Kanye West and Jay-Z: Rappers, Sneakers and FinishLine.com

I was born and brought up in East Tremont, Bronx. As you may be aware, there has been a broad consensus that The Bronx is the birthplace of hip hop. This is because it offers a hip hop tale that started from the pivotal and the formative events that defined the conception and growth of hip hop in the 1970s. Living in deteriorating buildings, hip hop pioneers invented sampling, and break-beats. Today, hip hop thrives because of the great work of the pioneers and their contribution to the genre despite the immense challenges that they faced.

Thus, when I was growing up, I had a strong association with the hip hop subculture, which I have kept until today. My favorite rappers are Kanye West and Jay Z. My favorite hip hop album is Watch The Throne.  I realized that it was not just about urban music and dance but rather a multimillion dollar industry that has a significant influence on fashion, automotive industry, television programming, sports, mass media marketing, and advertising. Therefore, I made a deliberate effort to read literature that covered hip hop culture. In addition to that, I started watching movies that covered hip hop lifestyle. One of the things that did not bypass me was the fact that hip hop was not accepted in the mainstream music industry and by parents.

Partnerships Between Sneaker Companies and Rappers

In my whole life, I have been very conscious about my footwear and getting the best pair of sneakers was something that I held in high regard. In fact, I would spend time window-shopping on the sneakers that were available in the market. It is in this light, I noticed an intimate relationship between sneaker companies and celebrity rappers. Sneaker companies are always looking to forward their portfolio through being endorsed by hip hop artists. The rationale behind this is that both groups have a direct communication with the vibrant and young urban audience. Back in the 1980s, brands such as TROOP and Adidas exploited a marketing opportunity through partnerships with the genre’s stars.

Kanye West

Kanye West is an American songwriter, record producer, rapper, and fashion designer. Brought up in Chicago, Illinois, he started to rap while he was in the third grade. He started to pursue hip hop music in the 1990s. Like most musicians anyway, Kanye West did not succeed at first. However, he persisted and learned as much as he could about hip hop. This saw him build a brand that benefited from his popularity in hip hop music.

Nike Air Yeezy is the official partnership between Nike and Kanye West. It was a long and detailed design process. In February 2015, hip hop fans in New York flocked the local sneakers shop in order to get a first signature shoe with Adidas. Kanye West pitched the moment by giving out his Yeezy Boost high top sneaker to Dave Chappelle- the legendary comedian.

Photo: Kanye West surprises his fans buying the Adidas Yeezy 351 Boost shoe

Later, Kanye West signed a partnership with Adidas. The agreement saw Kanye creating new Adidas Yeezy Boost sneakers and other clothing and kicks. This greatly benefited the footwear company which went ahead to make significant sales.

Finishline.com, the athletic shoe chain, has been keen on following the evolution and related news that affect the hip hop artists such as Kanye West. In this light, the Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 Low is now available at Finishline.com. It features a minimalistic branding and gives you a breathable and comfortable ride. Finishline.com also has a special section in their website where they blog about Kanye West and related news.

Their latest post talks about Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 Low which was a partnership between Adidas and Kanye, initiated back in February 2015.

Jay Z

Shawn Corey Carter (otherwise known by his stage name Jay Z) is an American record producer, rapper, and entrepreneur. Rappers have been known for the sneakers that they wear and only a few of them have a strong association with them. Jay Z had a direct interest in sneakers through his investments and entrepreneurship.

In 2003, Jay Z landed a shoe partnership with an athlete shoe company. This is the year that he had just released his eighth album The Blueprint 2: Gift & The Curse. His early contact with Beyonce had also caught the attention of the media. All these factors meant that Jay Z was riding in fame and his popularity was not in doubt.

Consequently, Reebok invited Jay Z to a multi-year endorsement deal giving the rapper a signature sneaker and an apparel line. Jay Z stated to New York Post that the shoe was a casual shoe, designed for a guy who is on the sidelines and cannot jump but still desires to be looking cool.

It should be noted that Jay Z has a direct interest in the sports industry. This is because he was the founder of the Roc Nations Sports, a sports agency that is based in New York City and is operational worldwide. He has also received certification as an NBA and MLB sports agent.

In April 18, 2003, the shoe company launched the first line of Jay Z. Each pair featured unreleased Jay Z music. The company noticed that the partnership marked the fastest selling of its products. In fact, the company has admitted that the deal is still influential to the company until today.

Though currently sold out, the Reebok S Carter is available for toddlers, kids, and men.

