Nike Air Force 1 Low Premium ‘The Source Five Mics’ Sample | Size 11

From its humble beginning as a printed, text-only newsletter founded by Harvard students, David Mays and John Shecter in 1988, The Source quickly grew to be an influential Hip Hop powerhouse. At its peak, The Source was known as “The Bible of Hip Hop”, and the definitive word on rap and Hip Hop culture. The Source also served as a launching pad for a new generation of writers, photographers, and artists.

Securing a Five Mic rating from The Source elevated an album to an elite status. It denoted a flawless project, comparable to receiving a five-star rating in a rock magazine or a newspaper. The microphone symbol itself symbolized a unique perspective on rap reviews, and only a select number of LPs earned the esteemed Five Mic status from The Source in real-time.

In 2023, former Lifestyle Editor of the Source, “Hawaii” Mike Salman took to Instagram to share the elusive Nike Air Force 1 ‘Source Five Mics’ with a bit of background. 

“Since we were the number 1 music magazine on newsstands we felt we needed something to represent that in the sneaker world. What better than an Air Force One and the 5 Mics logo. Clean, simple with subtle details like the silver which represented the platinum everyone was in love with then. At the time we started in 2000-1 there weren’t a lot of collabs like this (Vibe was 2003). Long story short, these never got released, I only know two pairs in existence, and this Size 11 is one of them.”