The Only Trustworthy Guide to Kanye West's Favorite Boots
Literal fire and more.
Editor’s note: I promise this blog won’t be all Kanye posts but it’s the theme of the day with Donda 2 coming so it makes sense right now. If you haven’t peeped my interview with Alex Klein of Stem Player on GQ, click here.
Kanye West is the most influential man in men’s fashion over the last 20 years. Normally I’d feel compelled to justify that take but this is the benefit of having my own Substack…I can just lob out big statements and expect the audience (you!) to just go along with it. You’re with me or you’re not!
Okay, fine, the quick case is this: throughout my career I’ve seen literal overnight success brought on by Ye via a single paparazzi shot. That doesn’t happen with anyone else in menswear, period. I myself have come dangerously close to full on Kansplay at various points (this latest era being one of them, I admit). Fact is, dude is always wearing cool new shit that is hard to predict and which, through sheer swag sauce and will, becomes a thing.
His latest zigzag has been towards giant worksite-ready boots. Rumor has it that this because the new Balenciaga Gap collection (which hilariously head-faked this morning’s launch) will feature a boot of this ilk. This all started off with the Balenciaga x Crocs rubber rain boots, which have a slightly farm-in-England vibe but if that farm was also spooky as hell and everyone there including the animals did Molly. He then kicked shit into overdrive when he busted out the now iconic pair of Red Wing 3049s at the Free Larry Hoover Concert (sidebar, I hope Larry is doing okay these days and is getting the legal attention he deserves).
Below I’ve decided to outline all of the boots he’s worn lately and what to know about them as well as where to cop. Enjoy!
Balenciaga Crocs™ Boot
$695, available sometimes at balenciaga.com but more likely Grailed or something
This is the boot Ye was wearing for solid 2 month stretch every single day at the end of 2021 and more recently a little bit in 2022. It’s a high-cut style that comes up just below the knee with a diesel-ass sole that is an exaggerated version of Crocs clogs. (Exaggerated versions of things is kind of what Balenciaga does.)
Finding a pair in black in men’s sizes remains a challenge to this day, partially because of supply chain, partially because of demand, and partially because Ye himself legit bought hundreds of pairs for himself that he’s been giving out like party favors. (I went to Sunday Service a couple months back and saw first hand that dude legit has hundreds of Balenciaga shoes just like, in a warehouse.)
That said, as far as the boots he’s been wearing these are honestly the most tame and simple.
My advice if you actually wanna wear them? Don’t be a bozo and tuck any kind of wider jeans into the top. If you go wide, make sure they’re wide enough to easy pull over top of the boots. Otherwise wear jeans that hug your legs and can easily slide into the boots without bunching up at the knees.
Red Wing 3049 Boots
$2,000 (approx), available on eBay
These replaced the Balenciaga Crocs boots at the FLH concert and went on a solid 2 month run of Ye wearing them everywhere regardless of climate. Most people know by now that Red Wing stopped making these boots back in 2016 which means coming into a pair these days is an eBay or Grailed-only option that’ll run you close to $2,000. By comparison, the above Balenciaga boots are only $700.
What makes these boots a challenge to wear not even stylistically but practically is that they’re designed to be worn in brick-ass temperatures, so unless you find yourself in the tundra or have rich guy anti-sweat powers, expect to get sweaty feet. Of all of these boots I’d say these present the biggest challenge to those who don’t wanna look like they’re dressing just like Ye. So just be ready to have people accuse you of doing such if you buy them, but fuck it!
Black Diamond X2 Boots
$339, available at galls.com
These boots have made a couple appearances but not a ton, most notably in the video for Pusha T’s “Diet Coke.” This boot is literally made for Firefighters and I took the time to find a YouTube video breaking them down so you didn’t have to.
I learned that basically they’re designed to a) protect firefighters feet from, um, fire, as well as have padding in strategic areas to keep their shins, toes, and ankles not broken. Basically, if an apocalypse breaks out, these are a solid option, and at $339 (as well as straight up in stock most places), one of the easiest come ups on this list.
There’s a cool feature on these boots wherein the insoles give you 3 width options. Leave all the liners in there and it’s a medium fit, take one out for a wide, and take both out for an extra-wide fit. More shoes should do this.
Fire-Dex FDXL-100 Boots
$420(ish), available at galls.com
Another Fire boot here, literally. These are made by a supply company called Fire-Dex, and they have a few different tiers of this boot with the 100 model Kanye’s wearing being the middle of the pack. There’s a 200 version as well, but those have more of an insane-o paneling situation on the shin which I think looks goofier than the 100s with their single panel shin area. Do you have any idea what the fuck I’m talking about at this point lol?
As you can see above, these have a red leather panel at the heel, but more notably reflective 3M piping. Basically if you try to use the flash in a fit pic with these all anyone is gonna see is some floating lines in the dark. Then you can make a joke to your friends about your alphets can’t stop shining or something.
BONUS: Balenciaga Rubber Trooper Boots
$650, available at neimanmarcus.com
As far as I can tell Kanye only wore these once, on New Year’s Eve in Miami, so it’s hard to call them his favorite. But he did sweep Julia Fox off her feet wearing them so maybe, like the stone in UNCUH JAMS, they possess magical powers. I’ll save my full defense of the Tetris-ish style for another post, but for now I will say that these perfectly embody the Balenciaga ethos of boundary-pushing footwear that haters gone h8 h8 h8 and Stans are gonna love. Personally, I like stuff that sparks a conversation and think the haters of them are a little too emotional about the whole thing. Like damn, dude, did these boots steal your girl?
With this Balenciaga and Balenci' boots and a new blue Yankee
Security gon need security for dis substack, yuck right? honestly im surprised i actually made it into the blawg.