Black fedoras. Black leather. Gold chains, thick-framed glasses and, most of all, white Adidas shell-toe sneakers with no laces. When Run-DMC smashed through a studio wall with Aerosmith in the 1986 “Walk This Way” video, millions of Americans saw that look for the first time. Before long, it was everywhere.
In this Retro Fashion & Style feature, we look at how three young men from Hollis, Queens, turned street clothes into a uniform, how a song about their sneakers led to a historic endorsement deal, and how the “Walk This Way” video carried the whole style into living rooms across the country. The official video is waiting for you at the end of the article.
▶️ Want to watch first? Scroll down. The official video is waiting for you at the end of the article.
From Hollis, Queens, to MTV
Run-DMC was Joseph “Run” Simmons, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels and Jason “Jam Master Jay” Mizell. They grew up in Hollis, Queens, and Run’s older brother, Russell Simmons, was a rising hip-hop promoter and manager. By 1986 they already had a list of firsts: the first hip-hop group with a Gold album, then a Platinum one, and the first hip-hop act to have a video played on MTV, with “Rock Box.”
Then came Raising Hell, released on May 15, 1986, and produced by Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin. It became the first multi-Platinum hip-hop album, and it gave the group two songs that matter to our story: “My Adidas” and “Walk This Way.”
A New Look for Hip-Hop
Early rap stars often dressed for show business: rhinestones, studded leather, capes and spikes, a little like disco or glam rock. Run-DMC threw that out. They dressed the way young people actually dressed on the street in their neighborhood.
Jam Master Jay’s Influence
Much of the look came from Jam Master Jay. When Russell Simmons saw Jay’s sharp, streetwise b-boy style, he insisted the whole group follow suit. The wardrobe became a list of instantly recognizable pieces: black fedoras or Kangol hats, Cazal glasses, leather jackets, jeans, and Adidas Superstar sneakers worn without laces.
Why No Laces?
The laceless sneakers came straight from the street. Run later explained that the style echoed what people wore in jail, where shoelaces were not allowed, and that the group took it as a fashion statement. That’s why DMC raps that his Adidas “only bring good news” and are “not used as felon shoes.”
“My Adidas” and the Million-Dollar Moment
“My Adidas,” the first single from Raising Hell, was a love letter to their shell-toes. It was partly a reply to a song called “Felon Sneakers” by Jerrald Deas, which linked sneakers to crime. DMC has said the point was bigger than shoes: people were judging young b-boys and b-girls “by the cover,” without seeing what was inside.
Then came the famous night. On July 19, 1986, at Madison Square Garden, the group’s co-manager, Lyor Cohen, invited Adidas executive Angelo Anastasio to the show. During “My Adidas,” the group asked the crowd to hold up their Adidas, and the fans held them high. The result was the first endorsement deal between a musical act and an athletic company, and later a Run-DMC clothing line. The deal is credited with paving the way for the artist-and-brand partnerships that followed, especially in hip-hop.
Walk This Way: Rock Meets Rap
“Walk This Way” was originally a 1975 Aerosmith song. At their shows, Run-DMC had been rapping over the opening drums and guitar on a loop, without ever hearing the whole record. Rick Rubin suggested they remake it. Run and DMC weren’t keen at first and reportedly called the lyrics “hillbilly gibberish,” but Jam Master Jay was open to it, and Rubin brought in Steven Tyler and Joe Perry.
There’s a fun bit of studio trivia here: the studio had no bass guitar handy, so one of the Beastie Boys, who happened to be hanging around, went home and brought back his bass for Joe Perry to play.
The Wall Comes Down
The video was directed by Jon Small and filmed at the Park Theater in Union City, New Jersey, on a modest budget of $67,000. Small had directed Whitney Houston’s “Greatest Love of All,” and he believed that to get heavy play on MTV, the clip needed Tyler and Perry on screen. His idea: Run-DMC and a rock band duel in neighboring studios until Tyler literally breaks through the wall between them. Then everyone ends up on the same stage.
Only Tyler and Perry from Aerosmith appear. The other “rock band” members were played by musicians from a little-known group called Smashed Gladys. Joe Perry later said the video “really did break down walls,” because there were so few Black artists on MTV at the time. (For more on how MTV’s color line was broken, see our “Billie Jean” story.)
Watch it today and notice the contrast. On one side, the classic rock-star look of the 1970s. On the other, Run-DMC in their trademark street style. By the end, the two worlds share one stage, and it all looks perfectly natural.
What It Meant
- Chart history: The Run-DMC version reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100, higher than Aerosmith’s original, and was the first hip-hop single to reach the Top 5.
- A rock comeback: The hit revived Aerosmith’s career, leading into Permanent Vacation (1987) and “Dude (Looks Like a Lady).”
- Video honors: MTV’s 1999 list of the 100 Greatest Videos Ever Made put it at No. 5.
- Hall of Fame: Run-DMC was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2009, and Raising Hell was added to the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry.
Even Bob Dylan was a fan. On his radio show in 2007, he played “My Adidas” and compared Run-DMC to Chuck Berry, saying people forget how powerful the innovators were. Read our tribute to Chuck Berry at 100 to see what he meant.
The style also outlived the group. After Jam Master Jay was killed in 2002, fans built a memorial outside his Queens studio with Adidas sneakers, albums and flowers. DMC’s own Superstars and glasses have even been displayed at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.
Get the Look, and the Sound
- The essentials: white Adidas Superstars (laces optional, in true Run-DMC style), dark jeans, a black leather jacket, a black fedora and bold black glasses.
- Start with the album. Raising Hell (1986), then go back to King of Rock (1985) for more rap-rock.
- Compare the originals. Play Aerosmith’s 1975 “Walk This Way” from Toys in the Attic right before the 1986 version.
- If you like this, try: “It’s Tricky” and “You Be Illin’” from Raising Hell, plus the Beastie Boys’ Licensed to Ill from the same year.
For more from this golden decade, browse our 80s Hits and Rock stories.
“Walk This Way” Quick Facts
| Artists | Run-DMC featuring Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith |
| Album | Raising Hell (May 15, 1986, Profile Records) |
| Song written by | Steven Tyler and Joe Perry (1975) |
| Producers of the album | Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin |
| Video director | Jon Small |
| Video location | Park Theater, Union City, New Jersey |
| Video budget | $67,000 |
| Billboard Hot 100 peak | No. 4 |
| Signature style | Black fedoras, leather, Cazal glasses, laceless Adidas Superstars |
Sources
- “Walk This Way” on Wikipedia (with its cited sources, including Billboard, Rolling Stone and VH1)
- Run-DMC on Wikipedia
- “My Adidas” on Wikipedia
- Raising Hell on Wikipedia
- Adidas Superstar on Wikipedia
- Run-DMC at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
Photo Credits
- Featured image: Darryl “DMC” McDaniels in 2014 by Luigi Novi, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Featured image: Run and DMC performing at the Long Beach Arena, 1984 by Ian Dryden, Los Angeles Times, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Featured image: The Park Performing Arts Center (the former Park Theater), Union City, New Jersey by Luigi Novi, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Featured image: Aerosmith, including Joe Perry and Steven Tyler, aboard USS Harry S. Truman, 2002 by U.S. Navy (Photographer’s Mate 3rd Class Christopher B. Stoltz), public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- In-article image: DMC’s Adidas shoes and glasses at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Sam Howzit, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- In-article image: Run-DMC Adidas sneakers at the Bata Shoe Museum, Toronto by rrafson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- In-article image: A pair of Adidas Superstar sneakers by Yahoo! Blog from Sunnyvale, California, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
