Lupe Fiasco Criticizes Air Jordan 1 Flyknit

When February rolls around that means it's Black History Month, and to mark the occasion, Jordan Brand recently released a Black History Month-theme set of kicks. However, one rapper isn't feeling the sneaker release.

Lupe Fiasco went on Instagram to share his thoughts about the latest Air Jordan 1 Flyknit BHM. While he says he’s the biggest Michael Jordan and Jordan 1 fan, he thinks the Jumpman brand got it wrong with their latest release.

“I noticed the BHM Flyknit Jordan 1’s and thought they were dope so I picked them up and noticed that the red black and green was on the bottom which is dope but then a little red flag went off in my mind," he wrote in the caption of an Instagram photo of the sneaker. "I thought 'hey that’s our Pan-African flag!' I then thought 'if I wear these wouldn’t that mean I would be literally stepping on the Pan-African flag?? The symbol of Afro-American heritage etc etc.' I decided not to get them for that reason."

The rapper, who recently dropped his "Calm Dat" freestyle, claims to have reached out to one of his connections at the brand to express his thoughts about this and says that the representative agrees with him.

“I think it’s just a learning lesson on how sensitive we as artists and creators need to be with the details of the things we make," the sword-wielding MC further shares. "The best and most honorable intentions can sometimes be undone with slight unintentional oversights. I love Jordan’s. Mostly because Micheal Jordan is a hero to me and I got to witness him lift Chicago to heights of greatness as a kid."

While it probably was unintentional on Jordan Brand’s part, as Lupe says, it’s more of a sign of the times of how things can be perceived negatively in today’s world.

The Air Jordan 1 Flyknit BHM is out in stores now if you’d like to see them for yourself. View Lupe's IG post below.

—Julian Jimenez

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Filed Under: Lupe Fiasco