Where do you get your Yeezy info?
Where do you hear about the latest information surrounding Kanye West’s Yeezy brand? Is it word of mouth? Social Media? A News outlet, maybe? Well I am hear to tell you, the vast majority of the time the information all trickles through from one particular source. A source which perhaps even more surprisingly, isn’t actually officially affiliated with Adidas, Kanye West or even Yeezy for that matter. Twitter & Instagram account Yeezy Mafia, despite the name, is an independent entity that has becomes the perennial insider when it comes to everything Yeezy. Is Yeezy Mafia reliable? Most of the time they are so impressively accurate, it’s hard to believe it isn’t Kanye West in disguise.
“Hype” Sells
The anticipation that underpins every Yeezy release is without a doubt one of the driving forces behind the brands broader impact. “Hype” sells after all. Much has been written about the multitude of ways Adidas and Kanye West maintains their vice like grip on the entire footwear market. Every move made is calculated, and very little is left to chance. There is a certain degree of fashion elitism built into the ethos of the brand. Regardless of how many times Kanye West tries to tell you he wants to make “Yeezy’s for everyone”. Demand will always outweigh supply, because at the end of the day, that is how Adidas maintains the Yeezy business model. By carefully drip feeding product you always leave a percentage of your customers hungry for the next release.
Is Yeezy Mafia reliable?
That being said it is fascinating when you consider that this type of manic excitement regarding every release is achieved almost always organically (to an extent). What I mean by this is that beyond making each product limited in varying degrees, the majority of what goes on pre-launch in terms of advertising for each release doesn’t actually come from inside Yeezy HQ or Adidas. Yeezy Mafia are first on the scene almost every time when it comes to new Yeezy information, with an alarming success rate. Is Yeezy Mafia reliable? The short answer is very. They are so consistent with their facts that Adidas has all but conceded any sort of marketing strategy to the popular social media account. Despite Adidas not being connected, Yeezy Mafia and Adidas have ended up essentially working in tandem.
Who built the Rumour Mill?
The Yeezy sector of the Adidas brand is known for giving little away pre-launch in regard to releases. A tight-fisted approach when it comes to information is a model that has been ever present in this and many of their other product lines. Journalists and fans are often left in the dark about each release until only a small number of days before a launch.
Traditionally Adidas never make public the time of a release. This secrecy is perhaps a byproduct of the rivalry between big brands like Adidas and Nike, or by design to help manufacturer the mysterious vibe that they wish to accompany the Yeezy brand. Either way, with so little information available publicly from official sources. It naturally opened the door to the potential for speculation, rumour, and ultimately a ‘leaking’ culture.
So, essentially what has ended up happening is that both Adidas Yeezy and Yeezy Mafia, on purpose or by accident have become subservient of one another. Adidas Yeezy divulges less information about releases than customers are satisfied with. Meaning theirs is a market for an unsanctioned source like Yeezy Mafia to flourish. In return, the presence of Yeezy Mafia as a source of said information has filled the necessity for Adidas to advertise their Yeezy product line. Perhaps explaining why Adidas as a brand has never condemned Yeezy Mafia in anyway. Despite seemingly leaking their entire upcoming product line all over social media on a regular basis.
What started Yeezy Mafia?
How Yeezy Mafia actually achieved such a high success rate when it comes to drops is still unclear. Very little is known about the collective as a whole, but a wider conspiracy has suggested Yeezy Mafia is actually an Adidas puppet.
Whether you think this is true or not really does depend on whether you think the moon landing was faked or not. All we do know for certain is that Yeezy Mafia began in 2016 as a members-only website that sold “carts”. Which are more commonly known as sneaker bots. For those of you who weren’t aware. Essentially bots are code, that automatically add a product to your online shopping cart. Allowing you to check out faster than any human could. Meaning that on release day you would be dramatically increasing your odds of being able to purchase a pair of coveted trainers, without having to win a raffle.
Naturally, considering the size of the customer base for limited footwear, bots are a very lucrative avenue to explore. Although it is technically forbidden by the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act of 2016. Which “prohibits the circumvention of control measures used by Internet ticket sellers to ensure equitable consumer access to tickets for certain events.” So in an attempt to stay legitimate, and prevent getting closed down Yeezy Mafia pivoted towards something a lot less legally challenging, and a lot more wholesome. The leaking of pictures and release information for the Yeezy product line. Something which keeps their nose clean so to speak, at least in the eyes of the law.
Where does Yeezy Mafia get its information?
It has been speculated that the information in question, which often contains release dates and times comes from a network of retail buyers and factory managers in China. They provide Yeezy Mafia with the majority of the information they wish to communicate to the hoards of fans dying to know when the next colourway or silhouette is dropping. In a lot of ways Yeezy Mafia could be seen as a Robin Hood style vigilante, trying to give the power back to the people. In reality, however, leak culture only ever assists Adidas in pushing the Yeezy model further. Making Yeezy Mafia one of the biggest contributors to the “Hype”, and as previously mentioned “Hype” sells.
Is Yeezy Mafia ever wrong?
It isn’t always smiles and rainbows however; I have already answered the question ‘Is Yeezy Mafia reliable?’ but that doesn’t mean they are 100% reliable. Which ultimately is to be expected.
They are an unfiltered, unregulated source of information that, if what both sides is to be believed has zero inroads with Adidas or Yeezy. So they shouldn’t necessarily be expected to be 100%. The issue lies with the blue tick they have managed to secure to go next to their Twitter and Instagram handle. A 542K strong following on Twitter. With a further 2.1M followers on Instagram ultimately is what made them verified, and with a name like Yeezy Mafia. If you weren’t already aware of them you wouldn’t be a fool for thinking this was an official account.
So when Yeezy Mafia get it wrong, like in March 2018, when they hit a nerve with Kim Kardashian (Kanye West’s wife) by reporting that there wasn’t to be a Yeezy Season 7 collection. Due mainly to its production being cancelled at the last minute because of Kanye West’s “inability to fully realise his vision.” This turned out to be completely false, with Kim taking particular issue with both the profile’s name and its verified status, despite essentially being a rumours page.
Unfortunately for Adidas, Yeezy, Kanye West and everyone else associated with their collaborative project however contentious you believe the relationship with Yeezy Mafia to be, until you are willing to take a more active role in the information surrounding your products Yeezy Mafia are making one hell of a job of filling the space. And I guess on the flip side I guess if you are Adidas, if someone else is doing it, you don’t have to…
You can keep up to date with Yeezy online trainer’s drops and news by keeping it Laced.