Nike Announces Grateful Dead Sneakers Release Date

Nike teamed with the Grateful Dead to offer the Nike SB Dunk Low Grateful Dead sneakers. Available in three colors, the orange shoes come out via FTC on July 18 with the yellow version up for sale via SNKRS on July 24 and at select skate shops the same date. The green version will be released at select skate shops on the 24th as well.

The shoes feature the dancing bears, iconic imagery that first appeared on the back cover of History Of The Grateful Dead, Volume 1 (Bear’s Choice), a 1973 live album. Additionally, the famed Steal Your Face skull appears on the underside of the sockliner. The shoes come in tribute to Owsley “Bear” Stanley, one of the Dead’s first audio engineers and a benefactor of the band.

“As the band’s benefactor, Bear was an incredibly huge part of the Grateful Dead’s ability to become who they were,” noted David Lemieux, the band’s archivist and legacy manager, in a statement. “They were talented musicians, but they would not have had the financial freedom to forgo jobs, move to Los Angeles and practice for 14 hours a day. The band wouldn’t become what it is today without Bear’s innovations and contributions.”

Swipe through for images of the kicks: