Despite Kanye West‘s silence over the past few weeks allegedly stemming from the trauma of his ongoing divorce, the rapper and fashion designer is still breaking records. West’s latest fashion development, his Nike Air Yeezy 1s sneakers, are officially the most expensive sneakers ever sold. In a private sale, the sample was sold for a record-breaking 1.8 million dollars, as was announced by Sotheby’s auction house on Monday, April 26.
The original valuation for the “Grammy Worn” sneakers was 1 million dollars, but the Yeezy is now almost triple the $615,000 sale for a pair of 1985 Nike Air Jordan 1s, which were worn by Michael Jordan during a pre-season game in Italy.
“The price sets a new milestone for a publicly recorded sneaker sale, shattering the current auction record for sneakers by almost three times, and establishing the Yeezy 1 Prototypes as the most valuable sneakers ever and the first recorded sneaker sale for more than $1 million,” Sotheby said in a statement.
In 2008 at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards, West wore his Nike Air Yeezy with black leather high-tops for his performance of “Hey Mama” and “Stronger.”
Sneaker investing platform that allows users the opportunity to buy and trade shares in highly desired and deluxe edition sneakers, RARES, acquired the size 12 Yeezy’s and sold shares of the shoes on June 16.
RARES founder and CEO Gerome Sapp said in a statement, “Our goal in purchasing such an iconic shoe–and a piece of history–is to increase accessibility and empower the communities that birthed sneaker culture with the tools to gain financial freedom through RARES. ”
In addition, Sotheby’s head of streetwear and modern collectibles, Brahm Wachter, said in a statement that the sale “speaks volumes of Kanye’s legacy as one of the most influential clothing and sneaker designers of our time.”
Amid his success, Kanye is currently in the middle of a divorce after 6 years of marriage with Kim Kardashian. The two share four children together; North, Chicago, Saint, and Psalm West. Neither Kim nor Kanye has said much about the divorce, but they had agreed to joint custody after the divorce.
But, seemingly contented, Kanye is still making money moves.
