91-589: Saul Stacey Williams (born February 29, 1972) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, musician, poet, writer, and actor. He is known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop , and for his lead roles in the 1998 independent film Slam and the 2013 jukebox musical Holler If Ya Hear Me . Saul Stacey Williams was born in Newburgh, New York , on February 29, 1972, the youngest of three children. He attended Newburgh Free Academy , where he wrote his song "Black Stacey". He graduated from Morehouse College with
182-620: A BA in acting and philosophy, then moved to New York City, where he earned an MFA in acting from New York University 's Graduate Acting Program at the Tisch School of the Arts . While at New York University, he became part of the New York café poetry scene. He also lived in Brazil as an exchange student from 1988 to 1989. By 1995, Williams had become an open mic poet. In 1996, he won
273-554: A Grammy Award for Album of the Year —making it only the second hip-hop album to win the award ( The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill being the first) and has been certified diamond by selling 11 times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). MF Doom had been on the come up in the underground scene after releasing his debut studio album, Operation: Doomsday . He came back to
364-486: A $ 12 billion share buyback, as well as a two-for-one stock split, with shares to begin trading at the decreased price on December 24. The split will be the seventh in company history. In June 2018, Nike announced it would initiate a $ 15 billion share buyback over four years, to begin in 2019 upon completion of the previous buyback program. For the fiscal year 2018, Nike reported earnings of US$ 1.933 billion, with annual revenue of US$ 36.397 billion, an increase of 6.0% over
455-593: A Bermudan subsidiary, Nike International Ltd. This transfer allowed the subsidiary to charge royalties to its European headquarters in Hilversum , Netherlands , effectively converting taxable company profits to an account payable in tax-free Bermuda . Although the subsidiary was effectively run by executives at Nike's main offices in Beaverton, Oregon—to the point where a duplicate of the Bermudan company's seal
546-624: A New York based company focused on digital sales and machine learning technology. Nike was made a member of the Dow Jones Industrial Average in 2013, when it replaced Alcoa . On December 19, 2013, Nike's quarterly profit rose due to a 13 percent increase in global orders for merchandise since April of that year. Future orders of shoes or clothes for delivery between December and April, rose to $ 10.4 billion. Nike shares (NKE) rose 0.6 percent to $ 78.75 in extended trading. In November 2015, Nike announced it would initiate
637-440: A combination of groundbreaking innovations including a full-length air cushioned sole, an external heel counter, a crashpad in the heel for shock absorption, and Fit Frame technology for a stable fit. In 2023, Nike told ESPN that it would cease using kangaroo skins in its products by the end of that year and debut "a new Nike-only, proprietary synthetic upper, [with] a new material that is a better performance solution and replaces
728-426: A distributor for Japanese shoe maker Onitsuka Tiger , making most sales at track meets out of Knight's automobile. According to Otis Davis , a University of Oregon student-athlete coached by Bowerman and Olympic gold medalist at the 1960 Summer Olympics , his coach made the first pair of Nike shoes for him, contradicting a claim that they were made for Phil Knight. According to Davis, "I told Tom Brokaw that I
819-546: A five-year relationship. They met when he made a guest appearance on the series Girlfriends . On January 17, 2009, White announced via her Myspace blog that she and Williams were no longer together. He is now married to actress Anisia Uzeyman . He lived in Paris for four years but now resides in Los Angeles . Alternative hip hop Alternative hip hop (also known as alternative rap and experimental hip hop )
910-569: A gray water treatment center. Nike is mainly owned by institutional investors, who hold around 68% of all shares. The 10 largest shareholders of Nike in early 2024 were: Nike has contracted with more than 700 shops around the world and has offices located in 45 countries outside the United States. Most of the factories are located in Asia, including Indonesia, China, Taiwan, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, Philippines, and Malaysia. Nike
1001-410: A loved one or whomever, there needs to be an infiltration process, like you have a window open over there. That is the purpose of poetry: it is the window that opens, that allows some air in, some other insight, some other possibility so we can explore all that we feel, all that we think but with the space to see more than what we know, because there is so much more than we know. If I didn't open myself to
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#17327834457981092-455: A reading of his 2006 poetry book of the same name. This collaboration with Thomas Kessler (who also set Williams' spoken-word track ",said the shotgun to the head" to music) was released with two payment options: listeners could download chapters 18 to 22 of the 27-minute composition in MP3 format for free, or could download the entire 33-chapter composition in lossless AIFF format for $ 6, along with
