Nigel Sylvester Air Jordan 4 ‘Brick by Brick’ Interview

It’s a sunny summer afternoon in July and I’m in the back of a New York City pedicab surrounded by hundreds of kids on bikes barrelling up Park Avenue. I’m doing my best to film them with an iPhone as they blow past the seasoned pedicab driver, who’s doing his best to drag three of us across the city and keep up with the rest of the crowd.

Lil’ Yachty zooms past us on a rickety Citi Bike, a few seconds later so does jeweler Greg Yuna. It seems like the entirety of New York City is outside this afternoon, and they’re all there for one thing: Nigel Sylvester’s Go Ride, a biking event that celebrates World Bicycle Day. It isn’t actually the whole city that’s outside for the ride, that’s made clear by the hundreds of angry bystanders on the corner of 7th Avenue and 34th Street trying to make their way into Penn Station as Sylvester and the countless riders stare up at the screen above the iconic train station, watching the ad spot for Sylvester’s Air Jordan 4 RM “Grandma’s Driveway” collaboration. Sylvester, a BMX pro with sneaker world clout, brought a passionate crowd out in real life to participate in his sneaker’s rollout.

A few months later, in January, Sylvester was at it again, rolling up a giant Bike Air/Jumpman-branded brick on the back of a truck to the corner of Lafayette and Spring. Hundreds of fans flocked to the streets without even really knowing what they were doing there. The “stunt,” as Jordan Brand called it, was shut down by the cops. This time it was to promote his latest release with Jordan Brand, the Air Jordan 4 “Brick by Brick” that’s set to release on March 14.

“I love being disruptive in a positive way,” Sylvester tells Complex. “Being able to connect with the people on the ground, on the street level, shake their hands and say hello and have these conversations, man, I think that’s powerful. And for me coming up, I feel like that’s one of the things that sneaker culture was built upon was that true connectivity.”

It’s clear that Sylvester has momentum right now, both with Jordan and with the people. He has guys pulling train heists straight out of Breaking Bad to steal his shoes. Outside of the world’s most powerful sneaker collaborator, Travis Scott, it feels like Sylvester has the keys at Jordan Brand. In 2018 he got to collaborate on the Air Jordan 1 when it was the most popular sneaker in the (sneakerhead) world. Last year, he helped introduce the world to a new silhouette, the Air Jordan 4 RM, and now he’s getting his very own version of the Air Jordan 4—easily the Jumpman’s most popular model at the moment.

“I feel like when I’m approaching whatever it is that I’m doing, I’m coming to be the best,” Sylvester says. “I’m coming to leave my mark to tell my story and to be impactful… And I feel that’s exactly what we’re doing.”

We caught up with Sylvester a few weeks ahead of his fourth official Jordan release (not counting his friends and family Air Ship) to talk about his history with the brand, his future, unboxing his Air Jordan 4, and introducing his first Jumpman apparel line.

You worked on the Jordan 1 when that shoe was the most popular Jordan, now you’re working on the 4 in a similar situation. What does it mean to you to get to work on the brand’s most popular sneakers?
Having the Jordan Brand give me the keys to some of these grail silhouettes? Man, it means everything to me. I feel like it’s a testament to my time spent at the brand, to my hard work, to my storytelling, and I just want to make sure I do right by it.

Do you think that the Jordan 4 is the best shoe in the game right now?
I’m a Jordan 1 fan. I mean, I’m a Jordan Brand fan in general. But I would say the Jordan 1 “Bred” is my favorite of all time. I love the 4 silhouette as well and I’m happy that I got to leave my mark on it. Hopefully this is not the last time, but no, this is an incredible opportunity.

You said “Bred” 1s are your favorite shoe of all time. How do you feel about the brand bringing them back?
I think the Unbanned campaign was insane. You put together this amazing roster of Jordan Brand athletes and family, and take the opportunity to retell such a classic story. There’s so many kids nowadays that are buying Jordans, that wear Jordans, that collect Jordans, and they may not know that story. So I think kudos to the brand for taking the opportunity again to tell that story and just to shed light on the history of all of this kind of where it started

You got to be in that campaign that aired during the Super Bowl, All-Star Weekend, the Grammys, etc. alongside some of the biggest names in the industry. How crazy is that?
It’s insane, right? I think about just riding my bicycle up Merrick Boulevard and dreaming about these moments, fantasizing about what it would feel like to be in a commercial that plays during the Super Bowl or through some of these iconic historical moments, man. And to finally be sitting there watching the Grammys and it aired for the first time, I was like, “This is insane.” And my phone’s ringing, my mom’s calling me, man. It was a testament to the hard work, a testament to what I’ve been doing with BMX to this point. And that’s going to keep continuing the energy.

Outside of Travis Scott, you seem to be the guy at Jordan Brand right now for collaborations. Do you believe that, and would a young Nigel ever have believed that was possible?
That’s a good question. One hundred percent. I feel like when I’m approaching whatever it is that I’m doing, I’m coming to be the best. I’m coming to leave my mark to tell my story and to be impactful, to be disruptive. And I feel that’s exactly what we’re doing. The partnership between Jordan Brand and I, we’re highlighting bike culture and I feel that’s a new space for the brand. And again, salute to the brand for being open-minded and for coming on this journey with me.

