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During Milan Fashion Week in January, always-at-a-hundred fashion house Versace sent one hell of an attention-grabbing sneaker down the runway. Sure, it wasn't the only loud designer sneakers that debuted that week—in 2018, it seems like a new one drops every week. But this Versace shoe was different. First, it was designed in collaboration with the always-stylish rapper 2 Chainz (with newly installed Versace sneaker designer Salehe Bembury steering the ship). Second, and maybe more importantly, the shoe featured a delightfully bizarre chain-link pattern sole, unlike anything we’re used to seeing on the bottom of a sneaker. Genuine novelty is increasingly rare in the world of high-end sneakers—so it made sense that, in the months that followed, the “Chain Reaction” sneaker has dominated the Instagram feeds of too many stylish rappers and fashion insiders to count. Now the rest of us get a chance to own a pair, as the extravagant sneaker is finally for sale.
It takes a lot to make noise in the sneaker world with this one, but Versace certainly pulled it off. This Chain Reaction plays into the booming ultra-bulky sneaker trend and even gives the ridiculously layered sole featured on the Balenciaga Triple S a run for its money. The overpuffed sole stands tall (like if you stepped on a bag of the world’s most expensive marshmallows) and the shoe comes in a variety of flashy patterned fabrics or more toned-down (relatively speaking, of course) solid colors. It’s by no means a quiet shoe. The one-two combo of the unusual sole and loud colors is certainly going to turn some heads, which is exactly what 2 Chainz and Versace were probably going for. This level of lavishness comes with the price tag to match, too—but a pair of sneakers this stunt-worthy was never going to come cheap.
2 Chainz is known for his love of next-level luxury, just as Versace is known for its high-end fashion. That their first footwear collaboration is so over the top feels cosmically right. And after months of waiting, one of the most opulent sneakers on the market is finally available to buy. If you’re looking to grab some most expensivest shit, then copping a pair of these sneakers is a pretty good start.
$995, available now in-store and online via Versace and the GOAT app.