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[THEME SONG - RO COIT, "DETROIT RUBBER"]
RO COIT: Hello?
RO COIT: Ah, Dave.
What up, man?
RO COIT: Yeah, I'm actually sitting next
to Rick right now.
RICK WILLIAMS: What up, Dave?
RO COIT: They're doing a Reebok classic with every
store that's in this network.
And that's from here to Japan.
And every store has to do a shoe.
And each store is going to carry every one of the shoes.
RICK WILLIAMS: Sounds good.
RO COIT: Is there a time limit on it?
RO COIT: We have a week though.
Along with the idea, concept, and design of the shoe.
RICK WILLIAMS: All right.
Thanks.
RO COIT: So now we got to come up with something, man.
RICK WILLIAMS: Maybe we could ride around the city or
something and see where we can draw some inspiration from.
Do something to pay homage to the city.
Our first stop is the DIA.
RO COIT: The DIA is the Detroit Institute of Art.
RICK WILLIAMS: So we find ourselves in the
Diego Rivera courtyard.
RO COIT: There's beauty.
There's art everywhere.
RICK WILLIAMS: This is what we call the Detroit room.
RO COIT: You ever notice they got these weird masks?
RICK WILLIAMS: The faces, yeah, like gargoyles.
There's an architect on there [INAUDIBLE].
RO COIT: [INAUDIBLE].
RICK WILLIAMS: They really probably were amazing.
We got some good [INAUDIBLE].
That is all women.
But it's all strong, manly women that been through a lot.
RO COIT: Old art has naked women in it, man.
RICK WILLIAMS: The old artists love ***, dog.
They love ***.
It's things like this that people don't really know that
the city has.
RO COIT: All they show is that big train station.
RICK WILLIAMS: The train station in
itself is dope, too.
RO COIT: You know, you hear a lot of jokes.
They talk about the ugly and the eyesores.
It's beauty that you don't see.
RICK WILLIAMS: The sweat, the tears--
it embodies the spirit of Detroit.
Even though this was a very interesting place, I don't
think that this is going to be the one for the shoe.
RO COIT: And we head over to the Michigan Central Depot.
We got access for inside of this building right here, bro.
RICK WILLIAMS: Which hardly ever happens.
RO COIT: Which never happens!
Let's cook.
Let's get it.
RICK WILLIAMS: Let's cook.
I feel like we're going down the yellow brick road.
RO COIT: I want to run.
Let's run, dog.
Let's run, dog.
RICK WILLIAMS: This is where we go buy tickets, dog.
RO COIT: I need two train tickets to Chicago.
RICK WILLIAMS: Somebody put the big boy up.
RO COIT: Hey, you do not want to go down there, boy.
I feel like I'm "Resident Evil."
RICK WILLIAMS: It's crazy that the person who did Grand
Central Station did this place, too.
The same architect.
RO COIT: Maybe we'll try to find some old pictures of when
it was at its heyday.
RICK WILLIAMS: We find ourselves imagining what it
was really like before 1986 when they closed it down.
It's crazy when you just think about all that
Detroit had to offer.
RO COIT: To the world.
RICK WILLIAMS: To the world.
I don't even understand how it could get to this.
I wish I was around when it was really here.
RO COIT: But it's coming back though.
RICK WILLIAMS: Ro!
RO COIT: How'd you get up there?
RICK WILLIAMS: I have no idea.
RO COIT: It's crazy up there?
RICK WILLIAMS: You need to come up here.
There's a staircase next to some graffiti.
RO COIT: Graffiti's everywhere, bro.
RICK WILLIAMS: I know.
It's the graffiti over there.
RO COIT: I'm good, bro.
Tell me all about it.
RICK WILLIAMS: OK, I will.
Let me get down.
RO COIT: Yo, this is the Detroit pyramids, man.
I don't know how it was done.
RICK WILLIAMS: If there was the seven wonders of Detroit,
this is definitely one of them.
RO COIT: Right.
So the graffiti artists--
RICK WILLIAMS: Some of those guys need to chill out now.
They were just fooling.
Some people put some time into it, and some of them, we could
have taken our time, guys.
And I think for this project, this place isn't really going
to be the one either.
RO COIT: Being that the building is dilapidated, it's
in the process of being--
RICK WILLIAMS: Restored.
RO COIT: Brought back to life.
I don't think it's where we need it yet for us to put that
into a project right now.
RICK WILLIAMS: Right.
Nine.
RO COIT: Nine stars.
RICK WILLIAMS: I wonder what that's for?
RO COIT: That sphere still for God.
And this stands for family.
That's where the basis of positivity in the
community will be.
RICK WILLIAMS: The train station was dope.
This DIA was dope.
But nothing is as strong as The Spirit of Detroit.
The Spirit of Detroit.
In the heart of downtown, it's a statue that represents hope,
liberty, and there's a lot of elements in this statue that
we feel like we can use to tell the story of Detroit.
