Nike Air Yeezy II Given UK Release Date & Price

Having rocked the kicks on tour for what feels like at least a year, Kanye West is finally ready to unleash the hotly tipped Nike Air Yeezy IIs and today we got the UK release date, distribution details and price. When do you ever see trainers given a lead-in like this? Never. If this was 2009, we'd make a joke about how some trainer launch or other was good, but the Air Yeezy was the greatest trainer launch in the world! It's not 2009 though and the Back To The Future Nike Air Mags launch is going to take some beating.

The Nike Air Yeezy blends classic Nike court breakthroughs with the performance and aesthetic of bringing hype to a crowd of thousands [we were at Watch The Throne last week, they definitely helped].

Here's what Nike have to say about the Nike Air Yeezy II.

Nike Air Yeezy II is armored with animalistic forms imbue the upper. Hand skived anaconda textured leather quarter panels are embellished with a debossed Vac-Tech Nike Swoosh. The molded rear is sculpted with a reptilian inspired spike, while an engineered strap with scaled down spikes was developed to offer a greater sense of symmetry and lock down. Bringing the inspiration forward from the late 1980's basketball foundation of the original Nike Air Yeezy, the II is built on the Nike Air Tech Challenge II tennis shoe outsole and celebrates iconic Nike Cross Training silhouettes with the addition of the molded forefoot strap.

There's absolute function at the Air Yeezy II's core. Unnecessary padding was eliminated, and the foot-hugging tongue and plush collar are both comfortable and breathable. Fit was essential to the design with the goal to make the shoe slimmer than the original by tailoring it to Kanye Westʼs foot. The collar was also lowered to allow for greater movement.

An obsessive approach to materials results in a luxurious mix of leather, rugged ballistic nylon, and soft nubuck. Concealed but opulent details reference ancient civilizations, including a loop strap with hieroglyphics that spell out 'YZY.' Each screw on lace aglet is obelisk shaped, and the anaconda texture is echoed on the eyelets and leather lace toggle that carries the Roman numeral 'II.'

The Nike Air Yeezy II in the Platinum and the Black edition will be released in the UK June 9 at Hannon, End, Footpatrol and 1948 London in limited quantities and will retail at £210.