Right from the outset, Kanye West has displayed a strong desire to reference Christianity in his artistic output. Ever since he arrived on the scene with his first single titled “Jesus Walks”, the rapper’s commitment to the faith has been obvious.
After transitioning into the world of shoe design, Ye brought the biblical references with him, naming many of his Yeezy looks after people or places in the holy book. Take his “Arzareth” colourway, for example. This particular shoe was named after a place in the Bible where the 10 tribes of Israel lived. The blue hues found on the shoe’s uppers are likely what earned the shoe its name, with Arzareth situated just beyond the Great River in the Old Testament.
The “Arzareth” is just one example but there are literally dozens across his Yeezy collections which just goes to show how important it is for West to pay tribute to his religion with his work. So, you can imagine our surprise to hear that some of the upcoming Yeezy colourways will now lose their faith-based names and receive neutral monikers instead.
The news was confirmed by Yeezy Mafia, who said the Yeezy Quantum “Ophanium” will now be called the “Teal Blue” and the Yeezy 350 “Abez” will now be known simply as “Natural”.
Not usually one to back down, it’s unclear what’s caused this sudden change in direction for Kanye and his team over in Yeezy-Land. Whether it’s related to the recent renaming of the “Asriel” is currently unclear, but the timing does seem a little suspicious.
Last month Yeezy was forced into a red-faced climb-down after members of the Muslim community complained about the brand naming a shoe after Asriel, the archangel of death in the Quran. Asriel is seen as an important figure in Islam, and the shoe’s controversial name caused widespread offence, forcing Yeezy to rename the shoe the “Carbon”.
So far, it’s unclear if the two things are related, but perhaps the anger caused last time around has convinced adidas and the Yeezy team that it’s time to take a new direction with the naming of the designs. Whether or not the neutral; names are here to stay, only time will tell.
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