Veteran rapper Darryl
“DMC” McDaniels, formerly of pioneering rap group Run-DMC, has ended
his 20-year affiliation with Adidas.
The rapper has joined on to promote the Upscale French-owned
brand, Le Coq Sportif.
DMC said he came across the brand on his quest to find a comfortable
sneaker, after many years with Adidas, whom he once endorsed in a now legendary
1986 pact with the German sportswear giant.
DMC was introduced to the Le Coq Sportif brand earlier this
year after a trip to the company’s New York show room with a business
associate.
“When summer came, I had to put my Adidas back on because
literally, no other sneaker looked right on me," DMC told AllHipHop.com.
"For some reason, those shell-toes were mine. Not for Run, not [Jam Master]
Jay’s. For me. I couldn’t wear nothing else.”
DMC is also helping Le Coq Sportif in a design capacity,
helping to choose color schemes of the sneakers.
In January, the Sausheim, France based Le Coq Sportif announced
it would make a push into the United States apparel market via a collaboration
with Itochu International, the company that owns the Le Coq Sportif license
in the United States.
Hip-Hop fashionistas will recall the Le Coq Sportif brand was
popular in hip-hop circles in the mid-1980’s.
DMC said he was not simply signing a shoe deal and had rebuffed
offers until he found a shoe that also reflected his personal style.
“I put those shoes on [Le Coq Sportif] and it was a wrap,”
DMC said. “I finally found the sneaker I was looking for. Finally I
could get out of my shell-toes.”
Run-DMC helped revolutionize hip-hop marketing when they
recorded the hit song “My Adidas” featured on their landmark 1986
album, Raising Hell.
“Adidas was part of a great past, but with my new album
and documentary show coming out this fall on VH1, I found a sneaker brand to
represent a great future," DMC continued.
DMC is preparing to release his debut solo album Checks
Thugs and Rock ‘n Roll on his own label Rags 2 Riches Records and will
also be featured in an upcoming Le Coq Sportif ad campaign.
The rapper is also
the subject of a new VH1 franchise called “VH1 Rock Docs,” which
reveals untold stories in the world of rock and hip-hop music.