Nike has settled its legal dispute on Lil Nas X's Satan Shoes, which was made in collaboration with MSCHF Product Studio Inc., who as part of the settlement has agreed to refund buyers for the pairs sold.
The controversial "Satan Shoes," which were marketed as a part of a publicity campaign for rapper Lil Nas X last month, are now being bought back by the art collective that made them. MSCHF Product Studio Inc., which collaborated with Lil Nas X to create the Nike-labeled demonic shoes, will now offer customers to buy back the customized sneakers after a lawsuit filed by Nike had been settled.
"MSCHF has agreed to initiate a voluntary recall to buy back any Satan Shoes and Jesus Shoes for their original retail prices, to remove them from circulation," Nike said in a statement, as reported by the Wall Street Journal.
Last month, Nike filed a trademark lawsuit against MSCHF when they marketed and sold customized Nike Air Max shoes with satanic symbols, a product they came up with in collaboration with rapper Lil Nas X to promote his equally controversial single, "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)."
The Satan Shoes caused an uproar on social media after it was announced that only 666 pairs were made with a red liquid in its sole that the MSCHF and Lil Nas X claimed had included real human blood, allegedly from six MSCHF employees, Vulture reported. The controversial shoes featured a black exterior with a bronze pentagram on the laces and an inverted cross. Its sides were also emblazoned with a reference to the Bible passage Luke 10:18.
According to CBN News, MSCHF attorney David Bernstein of Debevoise & Plimpton LLP said that they were "thrilled" at how the case panned out. He shared, "MSCHF from the start distributed these shoes to make a statement and thanks to the lawsuit and all of the publicity that came from it that statement reached far more corners than we expected."
Bernstein added that the project was "never about making money," but instead to "make a point about how crazy collaboration culture has become." The shoe, which sold for $1,018 a pair, garnered significant backlash from the online community, specifically from conservatives and critics of celebrity collaborations.
Nike spoke out against the product because the customized shoe still featured the brand's well-known white swoosh logo.
"The Satan Shoes were produced without Nike's approval or authorization, and Nike is in no way connected with this project," a statement from Nike in March read. According to the lawsuit, "Nike has not and does not approve or authorize MSCHF's customized Satan Shoes," because these are "likely to cause confusion and dilution and create an erroneous association between MSCHF's products and Nike."
Nike reported that there was already "evidence of significant confusion and dilution" and that angered customers have aired their concerns over the controversial Satan Shoes, "on mistaken belief that Nike has authorized or approved this product."
On top of buying back Satan Shoes from customers, MSCHF is also buying back the "Jesus Shoes" that they released in 2019. Those pairs were made in collaboration with INRI (Iesus Nazaraeus Rex Iudaeorum), using Nike Air Max 97 pairs that evoked Jesus walking on water, as it contains 60cc of water that was allegedly collected from the River Jordan and then blessed, Hypebeast reported.
