In any ordinary circumstance, new Carhartt WIP Nike Dunk shoes would be cause for mass hysteria, at least among sneaker-obsessed types. Carhartt and Nike's storied history effectively starts with sought-after Jordans of all time, remember, so whatever they get up to nowadays is coming from a place of real cultural weight.
So, why should folks have their grain of salt at the ready for the Carhartt WIP x Nike SB Dunks that've been spreading en masse online — and not just because they'd be impossible to get on their release date.
Let's just say, be careful what you wish for. Be careful what you Carhartt WIP for? Hmmm.
In September 2023, a new pair of black Carhartt-branded Nike SB Dunks began doing the rounds online, with sneaker leakers suggesting that they were scheduled for a 2024 release date.
Supposedly a sample, the Dunks wear a black upper, silver-lined Swoosh, Carhartt logo, under the tongue, and Carhartt/Nike co-branding on the heel.
Eminem was also looped in on these things, as the Detroit native masterminded the extremely rare Carhartt-themed Air Jordan 4 in 2015. There also actual Carhartt Nike Dunks that dropped way back in 2004 — you can find pairs for under four figures.
Anyways, these alleged Carhartt WIP Nike sample shoes had actually been making the rounds for several months.
Back in March, the same pair of black Carhartt Nike Dunks popped up on sneaker leak pages as first-look obsessed collectors breathlessly reshared the same mock-ups and release date — this time, it was 2023, not 2024.
Then, a few videos of said Carhartt Dunks did the rounds. This sent the rumor mill into a true tizzy. Eminem x Carhartt WIP x Nike SB Dunks! The stuff of reseller's dreams.
But it was all for naught. The Carhartt Dunks were revealed to be a custom sneaker created by a customizer who reiterated that you shouldn't "BELIEVE EVERYTHING THE INTERNET SHOWS YOU LMAO" (his caps).
The latest Carhartt WIP Nike Dunk rumor succeeded a flap in October 2022 when rumors of Eminem-themed Carhartt Dunks got so hyperbolic that Paul Rosenberg, Eminem's manager, stepped in to shut them down.
"Not a thing," he said on a post hyping up the rumored sneaker collab, though his brief dismissal doesn't close the door on a Eminem/Carhartt/Nike redux down the road.
Point is, don't get your hopes up about these black Carhartt Dunks but who's to say that Carhartt WIP and Nike aren't gonna get back together one day? There was that one in-line Nike sneaker collab from several years back and Carhartt pretty regularly devises its own Converse shoes (owned by Nike, you know).
With the current deluge of hot, hot, hot Carhartt collaborations as of late, from Palace Skateboards to New Balance's 990v6, the timing is certainly right. If only that was the only factor necessary to inspire another Carhartt Dunk.