6pm.com, the famous online shoe store, carries a number of brands that have benefited from hip hop. Let me name a few:

• Lugz is an innovator and a leader in urban footwear. The brand received a major boost when key players in the hip hop industry endorsed it. This gave the brand renewed energy. The climax of the new fortunes was that Lugz made a collaboration with Bryan “Baby” Williams with his own series of sneakers and boots.
• Kangol is a textile industry company that was founded in 1938. It has been a trendsetter in the textile industry. In the 1980s, the company realized the rich potential that is offered by the hip hop community. In this regard, it adopted a number of members of the hip hop music including LL Cool.

Celebrity endorsement provides recognition and energy from younger consumers. Footwear companies record a jump in their sales. Similarly, customers are proud to be associated with products that are being used by high end celebrities. In particular, Jay Z and Kanye West made a great boost on the use of sneakers not only in the United States but all over the world.

The Savings You Will Enjoy with 6pm and FinishLine Coupons and Deals

If you are a bargain hunter, then you should often visit 6pm.com. Their prices are surprisingly discounted. If you thought that you would be able to save a fortune by shopping on either 6pm.com or FinishLine.com, then you need to congratulate yourself because that is exactly what is going to happen. You see, I have been familiar with both of these online shoe stores for quite some time, well to be honest my wife is more familiar with 6pm.com, but I have also been familiar with something else and that is how you can use coupon codes for 6pm and Finish Line discount codes to your advantage. These sites already provide you some astonishing savings, but I still think that it is cool that I can save even more money thanks to these codes.

 

So What Coupon Codes and Deals Are Available?

OK, so I guess that you will be wanting to know more about the coupon codes that are available, so I will tell you. 6pm release special deals at, yep you guessed it, 6pm every single day and there are always some kind of special promo codes out there that tie in with those deals. You will often find a code for 10% off, but at times it will be 20% and if you are a regular shopper there you can get yet another code for more money off as a reward for your loyalty.

 

However, if we then check out FinishLine.com, then we see that the Finish Line discount codes are slightly different, but still as effective. Perhaps their most well known code is the one that gives you $10 off when you spend more than $100 followed by $20 when you spend $200. This alone is a good deal, but I think that the best part is the way in which you can combine these codes with their sale items because this is where you can save a fortune.

What Kind Of Things Are On Sale?

I simply do not have the spare time to list all of the products that both 6pm.com and FinishLine.com have for sale as I think it would take days. I am not exaggerating here when I say that between the two of them they have thousands of items for sale and we are talking about some savings being as much as 90%.

The thing I love is that each category on either website has items that are reduced. Sometimes it is complete categories, for example up to 65% off heels on 6pm or up to 40% off men’s shorts at Finish Line. However, you will also tend to find well known names also being reduced by huge amounts with some prime examples being Air Jordan reduced by 50% at FinishLine.com or NG workout wear reduced by up to 60% at 6pm.com. In all honesty, the best advice I can give is to check out the websites for yourself.

Don’t Forget Shoebuy Coupons

Did you know that Shoebuy is the major competitor of FinishLine and 6pm.com? What differentiates Shoebuy from the other two online shoe retailers is the “big savings” coupon codes they offer. Coupons for Shoebuy save you over 20%. For example, with discount code HKELLOGG you will get a 25% discount on any order. Shoebuy promo codes are available here.

How About Some Specifics On Sale Items?

I admit that talking about a percentage reduction can be difficult to actually imagine at times, so it is probably best to look at some actual examples so you can really understand why I feel compelled to write about these two online shoe stores.

At this very moment on 6pm.com there are men’s boots by Ted Baker that should retail at $280, but on this site they are for sale at $155. Now, imagine if you had the 10% discount, you are going to get them for half the retail price and on a brand name such as Ted Baker, this is relatively unheard of. The boots in question are not only made to a high standard, but they are stylish, modern, and you just know that they are going to be comfortable, so what more could you want?

I do need to do justice to FinishLine.com and also mention something that is on sale at their site as of right now. If I head to the infant section, I’m thinking about my kid just now, then there are so many products that are reduced that it is crazy. However, if I had to pick one, then the Nike beanie and mitten set reduced from $20.99 to $7.99.

This means that my son can not only look cool, but stay warm as well and getting it for less than half price is a real bargain.

I really cannot do justice to the various savings that you can have with both 6pm promo codes and Finish Line discount codes as there are just too many fabulous products to choose from. I know I might be tempting fate by telling you to go to the websites and check them out for yourself, but it just seems like the logical thing to do. After all, you are making huge savings, so surely that means you can just buy more items?

References: Good Search, RetailMeNot