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Run-D.M.C. and Adidas

Hulton Archive

Already a staple in urban fashion, Adidas sneakers became an emblem of the newly emerging hip-hop culture with the 1986 release of Run-D.M.C.'s "My Adidas." As far as historic collaborations go, the song led to the first-ever endorsement deal between a musical act and an athletic company. But the group's footwear anthem was more than just an ode to Adidas, it was an attempt to dispel negative stereotypes about the people who wore them. "It came from the place of people would look at the b-boys, the b-girls and go, 'Oh, those are the people that cause all the problems in here,'" Darryl "D.M.C." McDaniels told MTV on the songs 25th anniversary. "And, 'Those young people are nothing but troublemakers and those young people don't know nothing.' So they was judging the book by its cover, without seeing what was inside of it."

"So me, Run and Jay was like, 'Yeah, we going to make a record about our Adidas.' Yeah, we wear Adidas [with] no laces, we got gold chains, we got Cazals and all of that, but I go to St. John's University. These Adidas stepped onstage at Live Aid," the rapper said in reference to lyrics like, "My Adidas, walk through concert doors/ And roam all over coliseum floors/ I stepped on stage at Live Aid," and, "On the strength of our famous university/ We took the beat from the street and put it on TV ... We started in the alley, now we chill in Cali/ And I won't trade 'em in for no beat up Ballys."

"It was about taking the image of the b-boy and b-girl and letting the world know we're a people of vision, we're inspiration, motivation, we're educated too," D.M.C. said. "So it's kind of a kick in the face to the people that was hating on hip-hop."

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