1183-489: A regional early release were known as Quickstrikes , and became highly desirable items for teenage members of the sneakerhead subculture . By the 1990s and 2000s , American and European teenagers associated with the preppy or popular clique began combining these sneakers, leggings , sweatpants, crop tops , and tracksuits with regular casual chic street clothes such as jeans, skirts, leg warmers , slouch socks , and bomber jackets . Particularly popular were
1274-478: A status symbol in modern urban fashion and hip-hop fashion due to its association with success in sport. Beginning in the 1980s, various items of Nike clothing became staples of mainstream American youth fashion , especially tracksuits, shell suits , baseball caps , Air Jordans , Air Force 1's, and Air Max running shoes with thick, air cushioned rubber soles and contrasting blue, yellow, green, white, or red trim. Limited edition sneakers and prototypes with
1365-482: A street-life experience. Kanye led a wave of new artists— Kid Cudi , Wale , Lupe Fiasco , Kidz in the Hall , Drake , Nicki Minaj —who lacked the interest or ability to create narratives about any past gunplay or drug-dealing ." Similarly, in a retrospective article, Rosie Swash of The Guardian viewed the album's sales competition with 50 Cent's Curtis as a historical moment in hip hop, writing that it "highlighted
1456-614: A string of EPs, he released the LP Amethyst Rock Star with producer Rick Rubin in 2001. In September 2004, he released his self-titled album to much acclaim. He played several shows supporting Nine Inch Nails on their European tour in summer 2005, and has also supported The Mars Volta . Williams was invited to the Lollapalooza music festival around that time, and the Chicago stage allowed Williams to attract
1547-539: A wider audience. He appeared on the Nine Inch Nails album Year Zero , and supported the group on their 2006 tour of North America. On the tour, Williams announced that Trent Reznor would co-produce his next album. This collaboration resulted in 2007's The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! . The album was available only from its website until a physical CD was issued, featuring new tracks and extended album artwork. The first 100,000 customers on
1638-601: A writer and actor in the film, which would win both the Sundance Festival Grand Jury Prize and the Cannes Camera D'Or (Golden Camera). Around 1998, Williams was also breaking into music. He had performed with such artists as Nas , The Fugees , Christian Alvarez, Blackalicious , Erykah Badu , KRS-One , Zack De La Rocha , De La Soul , Buckethead , and DJ Krust , as well as poets Allen Ginsberg and Sonia Sanchez . After releasing
1729-712: A writer, Williams has been published in The New York Times , Esquire , Bomb Magazine , and African Voices , as well as releasing four collections of poetry. As a poet and musician, Williams has toured and lectured across the world, appearing at many universities and colleges. In his interview in the book Words in Your Face: A Guided Tour Through Twenty Years of the New York City Poetry Slam , Williams explained why he creates within so many genres: "It's not that I balance those arts out, all
1820-742: Is "squishier, bouncier, and lighter" than foams in typical running shoes. In the middle of the ZoomX foam there is a full-length carbon fiber plate "designed to generate extra spring in every step". At the time of this writing Nike had just released its newest product from the Vaporfly line, the Nike ZoomX Vaporfly NEXT%, which was marketed as "the fastest shoe we’ve ever made" using Nike's "two most innovative technologies, Nike ZoomX foam and VaporWeave material". The Nike brand, with its distinctive " Swoosh " logo, quickly became regarded as
1911-539: Is 3000 yuan per month. The factory employs 70,000 people. This practice was in place for nearly 20 years. On November 5, 2017, the Paradise Papers , a set of confidential electronic documents relating to offshore investment , revealed that Nike is among the corporations that used offshore companies to avoid taxes. Appleby documents detail how Nike boosted its after-tax profits by, among other maneuvers, transferring ownership of its Swoosh trademark to
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#17327834457982002-459: Is a subgenre of hip hop music that encompasses a wide range of styles that are not typically identified as mainstream. AllMusic defines it as comprising " hip hop groups that refuse to conform to any of the traditional stereotypes of rap, such as gangsta , bass , hardcore , and party rap. Instead, they blur genres drawing equally from funk and pop/rock , as well as jazz , soul , reggae , and even folk ." Alternative hip hop developed in
2093-467: Is doing now, those are the kinds of sounds that are on Kamaal the Abstract . Maybe even a little more out. Kamaal was just me, guerrilla. Similarly, BET refused to play "Lovin' It", the lead single of duo Little Brother 's socio-politically charged concept album The Minstrel Show , which provided a tongue-in-cheek critique of African American pop culture, on the grounds that the group's music
