Last week, Nike Sportswear announced the release of the Roshe LD-1000 in Obsidian and White, and for the OG Cortez fans, Black and White.
This follows on the heels of last weeks release of NikeLab’s version of LD-1000 in “Forrest Gump” colorway, complete with white upper and bright red Swoosh. Imagine Forrest running through the desert with his parka and beard and these bad boys.
(Source: Hypebeast)
For those of us who slept on it, the Obsidian and White colorway is more-or-less your chance to grab a “version” of the fragment design x NikeLab Roshe LD-1000 SP release last October. If you recall, this one-off release looked like the love child of the modern Nike Roshe Run (One) and the Nike Cortez.
You get the quintessential Swoosh with the recognizable Roshe sole unit, instant classic.
Fragments design’s release had a few specific features that the Roshe LD-1000 will not, including an understated logo along the sole. But nonetheless, these are still a great staple for your summer wardrobe.
The Nike Cortez is an important part of Nike history. Originally created as Nike’s first track shoe in 1972, right around the time of the Summer Olympics, the Cortez has since become one of the Nike’s all time sleeper hits.
While it’s hard to imagine the last time Nike Heads rushed the spot for a Cortez release, the shoe holds it’s own as other silhouettes have come and gone during its 43 year history. During the subsequent 43 years, the Cortez has gone from the track field to the streets, and many places in between.
Long before the Cortez was associated with people yelling “Run, Forrest, Run” at each other, it was heavy in the streets of Southern California with Death Row Records set. You’ve probably seen pictures of Eazy E and Ice Cube rocking a pair of the classic black and whites somewhere on the Internet.
Since the black and white Cortez’s made their way to hip hop, they’ve since become synonymous with Compton. Rapper Kendrick Lamar is often seen wearing a pair of Cortez Classic’s, much like his mentor and NWA predecessor Dr. Dre.
But as it has done many times in the past, Nike breathes life into the Cortez. The original shoe was a slimmer silhouette, made specifically for running, that came in loud, primary colors (think yellow on red on green).
That moved into a bulky, simplified version with neutral, block colorways as seen on your Forest’s and Eazy’s. Then comes the LD-1000, which trades in the original raised wedge “sponge-sole” for the Roshe Run sole, and tightens up the upper silhouette with a clean, textured mesh. What remains is the giant, so big and clean you can’t miss it, Swoosh.
For the classic Cortez, the Swoosh has always been the defining feature of the model. The Swoosh is easily customizable, and in most cases, it comes in white. This is your blank slank. The Cortez has always been unique in its simplicity, and the Roshe LD-1000 reinvention adds a second life to the original lifestyle runner.