Nelly’s Unreleased Nike Air Force 1 Sample for ‘Nellyvill…

Few people have done more for Nike’s Air Force 1 model than Nelly, whose 2002 hit “Air Force Ones” helped mainstream audiences understand the appeal of hip-hop’s favorite sneaker. Nelly’s relationship with Nike went both ways—he was never a regular Nike collaborator, but the brand did design a handful of shoes for him in the early 2000s.

There was a Nelly “Air Derrty” version of the Air Max 2 CB 94’ from 2003, numbered to just 1,000 pairs, that came in red and blue patent leather. There were also a couple promo-only Air Force 1s tied to Nellyville, his 2002 album that spawned the single “Air Force Ones.”

One of those Air Force 1s, a relatively plain white colorway with black Nellyville script, has made the rounds for years—Lil Yachty showed off a pair during a 2021 tour of his sneaker collection with Complex.

Another, a white sample pair from 2002 with an icy midsole and blue outsole, is being shown in public for the first time as part of an exhibition on Nike at the Vitra Design Museum in Germany. The sneaker features blue Nellyville script on the insole and another Nellyville hit on the heel that appears to be underneath the translucent midsole. The latter logo placement is a rarity, as it’s extremely uncommon for Nike to alter that area of the shoe.

The Nellyville Air Force 1s never released. In a 2022 episode of Complex’s Sneaker Shopping, Nelly explained that while Nike was sending him free product in the early 2000s, and even contributed funds to his Nellyville tour, he did not profit directly from his association with the Air Force 1.

While Nelly might not have benefited from any surge in the shoe’s popularity catalyzed by his song, he believes his work with Nike set a precedent that later hip-hop artists were able to capitalize on.

“Everybody that got Nike shoe deals and all of that need to be thanking us right now,” Nelly said in the episode, “because we opened Nike’s eyes to a lot of that.”

The Nike: Form Follows Motion exhibition will be open at the Vitra museum until May 18, 2025.