2184-1035: Is hesitant to disclose information about the contract companies it works with. However, due to harsh criticism from some organizations like CorpWatch, Nike has disclosed information about its contract factories in its Corporate Governance Report. In the 1990s, Nike received criticism for its use of sweatshops . Beginning in 1990, many protests occurred in big cities such as Los Angeles, Washington, DC and Boston in order to show public outcry for Nike's use of child labor and sweatshops. Nike has been criticized for contracting with factories (known as Nike sweatshops ) in countries such as China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Mexico. Vietnam Labor Watch, an activist group, has documented that factories contracted by Nike have violated minimum wage and overtime laws in Vietnam as late as 1996, although Nike claims that this practice has been stopped. As of July 2011, Nike stated that two-thirds of its factories producing Converse products still do not meet
2275-617: Is not being used. In 2001, a BBC documentary uncovered occurrences of child labor and poor working conditions in a Cambodian factory used by Nike. The documentary focused on six girls, who all worked seven days a week, often 16 hours a day. In April 2014, one of the biggest strikes in mainland China took place at the Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings Dongguan shoe factory, producing amongst others for Nike. Yue Yuen did underpay an employee by 250 yuan (40.82 US Dollars) per month. The average salary at Yue Yuen
2366-504: Is specifically barred from forcibly annexing the land that Nike and Columbia Sportswear occupy in Washington County for 35 years, while Electro Scientific Industries and Tektronix receive the same protection for 30 years. Nike is planning to build a 3.2 million square foot expansion to its World Headquarters in Beaverton. The design will target LEED Platinum certification and will be highlighted by natural daylight, and
2457-473: Is the recipient of consistent critical acclaim but is generally shunned by American mainstream media and widely regarded as commercially unappealing. New York radio personality and spoken word artist Imhotep Gary Byrd 's single "The Crown" was rejected by American radio stations for being "too Black and too positive." However, the song was very well received and become a hit in Europe. It reached number 6 on
2548-598: The 9th Canadian Screen Awards in 2021, for his performance in the film Akilla's Escape . In 2021, Neptune Frost , which Williams wrote and co-directed with Anisia Uzeyman , premiered in Cannes at Directors' Fortnight . The film was supported by a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2018. Williams is a vegan . He is a vocal critic of the War on Terrorism and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan . Among his better-known works are
2639-788: The Nike+ product that monitors a runner's performance via a radio device in the shoe that links to the iPod nano . While the product generates useful statistics, it has been criticized by researchers who were able to identify users' RFID devices from 60 feet (18 m) away using small, concealable intelligence motes in a wireless sensor network . In 2004, Nike launched the SPARQ Training Program /Division. Some of Nike's newest shoes contain Flywire and Lunarlite Foam to reduce weight. The Air Zoom Vomero running shoe, introduced in 2006 and currently in its 11th generation, featured
2730-805: The UK Singles Chart , becoming the longest record ever to reach the top 10 in the history of the British Charts. Over the years, multiple organizations representing African Americans such as the National Black Leadership Alliance and the National Congress of Black Women have released statements criticizing how urban radio stations refuse to play rap music that does not demean and degrade black women, shunning alternative hip-hop artists such as Arrested Development and Dead Prez . Q-Tip , frontman of
2821-602: The alternative rock movement, alternative hip hop segued into the mainstream at the dawn of the 1990s. Arrested Development , along with The Fugees , stand as some of the first few alternative rap to be recognized by mainstream audiences. The classic debut albums 3 Feet High and Rising , People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm , and Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde achieved minor commercial success as they garnered immense acclaim from music critics, who described
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2912-404: The 2000s, alternative hip hop reattained its place within the mainstream, due in part to the declining commercial viability of gangsta rap as well as the crossover success of artists such as Outkast, Kanye West , and Gnarls Barkley . Outkast's fifth studio album, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (2003) receive universal acclaim from music critics and had two number-one hit singles. The album won
3003-531: The 2000s. It sold Starter in 2007 and Bauer Hockey in 2008. The company sold Umbro in 2012 and Cole Haan in 2013. As of 2020, Nike owns only one subsidiary: Converse Inc. Nike acquired Zodiac, a consumer data analytics company, in March 2018. In August 2019, the company acquired Celect, a Boston-based predictive analytics company. In December 2021, Nike purchased RTFKT Studios, a virtual shoe company that makes NFTs. In February 2021, Nike acquired Datalogue,
3094-676: The Dunk Genesis Cryptokicks collection, which features over 20,000 NFTs. One design by Takashi Murakami was sold for $ 134,000 in April 2022. Nike's world headquarters are surrounded by the city of Beaverton but are within unincorporated Washington County . The city attempted to forcibly annex Nike's headquarters, which led to a lawsuit by Nike, and lobbying by the company that ultimately ended in Oregon Senate Bill 887 of 2005. Under that bill's terms, Beaverton
