Slim Thug and Le$ Break Down Houston's Sneaker Culture and Style Legacy

When you talk about Houston, it's impossible to separate the city's love of cars, music and sneakers. On a recent episode of JD Sports' podcast, two of H-Town's most authentic voices sat down to talk about the culture that raised them. Slim Thug and Le$ pulled up to reflect on everything from early Jordans and Bape-era flexes to Le$' recent Adidas collab and how Houston style helped shape hip-hop’s larger fashion lane.

Slim Thug kicked things off with a definitive take. "Houston is a Jordan city, thousand percent," he said. From the Space Jams to the Concord 11s, the city's obsession with Jordans runs deep. The lines wrapped around malls like the Galleria became legendary. For Slim, who still remembers waiting in those lines as a fan, Jordans have always been more than sneakers. They were status symbols, passports to be seen and respected. "You kind of had to beat somebody to walk around in those shoes back then," he recalled. The city’s sneaker hunger, sometimes even turning dangerous, was a raw reflection of just how serious H-Town took its kicks.

As the conversation unfolded, the stories layered on. Slim painted a picture of growing up with a closet that looked like a Foot Locker, until a flood wiped it out. Today, he keeps his sneaker archive in his garage, complete with TVs, jerseys, and Jordan memorabilia. That level of dedication didn’t just come from the love of sneakers, but also the lack of them growing up. He still remembers the sting of his older brothers coming home with the Carmine 6s and leaving him empty-handed. That moment planted a seed. "I had to start my own crew after that," he joked.

Le$, who came up watching Slim Thug as a local legend, said those early visuals stuck with him. Slim pulling up in a Cadillac, baped out with ten girls in tow, was more than a flex. It was a lesson in branding and lifestyle. Le$ traced his own sneaker awakening back to those moments, which later led to his dive into Japanese streetwear and collaborations with brands like Bape and Ice Cream. Linking with Pharrell and eventually traveling to Tokyo opened his mind beyond just Jordans. "It changed my life, bro," Le$ said of seeing the level of detail and culture firsthand at Nigo's restaurant and store. "I thought America was the coolest place on Earth till I went to Tokyo."

`That journey came full circle this year when Le$ landed a sneaker deal with Adidas. A billboard off I-45 in Houston now announces his official collab, a bucket list moment he still seems in awe of. "It just happened, bro. We got an email. We didn’t even know it was real at first." Visiting Adidas headquarters and seeing the design process up close was a milestone for the underground stalwart. "We created something down here in Houston that’s bubbling," he said, still surprised that most of the country has no idea what they’re doing.

His Superstar silhouette is more than a sneaker. It’s a nod to the pair he bought with his first check as a kid, when he chose shell toes over the trending Air Force Ones to be different. The collaboration taps into legacy and individuality at once. And with Slim Thug and Bun B as the first people to see the shoes, the co-sign feels more like a family moment than a business play.

Speaking of co-signs, Slim recently debuted the unofficial H-Town Jordan 11s at ComplexCon, a proud moment that came together with the help of Bun B. The shoe's design inspiration pulled from classic Houston car culture, specifically the candy-painted trunks and underground mixtape era. "It all came full circle," Slim said, echoing what many Houstonians have felt watching their style become part of the global sneaker conversation.

Despite the designer options available to him today, Slim still shops smart. He’s made headlines before for praising affordable fits from places like H&M, and he doubled down on that approach. While acknowledging that designer clothes can be fly, he stressed the importance of financial literacy. "I’d rather people spend on shoes or a belt they can wear a thousand times than blow money on a shirt they can only wear once."

For both Slim Thug and Le$, fashion is a natural extension of their hustle. It's tied to legacy, but also to community. When Le$ finally got his own shoe, he didn’t chase celebrity endorsements. "It was the homies," he said. "I wanted them to have a pair. I knew they’d put the fit together right."

Their stories intertwine in ways that show how rooted their bond is. Slim gave Le$ one of his first big co-signs and connected him with early opportunities. Now, watching Le$ pull up in a Rolls-Royce wearing his own Adidas collab is a moment of mutual pride. Their journey from the sneaker lines of Houston to global sneaker tables is a story only a city like H-Town could write.

As Slim Thug put it best, "Shoes and cars, that's life in Houston."