RO COIT: So much you could do.
We've got to try to match the color of the shoe to that
oxidized shades of the green.
Whatever that marble or slate in the back.
RICK WILLIAMS: Yeah, that tank.
I think this is it.
The aesthetics of the statue and everything around it lends
itself very well to transferring into a shoe that
can be wearable and that can also tell the story.
RO COIT: When the Pistons, when the Tigers, when the
Lions make it to the playoffs, they put a jersey on the
Spirit of Detroit.
I don't even know who came up with this idea if the jersey
wasn't on there.
But we're going to have a different lace for each team's
jersey that's not going to even match the shoe.
It'll be a red lace for the Red Wings.
And the Red Wings get to the Stanley Cup--
RICK WILLIAMS: Time to break out the red laces.
RO COIT: Time to bring the laces in.
If the Lions ever make it to--
RICK WILLIAMS: Anywhere.
RO COIT: The hard part is finding the idea and the story
that we're going to tell.
Because it's 17 other stores doing this exact same shoe in
their own mock-up.
It's going to be people in Japan wearing this sneaker.
RICK WILLIAMS: In London.
RO COIT: In London, Amsterdam.
And when they put their foot down, Detroit is there.
RICK WILLIAMS: So everywhere around the world's going to
have a piece of Detroit.
It they're able to get their hands on the shoe.
RO COIT: We were there for all of two, three minutes.
RICK WILLIAMS: And right away it hit us, man, this is it.
RO COIT: Salute!
RICK WILLIAMS: Our class of leather needs to stand out.
And it needs to say--
RO COIT: Detroit.
RICK WILLIAMS: Detroit.
And it needs to really represent what we do.
RO COIT: Well, you know how the Spirit of Detroit is
holding those statues in his hand.
RICK WILLIAMS: God and the family.
RO COIT: The God and the family.
What if we put God on a shoe?
RICK WILLIAMS: Actually to emboss it.
RO COIT: In gold, or copper, or whatever.
RICK WILLIAMS: Gold foil.
RO COIT: Like a foil.
Have God on one shoe and family on the other side, and
that is Detroit.
RICK WILLIAMS: Yeah.
RO COIT: And you know we've got to start
with a gum sole, bro.
It should be like a teal green color or something like that.
Put God right there.
RICK WILLIAMS: All right.
I'm going to make that gold foil.
RO COIT: Yeah.
But the shoe can't be like all green, like that color.
RICK WILLIAMS: This is where we can use
that background color.
I'm going to make a new tongue, and I'm going to put
an overlay.
Like a piece of this suede--
RO COIT: On top, like above it.
RICK WILLIAMS: On top, yeah.
RO COIT: And then that's like a premium suede.
RICK WILLIAMS: We do a lace color that's the same as this,
and have gold lace tips.
RO COIT: Oh, yeah.
RICK WILLIAMS: Yeah?
RO COIT: Yeah.
Bro, I think this is it.
And then it's like the shoe, we're going to call it "The
Spirit of Detroit."
RICK WILLIAMS: Easy, right on the back.
RO COIT: You know what I'm saying?
Right on the back.
That's it.
RICK WILLIAMS: You know, it's perfect.
I'll send it off to Dave.
All right, you bet.
RO COIT: Bet it up.
Cheers?
RICK WILLIAMS: Cheers.
AZRIEL GILMORE: Everyone ranks Jay John as the
ladies' man of the store.
Since he's not here, I had to show everybody what's up.
So this pink-haired *** comes in, so I had to come
back with my 1980s game.
Those are fresh.
But unless you got midget feet, I can't
do nothing for you.
CHRISTINA CHRISS: Right on.
AZRIEL GILMORE: Which, it matches.
CHRISTINA CHRISS: I know, that's why I went for them.
I'm thinking the hair.
AZRIEL GILMORE: But forget about these.
You can't even get them.
I'm sizing her up--
her feet.
What do you wear, about seven and a half, eight?
CHRISTINA CHRISS: Yeah.
AZRIEL GILMORE: Skills to pay the bills,
that's what that is.
Dead on.
I got skills.
I got an eye for size from about a block away.
Give it the Hail Mary.
Haven't tried it in awhile.
Ask her if I can get her phone number.
JAY JOHN HENRY: I can't believe you got me in the
Prius on the East side.
OLGA: My bad.
JAY JOHN HENRY: I'll drink some Olde English after this
to balance myself off.
OLGA: Where the [BLEEP]
are we?
JAY JOHN HENRY: It's the Heidelberg Project.
OLGA: I never knew this was even here.
This is definitely creative.
JAY JOHN HENRY: We're building bridges.
One step at a time, right?
OLGA: Yeah.
Welcome to the Heidelberg Project.
Do not give donations to anyone on site.
JAY JOHN HENRY: Yeah, I was cleaning up.
Yeah, my old dude used to have one of these on the job.