3185-573: The East Coast, in Wellesley, Massachusetts . In 1971, Bowerman used his wife's waffle iron to experiment on rubber to create a new sole for track shoes that would grip but be lightweight and increase the runner's speed. Oregon's Hayward Field was transitioning to an artificial surface, and Bowerman wanted a sole which could grip to grass or bark dust without the use of spikes. Bowerman was talking to his wife about this puzzle over breakfast, when
3276-797: The Jewels , Childish Gambino , Logic , Brockhampton , L.I.F.T. and nothing, nowhere . Regarding audiences, according to Jeff Regan, senior director of music programming for the Alt Nation channel on Sirius XM Radio , "This generation has maybe never even gone to a record store or CD store where there was a hip-hop section and a rock section—it has all been in front of them on a screen." Thus recording artists and groups traditionally perceived as rappers are included on his predominantly rock -oriented playlists. He said, "Whether it's Lil Peep or Brockhampton or Post Malone , we have tried records from all those artists. ... We need some depth perception in
3367-974: The Nike 6.0, Nike NYX, and Nike SB shoes, designed for skateboarding. Nike has recently introduced cricket shoes called Air Zoom Yorker, designed to be 30% lighter than their competitors'. In 2008, Nike introduced the Air Jordan XX3, a high-performance basketball shoe designed with the environment in mind. Nike's range of products include shoes, jerseys, shorts, cleats , baselayers , etc. for sports activities such as soccer, basketball, track and field, combat sports , tennis, American football , athletics, golf, ice hockey , and cross training for men, women, and children. Nike also sells shoes for activities such as skateboarding , baseball, cycling, volleyball, wrestling , cheerleading , lacrosse , cricket , aquatic activities, auto racing, and other athletic and recreational uses. Nike partnered with Apple Inc. to produce
3458-571: The Nike brand was valued at $ 29.6 billion. Nike ranked 89th in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. The company ranked 239th in the Forbes Global 2000 companies in 2024. Nike, originally known as Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS), was founded by University of Oregon track athlete Phil Knight and his coach, Bill Bowerman , on January 25, 1964. The company initially operated in Eugene , Oregon as
3549-567: The Nike logo. Runner Jeff Johnson was brought in to help market the new brand and was credited for coining the name “Nike”. It would bear the Swoosh newly designed by Carolyn Davidson . The Swoosh was first used by Nike on June 18, 1971, and was registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on January 22, 1974. In 1976, the company hired John Brown and Partners, based in Seattle, as its first advertising agency . The following year,
3640-568: The US Billboard 200 chart, and briefly became the best-selling album of all time. That same year, A Tribe Called Quest reached their commercial peak with the release of their album Beats, Rhymes and Life , which reached number one on the US Billboard 200 and became their best-selling release, while acts such as Outkast and De La Soul released some of their most definitive albums with Atliens and Stakes Is High . Since
3731-521: The United States to include the Somali -Canadian poet K'naan and the British artist M.I.A. Alternative hip hop acts have attained much critical acclaim, but receive relatively little exposure through radio and other media outlets. The most prominent alternative hip hop acts include A Tribe Called Quest , De La Soul , Hieroglyphics , The Pharcyde , Digable Planets and Black Sheep . Originating in
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3822-487: The agency created the first "brand ad" for Nike, called "There is no finish line", in which no Nike product was shown. By 1980, Nike had attained a 50% market share in the U.S. athletic shoe market, and the company went public in December of that year. Wieden+Kennedy , Nike's primary ad agency, has worked with Nike to create many print and television advertisements, and Wieden+Kennedy remains Nike's primary ad agency. It
3913-400: The albums Gorillaz and Demon Days . Today, due in part to the increasing use of social networking as well as online distribution , many alternative rap artists are finding acceptance by far-reaching audiences. Nike, Inc. Nike, Inc. (stylized as NIKE ) is an American athletic footwear and apparel corporation headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon , United States. It is
4004-542: The anti-war anthems "Not in My Name" and "Act III Scene 2 (Shakespeare)". In 2011, he added his name to Occupy Musicians, supporting the worldwide Occupy movement against income inequality. He identifies as queer . Williams and Marcia Jones , a visual artist and art professor, began their relationship in 1995 as collaborative artists on the Brooklyn performance art and spoken word poetry circuit. Their daughter, Saturn,
4095-453: The audience. In early 2008, a Nike Sparq Training commercial featured Williams' song "List of Demands (Reparations)". In a November 2008 interview with Wired.com , Williams talked about his forthcoming projects: "There's one album that I'm waist-deep into. I'm aiming to finish it up next month. Trent wants to work on a sequel for Niggy that I think would be cool, and I also have an album and new songs demoed at home that I'm ready to go into
