Words by @adrygram10

The Air Max 97! What a classic silhouette!

Being a 90s baby from London, anything Air Max was what appealed to me, it resonated well with the urban scene I grew up around. You would see your favourite MC’s wearing them, to your favourite sports personalities. In fact, Cristiano Ronaldo has an Air Max 97 that dropped in 2017 that is gold, almost similar to the upcoming retro, the Gold Bullet. One of Grime’s prolific MC’s; Skepta, debuted his SK Air Nike journey by launching the SK Air x 97 in 2018.

Coming from a council estate, Air Max’s were the sneakers you would see most on the ‘elders’ feet. It was definitely the key ammo when playing run-outs! Which leads me to mention the most appealing feature about Air Max models, The air unit! I believe any Air Max fan will emphasise the importance of the air unit being an integral reason to why they love the Air Max. Nike were ahead of times when making the air cushion system visible and included it into their design.

What cuts the cloth with 97s in my opinion, is the reflective 3M strip that loops around from the heel to the upper, right round to the toe box. Christian Tresser absolutely smashed it when designing these.

It was the reflective strip that first brought my attention to the 97.

I was with some mates on the estate, a mate of mine wearing the silver bullets at the time, was sitting on a wall whilst a car drives in with its headlights on and I see my mates feet shining to the point I was almost blinded. I screamed in enthusiasm! I needed to get myself a pair just for that reason! I wanted my feet to shine too! The silver bullet was in fact my first 97 I welcomed to my sneaker collection and is one of my all-time favourites! And yes, I had to grab the 2022 version too!

If I’m correct, the Undefeated x 97 OG collection was the first collaboration we saw with the 97’s. Both the black and the white pair are absolutely fire! I managed to own the black pair, unfortunately, beat to the ground and unwearable now!

I was able to pick up the black and volt pair that dropped part of a pack in 2020, nothing like the OG, but still very cool! I’m a fan of shiny features and loud colours, I’m pretty known for my enthusiasm towards anything ‘volt’! Which is why I had to cop the 97’s from the Air Max City Pack designed by Jasmine Lasode! Not only did she include London’s corner shop culture onto the sneaker, but she also named them Summer of Love, my favourite season!

The bright sunset colours fit perfectly with the name, however, the details on the sneaker are a great piece of work! The ‘open’ and ‘closed’ scripts on the insoles, and the 97p written around the sneaker. Big up Jasmine on the design!

Both the Silver and Gold bullet have such a strong connection to Italy, that Nike released an Italy exclusive of both colourways to celebrate 20 years of the 97. The tab on the tongue and the heel tab were in the Italian flags’ tricolours.

If I was a sneaker, I’d probably be an Air Max 97! Although I am London born and raised, I am originally Italian from Naples and the Amalfi coast. The industrial design on the 97s is what I’d say represents London well! However, the 97 is a historical silhouette to many Italian subcultures! The 97 is such an iconic model, its air unit covers most of the sole, making it the biggest air unit system amongst the original Air Max line.

The 97 plays a massive part in London culture.

Although these were developed for runners, it became increasingly popular as a lifestyle silhouette for ravers. It was guaranteed to see a 97 at a rave, whether it be Grime, Jungle or Garage. Ravers were cutting shapes in 97s, no matter what their dress sense was! Music has really been integral to the Air Max culture. MC’s have referenced their love for Air Max’s in lyrics, for example, Boy Better Know’s very own Frisco has a song named ‘colours’ where he says “Colours, so much colour, life used to be grey, now I live life in colour, I’m an Air Max man, yeah, I got all of the colours”. Sounds like me to be honest.

We just saw the return of the Silver Bullet at the end of 2022. It would make no sense not to also bring back the Gold Bullet, which we’ll see hit the shelves on January 26th. Gold and Silver are probably not people’s favourite colours in footwear, but when you think about the 97s, it’s these two iconic colourways that made historical shockwaves.

Is it fair to say that this suggests that this silhouette, and this colourway, proves that the 97 is Air Max royalty? I mean Swarovski collaborated with Nike to make their versions of the Silver and Gold Bullets, surely that’s a statement!

Just know, I will be rocking the Gold Bullets with my gold Arsenal Nike jersey from 2001/2002 season! It’s a great colour that compliments the silhouette. The red swoosh has a very nice contrast and pops very nicely. Of course, the 3M strips are my favourite feature on any 97, but imagine seeing someone with gold on their feet, and they shine when light reflects on them? Phenomenal if you ask me!

Check out more from Adriano on Instagram @adrygram10