Cape Town, South Africa, 13 July 2026 – Over the decades the PUMA Suede has moved through scenes, styles, and generations, constantly redefined by the people who wore it. Today, A$AP ROCKY brings his own perspective to the classic. Reviving an iconic design from the ‘90s with nods to New York street culture, the A$AP ROCKY x PUMA Suede ’94 reimagines heritage details through his lens.
As culture, fashion, and personal identity remain in a constant state of evolution, the PUMA Suede remains a constant. Familiar, grounded, and unmistakably itself. Woven into scenes and communities across generations, it stands as a symbol of effortless style and enduring relevance.
As PUMA’s Creative Director for over three years, A$AP Rocky has had the opportunity to decide which footwear styles appeal most to him and his culture. He wanted to lean on nostalgia and bring back a 90’s style.
A$AP Rocky gravitated toward the ’94 Suede for good reason. It wasn’t just that it looked right. It was that the shoe was born from a moment that shaped him. New York in 1994 sat at the apex of hip-hop’s Golden Era, the birth of modern streetwear, and a gritty downtown skate scene all colliding at once. The ’94 Suede didn’t just exist alongside those movements. It was part of the outfit.
“I remember when my mom bought me my first pair of suedes,” said A$AP Rocky. “Growing up in New York and seeing Walt Clyde Frazier with his style and his PUMA suedes, they were the shoes. And now to be able to tap into that 90s nostalgia and bring them back with my own creative lens and special details, it’s great. PUMA hasn’t brought the ’94 back since it dropped and reviving it stitch-for-stitch from the archive just felt right.”
The A$AP Rocky x PUMA Suede ’94 is available on 16 July worldwide at PUMA.com, PUMA retail stores and Shelflife. Price R2599.
About the PUMA Suede
The Crack, the Clyde, the States, and then the Suede. One shoe, many names, one incredible legacy. The Suede is a design with unmatched history: lofted up on the Olympic podium, worn on the NBA court by Walt Frazier, and embraced by New York City B-boys and skateboarders.
PUMA’s first-ever “lifestyle” shoe was the Crack, which was launched in 1968 for the Olympics in Mexico City, where it was famously raised up in the hand of track and field athlete Tommie Smith. In 1973, Walt Frazier added his spin on the silhouette, creating the Clyde. Following Frazier’s era, the shoe became known as the Suede, named for its signature upper material. With the rise of B-boy crews and hip-hop, the Suede was adopted into that growing scene. Finally, when it debuted in the UK during the 1980s, it arrived with the name States, as a nod to its popularity overseas. Thanks to this unique history, the Suede is considered an icon today.