4186-563: The charts in several countries. Shing02 was chosen for rapping "Battlecry", the theme song of the hit hip-hop -influenced chanbara anime Samurai Champloo , which was produced by Japanese jazz rap DJ Nujabes . Time magazine placed M.I.A in the Time 100 list of "World's Most Influential people" for having "global influence across many genres." Groups like the British virtual band Gorillaz also experienced mainstream popularity during this time, selling over 20 million albums total between
4277-476: The company on June 30, 2016. In a company public announcement on March 15, 2018, Nike CEO Mark Parker said Trevor Edwards, a top Nike executive who was seen as a potential successor to the chief executive, was relinquishing his position as Nike's brand president and would retire in August. In October 2019, John Donahoe was announced as the next CEO, and succeeded Parker on January 13, 2020. In November 2019,
4368-465: The company operates retail stores under the Niketown name. Nike sponsors many high-profile athletes and sports teams around the world, with the highly recognized trademarks of " Just Do It " and the Swoosh logo. As of 2024, it employed 83,700 people worldwide. In 2020, the brand alone was valued in excess of $ 32 billion, making it the most valuable brand among sports businesses. Previously, in 2017,
4459-693: The company stopped selling directly through Amazon , focusing more on direct relationships with customers. Nike has acquired and sold several apparel and footwear companies over the course of its history. Its first acquisition was the upscale footwear company Cole Haan in 1988, followed by the purchase of Bauer Hockey in 1994. In 2002, Nike bought surf apparel company Hurley International from founder Bob Hurley. In 2003, Nike paid US$ 309 million to acquire sneaker company Converse . The company acquired Starter in 2004 and soccer uniform maker Umbro in 2007. In order to refocus its business lines, Nike began divesting itself of some of its subsidiaries in
4550-680: The company's standards for worker treatment. A July 2011 Associated Press article stated that employees at the company's plants in Indonesia reported constant abuse from supervisors. During the 1990s, Nike faced criticism for the use of child labor in Cambodia and Pakistan in factories it contracted to manufacture soccer balls. Although Nike took action to curb or at least reduce the practice, they continue to contract their production to companies that operate in areas where inadequate regulation and monitoring make it hard to ensure that child labor
4641-401: The different arts balance me out. So, that there is a certain type of emotion that is more easily accessible through music than poetry... some things are meant to be written, some are meant to be sung, some things are meant to be hummed, some things are made to be yelled, and so that's just how life works." In January 2009, he released NGH WHT – The Dead Emcee Scrolls with The Arditti Quartet ,
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#17327834457984732-760: The diverging facets of hip-hop in the last decade; the former was gangsta rap for the noughties, while West was the thinking man's alternative." Several artists and groups acknowledge being directly influenced by their 1990s predecessors in addition to alternative rock groups while their music has been noted by critics as expressing eclectic sounds, life experiences and emotions rarely seen in mainstream hip hop. As traditional rock music continually becomes less synonymous with pop music , more left-of-center artists who are not fully embraced by hip-hop radio have increasingly found inclusion on alternative radio . According to Nielsen SoundScan , contemporary hip-hop acts who increasingly receive domestic airplay on alt-radio include Run
4823-621: The gangsta lifestyle becoming the driving force of sales figures. The situation changed around the mid-'90s with the emergence and mainstream popularity of East Coast hardcore rap artists such as Wu-Tang Clan , Nas , The Notorious B.I.G. , and Mobb Deep . Following this development, many alternative rap acts eventually either disbanded or faded into obscurity. In his 1995 book on the current state of hip hop culture , music critic Stephen Rodrick wrote that, at that time, alternative hip hop had "drawn little more than barely concealed yawns from other rappers and urban audiences" and concluded that
4914-409: The highly influential alternative rap group A Tribe Called Quest , had his sophomore solo effort, Kamaal the Abstract , shelved for nearly a decade after his record label deemed the genre-bending album as sounding uncommercial. Q-Tip said: I am really disappointed that Kamaal wasn't released. LA Reid didn't know what to do with it; then, three years later, they release Outkast . What Outkast
5005-404: The hip-hop scene after the dissolving of group KMD . Later, he and Madlib 's 2004 project Madvillainy was released in this time period as the duo Madvillain . This album was praised by music critics and inspired other artists, such as Aminé and Joey Badass . Gnarls Barkley experienced a surprise hit with their debut single, " Crazy ". Due to high download sales, it reached number one in
5096-526: The isolated vocal and quartet multitracks. The entire paid download totalled in size at 563 megabytes . Williams contributed to two tracks on the 2011 album Baba Love by Arthur H . Williams starred in Slam (1998) and Today (2012). On stage, he was chosen for the lead role in Holler If Ya Hear Me , a Broadway musical featuring music by Tupac Shakur . Though it features Shakur's music,
