Kanye's kicks

While Kanye has always considered himself at the forefront of fashion, he stepped it up a notch during Paris Fashion Week. West posted a video on his blog over the weekend that highlighted his fashion achievements of the past week. As he sat in his Paris (he pronounces it "Pair-ee") hotel, dressed in a red blazer and black gloves, West did a bit of gloating.

"I have so much to stunt about that it baffles me," West says in the clip. "So I asked myself this question, and you can ask yourself the same: Who do you know with two thumbs and his own Louis shoe? This guy!"

The ever-humble West is excited about his recent sneaker collaboration with Louis Vuitton. He designed a monochrome mid-top sneaker with a quilted flap in the back — where else are you going to tuck your jeans?

West told the Web site Dazed Digital that he was contacted by the French luxury brand about collaborating. "They chose to contact me," he said. "Who wouldn't want to work with Louis Vuitton? They're the number-one luxury brand. It lets people know you like nice things."

West said he thought the red sneaker ripped the runway open. "As soon as they put that red, it was killer! It's like an accessory that can express your personality. Like an instant tattoo!"

Despite all the good news, West did have some serious news to share in his video. Surrounded by samples of his sneaker and unable to stop smiling, he said he has to change his name. West had been known as the Louis Vuitton Don, but the collaboration with Louis is the ultimate feather in his cap.

"Due to what has happened so severely when the red shoes hit the runway, I was forced to change my name to Martin Louis the King Jr. Address me as such."
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Late last year, Kanye West announced his aspirations to be an intern with Louis Vuitton. A day after performing for the nation’s new president, West quickly jetted out to Paris to officially his new sneaker collection with the fashion company.


Kanye West's Louis Vitton sneaker line premiered last week. Although the rapper-producer only debuted one piece off his line with the fashion giant, he’s had the sneaker world buzzing about the bright red pair, a midtop with no frills, save for a quilted flap in the back, designed to tuck pants into. The idea for the design, however, has come from perhaps the unlikeliest of sources.

“The inspiration came from a jacket with a huge collar in the movie Dune,” West said to the fashion blog for the New York Times. “Most sneakers focus on the tongue, so I wanted to do something different.”

This will not be the only sneaker line Kanye is working on. West has also collaborated with Nike to release another highly anticipated sneaker line, the Air Yeezy. The limited edition pair of kicks is set to drop in March. Meanwhile, West’s Louis Vuitton shoe collection is scheduled to be released in June.