kids. Dillard High School holds claim to holding Florida’s 2007-08 Boy’s State Championship, as well as four titles in a row from 2001 – 2004. So it was only natural that Kobe would be drawn to speak to the collective.
To sum up the events that took place at Dillard’s gymnasium – the kids didn’t know what hit them. They were going about their usual practice routines and drills, but an onslaught of unusual courtside media and cameras sparked the curiosity of the team. They knew something was happening. And soon enough Kobe stepped in and took the team by surprise. Kobe spoke with the team’s head coach, who after seeing the team run fast towards Kobe – coach jokingly shouted that “if they could only run this fast on the court, we’d be at a real good place this season.” Obviously joking because given their impressive drills ran during the practice we observed, the team seems to be in great shape and doing just fine.
Kobe talked with the kids and the media a bit and talked about his newest sneaker release…and…the widely sought “Venom” colorway. Not only that, but Kobe presented his biggest effort to the kids – an opportunity to design their own free custom pair of the Zoom Kobe IV’s via NikeID. The kids were estatic and couldn’t wait to have their turn at creating their very own pair. The locker room was transformed into a mini-design studio/workshop for the kids to get their creative sides in action.
All in all, it was a great show of character by Kobe to step up and offer his time to these kids. Although it may be small to you and me, this could serve as a great confidence booster to these kids to keep striving to achieve what they’ve always dreamed of achieving.
Photos of the entire event and detailed sneaker shots below…
By any normal day, sneaker shop 
Sneakerpimps 2009 Miami was ridiculous. The Clipse and the Cool Kids tore it down! And of course, we have the exclusive look at how it went down. From the attendees, to the vendors and performances.We get an incredible HD video of the event brought to us courtesy …
Dozens and dozens of people flocked into Downtown Miami on a Saturday morning for their chance to receive a pair of the highly famed FLOMs. It might have seemed like an ordinary sneaker release, but unbeknown to everybody waiting outside – Shoe Gallery celebrated the release by putting together a special surprise visit by Futura himself.
Yesterday, we brought you the 
Nike challenged seniors at Miami’s Booker T. Washington High School, to create their own artistic expression regarding Black History Month through the art of spoken word. The finalists composed an original spoken word piece to interpret this period drawing upon such pivotal moments including the Civil Rights Movement. A panel of celebrities including popular Miami Heat disk jockey DJ Irie, former NBA athlete Alonzo Mourning, spoken word poet Ruth Tuffit and Nike representatives announced the contest winners.
Sneaker Info: The Air Force 1 shoe is one of Nike’s most revered and iconic models. This limited-edition version is not for sale but rather a special product, proudly displaying the colors of the African American flag. Rich black leathers have been chosen to represent the essence of all color. Contrast stitching has been used to show an energetic pop of pride and perseverance. The centennial logo honors the long and rich history of the African American culture. Forty-four stars circle the outer perimeter of the logo to represent the celebration of the first African American to represent a people as well as the American government. The Swoosh has a luxury material of metallic black leather and the outsoles are marbleized like the courtrooms of the US Supreme Court – the place where many civil rights battles were fought and won.