5187-887: The last words spoken by Gary Gilmore before he was executed. Nike manufactured its first uniforms for a professional sports team in 1979 when its jersey for the Portland Timbers of the North American Soccer League debuted. Throughout the 1980s, Nike expanded its product line to encompass many sports and regions throughout the world. In 1990, Nike moved into its eight-building World Headquarters campus in Beaverton, Oregon. The first Nike retail store, dubbed Niketown, opened in downtown Portland in November of that year. Phil Knight announced in mid-2015 that he would step down as chairman of Nike in 2016. He officially stepped down from all duties with
5278-475: The late 1980s and experienced a degree of mainstream recognition during the early to mid-1990s. While some groups such as Arrested Development and The Fugees achieved commercial success, many alternative rap acts tend to be embraced by alternative rock listeners rather than hip hop or pop audiences. The commercial and cultural momentum was impeded by the simultaneous emergence of significantly harder-edged West Coast gangsta rap . A resurgence came about in
5369-650: The late 1980s, in midst of the golden age of hip hop , alternative hip hop was headed primarily by East Coast groups such as De La Soul , Jungle Brothers , A Tribe Called Quest , Pete Rock & CL Smooth , Brand Nubian , and Digable Planets in subsidiary conjunction by West Coast acts such as The Pharcyde , Digital Underground , Souls of Mischief , Del the Funky Homosapien , and Freestyle Fellowship as well as certain Southern acts such as Arrested Development, Goodie Mob , and Outkast . Similar to
5460-412: The late 1990s and early 2000s at the dawn of the digital era with a rejuvenated interest in independent music by the general public. During the 2000s, alternative hip hop reattained its place within the mainstream due to the declining commercial viability of gangsta rap as well as the crossover success of artists such as Outkast and Kanye West . The alternative hip hop movement has expanded beyond
5551-474: The latter attempted a takeover of BRS by extending an ultimatum proposal that would give the Japanese company 51 percent of BRS. In 1972, the relationship between BRS and Onitsuka Tiger came to an end. BRS prepared to launch its own line of footwear. The previous year, it was already able to place from two Japanese shoe manufacturers the company's first independent order for 20,000, which included 6,000 that had
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#17327834457985642-427: The mid-1990s, independent record labels such as Rawkus Records , Rhymesayers , Anticon , Stones Throw and Definitive Jux have experienced lesser mainstream success with alternative rap acts such as Jurassic 5 , Little Brother , Talib Kweli , MF Doom , Atmosphere , Antipop Consortium , Mos Def , Doomtree , Pharoahe Monch , El-P , Quasimoto , Living Legends , Cyne , Blue Scholars , and Aesop Rock . In
5733-550: The music we're presenting. Whether it's done on a laptop or on an amp and a guitar, I just want to find something new—that's what alternative is supposed to be." While some groups achieved commercial success, most alternative rap acts tended to be embraced largely by alternative rock listeners and indie music fans rather than hip-hop or pop audiences. Artists receive limited exposure through commercial radio and other media outlets and primarily rely on campus radio and various independent media channels. Alternative hip hop
5824-510: The musical is not about his life. It is an original script written by Todd Kreidler. Rolling Stone described the production as "the first hip-hop jukebox musical in Broadway history". The show opened on June 19, 2014. Williams' role in the musical landed him an interview on The Colbert Report , where he spoke about his career and performed a poem entitled "Amethyst Rocks". He received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Actor at
5915-433: The outcome of the sales competition with altering the direction of hip hop and paving the way for new rappers who did not follow the hardcore - gangster mold, writing, "If there was ever a watershed moment to indicate hip hop's changing direction, it may have come when 50 Cent competed with Kanye in 2007 to see whose album would claim superior sales. 50 lost handily, and it was made clear that excellent song crafting trumped
6006-575: The possibilities of the unknown, then I would be lost." Williams' fifth album, MartyrLoserKing , was released on January 29, 2016. The first single released from the album was "Burundi", a collaboration with Emily Kokal of Warpaint. In March 2018, The Kills released their cover of Williams' "List of Demands (Reparations)" and Williams opened for The Kills' sold-out performance at the Regent Theater in Los Angeles on August 13, 2018. As
6097-643: The previous fiscal cycle. Nike's shares traded at over $ 72 per share, and its market capitalization was valued at over US$ 114.5 billion in October 2018. In February 2020, the company said that roughly 75% of Nike stores in Greater China had closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. In March 2020, Nike reported a 5% drop in Chinese sales associated with stores' closure. It was the first decrease in six years. At
6188-427: The recipient of multiple accolades; at the 49th Grammy Awards , they won the awards for Best Urban/Alternative Performance and Best Alternative Music Album . Industry observers view the 2007 sales competition between Kanye West's Graduation and 50 Cent 's Curtis as a turning point for hip hop. West emerged the victor, selling nearly a million copies in the first week alone. Ben Detrick of XXL credited