You mentioned this earlier in the day, saying that you see Bike Air is to Air Jordan as Nike SB is to Nike, what did you mean by that?
Bike Air is this new space for Jordan Brand where we’re channeling bike culture, that experience on and off the bicycle. I believe the bicycle is the most accessible mode of transportation in the world. Anywhere you go in the world, there’s a bicycle there. The bicycle is a rite of passage. Most kids in their lives ride a bicycle before they bounce a basketball or swing a baseball bat or catch a football. It is one of those things that once you learn how to do, you never forget. So taking this opportunity now to dive into that experience, to dive into cycling culture is very exciting. I have ridden bikes my entire life, been pro for over a decade and a half now, and having this opportunity to channel all that experience and all that information into this product and tell these stories that are very important to me, that are important to people around the world, that’s something very special. And I believe the future is bright for Bike Air.

What do you think it would take for Bike Air to become the Nike SB of Jordan?
I think doing exactly what we’re doing now is going to continue to fuel Bike Air. Releasing dope product, telling amazing stories, connecting with the community, and just cultivating the energy that Jordan Brand and I have put out for years dating back to my first AJ1 that I released in 2018. The first time Jordan Brand did a distressed AJ1—a distressed shoe in general, and how people in the community just embraced it, right? There were mixed emotions around it and it sparked the conversation, but I think that concept aged very well where you see it so much now and people are so receptive to it.

You’ve got some legitimate momentum right now. I’ve been with you at the “Brick by Brick” stunt and Go Ride. You’ve basically shut down New York City twice. What are those experiences like for you seeing all of this work? All of these fans come together and like I said, shutting down the streets of New York City?
I love being disruptive in a positive way. You speaking of Go Ride, last year, man, where we released the AJ4 RM “Grandma’s Driveway,” there were over 1,500 kids on bicycles riding through the streets, man. And that was so powerful. It was so much fun. People are telling me, man, “I haven’t ridden a bike in years and that was just a really good time.” And that’s what I want to do. I want to connect with people on the ground and just provide a good time and spark conversation and ideas and that’s what Go Ride is. And that was an amazing time. And then earlier this year we did the giant brick and we had over 200 kids come out and we threw t-shirts out, and again, just that excitement is everything. Being able to connect with the people on the ground, on the street level, shake their hands and say hello and have these conversations, man, I think that’s powerful. And for me coming up, I feel like that’s one of the things that sneaker culture was built upon was that true connectivity.

We’ve gotten to an era in sneakers where everything gets leaked. How were you able to avoid the leaks with these? It seems like they kind of came out of nowhere.
For me, I’m all about the element of surprise, right? When you take it back to the early days of sneaker culture really starting to bubble, that element of surprise was so important. You didn’t know what was coming out, you just kind of walked into a store and you saw them. It’s like, “Oh shit, it’s here.” I think there’s something special to that. So for me, when I’m releasing a pair, I want it to be very intentional about when people see them and how we tell that story, how we take people along that journey. So that giant brick was supposed to be the first moment and people would start asking questions like, “What’s going on here? Why is there a giant 13-foot brick that says Bike Air and Air Jordan on the side of it with a Jumpman logo?” and kind of tease them. And then we went into the next phase, which was the fashion show and dinner. And even that, everyone that came to the dinner and the fashion show, they didn’t know we were doing a show. The show was a complete surprise. And having that opportunity to do that, this one is special and I’m grateful for it. But two, I like to see the natural reaction. I sit and ideate these ideas and I want people to experience them to the fullest.

As an athlete, shoes have to perform for you. Do these have any sort of performance modifications? Are they kind of built like the SB Jordan 4 in a way? Is there anything different than the standard Jordan 4 on these?
Yeah, so one thing that people say a lot about the Jordan 4 RM is how comfortable they are, and these 4s sit on that same bedding. So just having that comfort is super important. I’ve ridden in a lot of shoes before in my life and some of them aren’t terrible on the pedal, but I think the focus for myself and the brand moving forward is making sure that we add that comfort into the shoes that we’re releasing. And again, being intentional, whether it’s a shoe, whether it’s a jacket, making sure that we’re being thoughtful about the experience.

Do you know if it’s the same kind of tooling that was used in the SB 4?
I don’t know if it’s the same tooling or not, but I know it’s very similar.

How limited are these?
Extremely limited, but people will get a chance to get them. They’re going to release on SNKRS, they’ll be at NBHD stores. We’re going to do something special in New York around them so people will have a chance to get them, but they’re definitely going to be limited.

What’s next for you and Jordan Brand?
What’s next? Bike Air forever. That’s what’s next. We’re going to continue to tell these stories and release products that are meaningful, that are considered, and of course I’m going to continue to ride my bike. It brings me joy and I feel as long as I’m in a space that I can create and be myself and connect with people around the world, that’s what matters.