Packer Celebrates The 25th Anniversary Of Only Built 4 Cuban Linx With The Diadora N.9000

Few can forget Raekwon’s contributions to hip-hop history. Not just for his own music, but for inspiring a legion of NY-based rappers to explore their own interpretations of the gangsta narrative. But Only Built 4 Cuban Linx is regarded as one of the greatest albums not for its violence, but rather the opposite; it touched on brotherhood and human emotion. The album doesn’t need constant airplay, nor does it need to be included in soundtracks for buddy-cop/crime comedies. It’s an artifact of time.

It’s significance explain why Packer’s “Purple Tape” collaboration with Raekwon and Diadora in 2015 was such a massive hit (and one of the 100 Best Sneakers Of The Decade). Five years later. for the album’s 25th Anniversary, Packer and Diadora celebrate once again with a special release that sees the signature color palette of the album cover applied onto the N.9000 silhouette (itself celebrating a 30th Anniversary). To reconnect with the Purple Tape concept, the shoes will come packaged in a transparent purple sleeve with throwback price stickers detailing the shoe size.

This collaboration drops exclusively at Packer on December 23rd, 2020 for $250; it will drop at 11am ET on Packer.com.