6279-538: The records as ambitiously innovative but playful masterpieces, hailing the artists as the future of hip hop music as a whole. Contrary to alternative rock , which went on to become a mainstay in mainstream music and replaced the glam metal of the previous generation as the most popular form of rock music, alternative hip hop's commercial momentum was impeded by the then also newly emerging, significantly harder-edged West Coast gangsta rap . With its aggressive tone, nihilistic tendencies, and violent imagery, gangsta rap
6370-507: The same time, the company's online sales grew by 36% during Q1 of 2020. Also, the sales of personal training apps grew by 80% in China. Nike produces a wide range of sports equipment and apparel. Their first products were track running shoes. Nike Air Max is a line of shoes first released by Nike, Inc. in 1987. Additional product lines were introduced later, such as Air Huarache, which debuted in 1992. The most recent additions to their line are
6461-666: The shoes featured in Back to the Future Part II , it had a preliminary limited release, only available by auction with all proceeds going to the Michael J. Fox Foundation . This was done again in 2016. Nike have introduced a premium line, focused more on streetwear than sports wear called NikeLab. In March 2017, Nike announced its launch of a plus-size clothing line, which will feature new sizes 1X through 3X on more than 200 products. Another significant development at this time
6552-529: The single charts in several countries, including the United Kingdom, where it became the best-selling single of 2006. The song was named the best song of 2006 by both Rolling Stone and the Village Voice 's annual Pazz & Jop critics poll. Rolling Stone later ranked "Crazy" as the number-one song of the decade. The song has been certified double platinum by RIAA. The duo were
6643-462: The sole plus a moisture wicking upper weave. Later, Nike Elite socks became available in bright colors inspired by throwback basketball uniforms , often with contrasting bold abstract designs, images of celebrities, and freehand digital print to capitalise upon the emerging nostalgia for 1990s fashion . In 2015, a new self-lacing shoe was introduced. Called the Nike Mag , which are replicas of
6734-413: The studio and lay down. It’s a complete reflection of how I feel in this country; it's a very transformative time." Williams' fourth album, Volcanic Sunlight , was released on November 11, 2011. Williams showcased the album at London's Hoxton Bar Kitchen on January 26, 2011. Livemusic interviewed Williams on the evening and made a subsequent film, produced by artist Alex Templeton-Ward . When Williams
6825-534: The subgenre was a failure. A commercial breakthrough came about in the late 1990s with the rejuvenated interest in indie music by the general public due to the mainstream success of acts like The Fugees and Arrested Development , while acts such as Slum Village , Common , and the Roots were rising to prominence. The Fugees saw huge critical and commercial success with the release of their second album, The Score , in 1996. The album peaked at number one on
6916-476: The title of Nuyorican Poets Cafe 's Grand Slam Champion . The documentary film SlamNation follows Williams and the other members of the 1996 Nuyorican Poets Slam team ( Beau Sia , muMs da Schemer , and Jessica Care Moore ) as they compete in the 1996 National Poetry Slam held in Portland , Oregon. The following year, Williams landed the lead role in the 1998 feature film Slam . Williams featured as both
7007-422: The unisex spandex Nike Tempo compression shorts worn for cycling and running, which had a mesh lining, waterproofing, and, later in the 2000s, a zip pocket for a Walkman or MP3 player . From the late 2000s into the 2010s, Nike Elite basketball socks began to be worn as everyday clothes by hip-hop fans and young children. Originally plain white or black, these socks had special shock absorbing cushioning in
7098-569: The use of kangaroo leather." The Nike Vaporfly first came out in 2017 and their popularity, along with its performance, prompted a new series of running shoes. The Vaporfly series has a new technological composition that has revolutionized long-distance running since studies have shown that these shoes can improve marathon race time up to 4.2%. The composition of the sole contains a foamy material, Pebax, that Nike has altered and now calls it ZoomX (which can be found in other Nike products as well). Pebax foam can also be found in airplane insulation and
7189-456: The waffle iron idea came into play. Bowerman's design led to the introduction of the "Moon Shoe" in 1972, so named because the waffle tread was said to resemble the footprints left by astronauts on the Moon. Further refinement resulted in the "Waffle Trainer" in 1974, which helped fuel the explosive growth of Blue Ribbon Sports/Nike. Tension between BRS and Onitsuka Tiger increased in 1971 as
7280-466: The website had the option to download a free lower-quality audio version of the album. The other option was for users to pay $ 5 to support the artist directly and be given the choice of downloading the higher-quality MP3 version or the lossless FLAC version. The material was produced by Trent Reznor and mixed by Alan Moulder . It was Reznor who said, after his own recent dealings with record labels, that they should release it independently and directly to