You know I like pipe?
Yeah, I'm a plumber by trade.
I'm a world-renowned drummer.
Put a little--
OLGA: And by leilo, I am by leilo.
JAY JOHN HENRY: You're offbeat though, off tempo.
OLGA: What a special day.
JAY JOHN HENRY: I might need a tetanus
shot in a minute though.
OLGA: You know what?
I agree with you.
JAY JOHN HENRY: You see, now this is *** I know about--
jay, sneakers, loafers.
OLGA: That is so cool.
JAY JOHN HENRY: It's a lot to take in, right?
OLGA: What the hell?
This is wild.
You're just full of surprises, aren't you?
JAY JOHN HENRY: Yeah, I am.
OLGA: Oh.
JAY JOHN HENRY: One, two, three, grab your ***.
OLGA: Hey, behave now.
Oh, look at the kitty!
JAY JOHN HENRY: That cat does ***.
OLGA: Stop it.
JAY JOHN HENRY: We're on the East side.
Scat!
Git!
Git!
I just saved your life.
Don't let nobody punk me.
OLGA: I really enjoyed this date.
It's definitely outside the box.
Really cool.
JAY JOHN HENRY: Well, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself.
Look at this.
OLGA: Stop it.
RICK WILLIAMS: Hey.
JAY JOHN HENRY: What up, dog?
RICK WILLIAMS: When did this come in?
Devin?
JAY JOHN HENRY: Bro.
DEVIN WILLIAMS: I ain't seen it.
RICK WILLIAMS: You already saw them.
DEVIN WILLIAMS: Right now I'm thinking AZ
probably knew about it.
RICK WILLIAMS: I guess we're getting in samples and
nobody's talking about it.
You didn't know this was here?
RO COIT: I'm going to go with AZ, dog.
RICK WILLIAMS: AZ normally opens everything.
RO COIT: Somebody saw it.
JAY JOHN HENRY: Who?
RO COIT: Was it in a box or something?
JAY JOHN HENRY: Who you talking to?
RO COIT: Creme de la creme.
JAY JOHN HENRY: That's God upside of this right here.
RO COIT: It's the Lord.
So this is us.
Like, yo, this is us.
JAY JOHN HENRY: This is how we're going to step
out into the world.
RO COIT: This is how we stepping out to the world.
JAY JOHN HENRY: These are cool.
DEVIN WILLIAMS: These are fire.
JAY JOHN HENRY: What color you think this is?
Like, what is it, seafoam?
RICK WILLIAMS: It's the Spirit of Detroit.
RO COIT: Greenish-bluish.
RICK WILLIAMS: Yeah, all right.
RO COIT: So tonight is the release of the Burn Rubber X
Reebok Spirit of Detroit.
Popping bottles.
RICK WILLIAMS: We had a couple hundred pairs set aside for
our close friends and family.
RO COIT: Popping bottles.
RICK WILLIAMS: And clearly we're going to be--
RO COIT: Popping bottles.
RICK WILLIAMS: Man.
RO COIT: There was a time that AZ, we would go somewhere, and
whatever champagne they have in the house that night, he's
popping bottles.
And he'll worry about consequences of his behavior--
RICK WILLIAMS: Later.
RO COIT: The next day.
RICK WILLIAMS: Yeah.
RO COIT: We haven't seen chief bottle popper in a while.
-I need you all to make some noise for [INAUDIBLE] store.
T3: What's up, [INAUDIBLE].
RO COIT: Yeah, there's a good chance that you might see a
performance by Ro Spit.
I got him on the phone.
Like, we might need you to do a little something.
[RAP MUSIC]
RO COIT: I don't want you all to go nowhere.
This is family, this is friends.
We want you to have a good time.
We want you all to drink, I want you all to eat.
RO COIT: You know, it's for that sneakerhead guy, Idaho.
You might not know what the Spirit of Detroit is, but once
you get the shoe you're going to want to
look deeper into it.
We actually put "God" on the shoe.
We didn't even know if Reebok would let it go
through at the time.
When you get it and you start noticing certain things, it's
all going to come full circle.
RICK WILLIAMS: It has the appearance of just a regular
Reebok classic.
There's a lot hidden details.
Whether it's a tonal print in some of the material, or a
message on the foot bed.
RO COIT: Just to think that somebody in Japan, somebody in
Europe will be wearing Detroit on their feet.
Stepping out in something that represents Detroit and
represents Michigan is like, crazy.
RICK WILLIAMS: Definitely is an honor.
Sneakerheads, they pay attention to detail.
They care about the leather.
They care about the insole.
They care about the lace slots.
It comes through in the shoe.
And it's our way of using this medium to tell our
story to the world.
Family is very important to us.
God is the reason we have this opportunity and this blessing.
So this shoe kind of embodies a lot of what we believe in.
And I hope the streets love it.
[MUSIC - RO SPIT, "SHINE"]