So, Was Yeezy 3 Actually Any Good?

Kanye West’s Yeezy 3 collection for Adidas. (Photo: Getty Images)

As you’ve surely by now seen/read/heard, Kanye West held an epic fashion show for his Yeezy 3 collection for Adidas and album release party for The Life of Pablo at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night. There was much hype surrounding the event, which was attended by 18,000 people, including top fashion editors and buyers as well Yeezy loyalists who paid $90 a head to watch West indulge in his big moment.

The first of many spectacles of the evening came in the form of the Kardashian-Jenner clan filing out to their seats dressed in all-white ensembles adorned with crystals and floor-length fur coats. They looked like a troupe of glittering Liberaces in contrast to the stark Yeezy 3 collection that was worn by 200 or so models and took center stage. They were decidedly unglamorous, standing solemnly in, around, and on top of two dilapidated structures that kind of gave off a vibe of a favela. (For the third time in as many seasons, West partnered with artist Vanessa Beecroft for the performance piece, hence the stoic poses.) In his third collection for Adidas, West seemed a bit more comfortable in his role, or at least he seems to be listening to some of his loudest detractors. Sure, there were bodysuits, leggings, and sweatsuit combos — his usual fare for Adidas — but for the first time, there was also an infusion of color! Muted shades of red, orange, and yellow. And instead of seeing models wearing nude asexual Spanx-like bodysuits, there were knit leotards. Naomi Campbell, Veronica Webb, Liya Kebede, and Alek Wek even made an entrance in all-black jumpsuits with long fur coats which was odd but amusing. A cropped shearling jacket in a tangerine hue caught our eye as did a long olive green duster in suede.

Not everyone was as into the scene though. There were the complaints, of course that the music was too loud (which was accurate, West played The Life of Pablo at such a deafening volume that it caused many top editors and retailers to flee almost immediately). And then there was the setup itself, which while technically considered “art” made the models look like a bunch of refugees, a highly sensitive topic at a time when the people of Syria and other war-torn countries are fleeing for their lives. The contrast was real: Kardashians sitting there dripping in gold and diamonds, West is yelling how Adidas “paid for this whole thing.” It didn’t help that the models had been standing under a giant tarp for at least an hour while people took their seats or that they were instructed to not to smile, dance, make eye contact, or look at the Jumbotron. (That last one was a big no-no.)

Those who are keen on Yeezy 3 are in luck. West was in such a good mood that he announced to the crowd that he’s lowering his prices. (He must have realized that no one was going for that $500 brown sweatshirt.) “We’re gonna lower prices,“ he said. "That’s just learning curves whenever you start [a brand].”

Of course, as per West’s wont, he soon contradicted himself by saying that he wanted to take over the world’s most luxurious fashion house. “I told this to Anna [Wintour] backstage, my dream is to be the creative director of Hermès,” West told the crowd, which caused them to jeer and the rapper to retort, "Oh, that’s a bad idea?“

In Kayne’s world anything is possible. I’m sure it will look good on his résumé for POTUS 2020.