Tipsheet

Judge Orders a Halt to Selling of the 'Satan Shoes'

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  April 01, 2021 1:50 PM

Just a few days ago, Beth brought to our attention the bizarre concept that was "Satan Shoes," a collaboration between singer Lil Nas X and MSCHF, a Brooklyn art collective. Well, Nike didn't like that the collaboration involved their Nike Air Max 97s, and earlier this week they sued. On Wednesday, Nike's request for a temporary restraining order against MSCHF was granted by a U.S. District Court judge. Such news comes during the Christian Holy Week, in the days before Easter. 

The shoes reference Luke 10:18, which reads, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven."

Nike has emphasized from the beginning that they are not affiliated, something they've doubled down on. According to CBS' Sophie Lewis:

"Nike filed a trademark infringement and dilution complaint against MSCHF today related to the Satan Shoes," Nike told CBS News in a statement Thursday. "We don't have any further details to share on pending legal matters. However, we can tell you we do not have a relationship with Lil Nas X or MSCHF. The Satan Shoes were produced without Nike's approval or authorization, and Nike is in no way connected with this project."  

The case continues to have court hearings into today:

The court order states that the Brooklyn-based agency cannot fulfill any orders. During a court hearing Thursday morning, MSCHF's lawyer said that the majority of the shoes, over 600 pairs, have already been shipped to individual consumers, arguing that this rendered Nike's claims irrelevant.  

Nike's lawyer said he had "some serious doubts" that MSCHF was able to ship and deliver all 665 pairs of the shoes in the last few days. Even if they had, the lawyer argued, that would not eliminate the "irreparable harm" caused by the shoes.

He argued that shipping the shoes does not remove the "post-sale confusion and delusion" experienced by Nike customers. Nike said that MSCHF's marketing and social media materials prominently featured the Nike "swoosh" mark, with no public disclaimers or disassociations with Nike. 

Nike said some customers are now boycotting the brand online for its apparent association with Satan. The company wants MSCHF to stop all orders currently in transit and recover them.  

Supposedly, 665 pairs of the shoes sold out in one-minute on Monday and are in transit. The 666th pair--with 666 being the number of the beast--was to be part of a raffle, but that is on hold.

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The controversy, which, again, comes during the Christian Holy Week--you be the judge if that's coincidental or not--has involved many high profile figures. This includes Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD), though I'll warn you that the tweet threads contain extremely offensive responses.

Lil Nas X is not named as a defendant, as CBS pointed out. He's gone from joking about the lawsuit, though, to tweeting about his anxiety. 

His request to fans, then, who want to support him in this time of anxiety, then is to go dabble further with the devil in listening to his song, "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)."