7371-877: The world's largest supplier of athletic shoes and apparel and a major manufacturer of sports equipment , with revenue in excess of US$ 46 billion in its fiscal year 2022. The company was founded on January 25, 1964, as "Blue Ribbon Sports", by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight , and officially became Nike, Inc. on May 30, 1971. The company takes its name from Nike , the Greek goddess of victory. Nike markets its products under its own brand, as well as Nike Golf, Nike Pro, Nike+ , Nike Blazers , Air Force 1 , Nike Dunk , Air Max , Foamposite, Nike Skateboarding , Nike CR7, and subsidiaries including Air Jordan and Converse . Nike also owned Bauer Hockey from 1995 to 2008, and previously owned Cole Haan , Umbro , and Hurley International . In addition to manufacturing sportswear and equipment,
7462-566: Was Miles Nadal , a Canadian investor and car collector, who had just paid $ 850,000 for a group of 99 rare of limited collection pairs of sport shoes. The purchase price was the highest for one pair of sneakers, the previous record being $ 190,373 in 2017 for a pair of signed Converse shoes in California, said to have been worn by Michael Jordan during the 1984 basketball final of the Olympics that year. After acquiring RTFKT, Nike launched
7553-424: Was "too intelligent" for their target audience. The network was subsequently satirized by the animated series The Boondocks – which regularly features underground/alternative rap as background music – in the banned episode " The Hunger Strike ". The episode, which portrayed BET as an evil organization dedicated to the self-genocidal mission of eradicating black people through violent, overtly sexual programming,
7644-494: Was agency co-founder Dan Wieden who coined the now-famous slogan " Just Do It " for a 1988 Nike ad campaign, which was chosen by Advertising Age as one of the top five ad slogans of the 20th century and enshrined in the Smithsonian Institution . Walt Stack was featured in Nike's first "Just Do It" advertisement, which debuted on July 1, 1988. Wieden credits the inspiration for the slogan to "Let's do it",
7735-409: Was asked what the point of poetry was, he said: "I'm making this up, I have no idea but here we go. I think that it would be to express, to share, to relieve, to explore. For me, poetry offers some what of a cathartic experience. I am able to move through emotions and emotional experience particularly, you know, break-ups, difficulties in all the things that I may face, whether that is with an industry or
7826-462: Was banned by Cartoon Network and has yet to be aired in the United States. The alternative hip hop movement is not limited solely to the United States, as genre-defying rappers such as Somali -Canadian poet K'naan and British artist M.I.A. have achieved worldwide recognition. K'naan's 2009 single " Wavin' Flag " reached number two on the Canadian Hot 100 while its various remixes topped
7917-535: Was born in 1996. A collection of poems by Williams entitled S/HE is a series of reflections on the demise of his relationship with Jones. Jones created the cover artwork for The Seventh Octave , images throughout S/HE in response to Williams, and set-designed his 2001 album Amethyst Rock Star . Saturn performed with her father on his 2008 concert tour. Williams also has a son named Xuly with renowned choreographer Fatima Robinson . On February 29, 2008 (his 36th birthday), Williams married actress Persia White after
8008-462: Was considered to be the more entertaining, more lucrative subgenre as signified by the high chart placings, radio success and multiplatinum -selling records of gangsta rappers such as Snoop Dogg , Warren G and N.W.A , who were widely embraced by major record labels and produced a legion of imitators. Albums such as Straight Outta Compton , The Chronic and Doggystyle redefined the direction of hip hop, which resulted in lyricism concerning
8099-463: Was needed—for tax purposes the subsidiary was treated as Bermuda. Its profits were not declared in Europe and came to light only because of a mostly unrelated case in US Tax Court, where papers filed by Nike briefly mention royalties in 2010, 2011 and 2012 totaling $ 3.86 billion. Under an arrangement with Dutch authorities, the tax break was to expire in 2014, so another reorganization transferred
8190-509: Was the Chuck Taylor All-Star Modern , an update of the classic basketball sneaker that incorporated the circular knit upper and cushioned foam sole of Nike's Air Jordans. On July 23, 2019, a pair of Nike Inc. running shoes sold for $ 437,500 at a Sotheby's auction. The so-called "Moon Shoes" were designed by Nike co-founder and track coach Bill Bowerman for runners participating in the 1972 Olympics trials. The buyer
8281-684: Was the first. I don't care what all the billionaires say. Bill Bowerman made the first pair of shoes for me. People don't believe me. In fact, I didn't like the way they felt on my feet. There was no support and they were too tight. But I saw Bowerman made them from the waffle iron , and they were mine". In its first year in business, BRS sold 1,300 pairs of Japanese running shoes grossing $ 8,000. By 1965, sales had reached $ 20,000. In 1966, BRS opened its first retail store at 3107 Pico Boulevard in Santa Monica, California . In 1967, due to increasing sales, BRS expanded retail and distribution operations on
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