An Iconic Colorway Returns
It's not overstating to say the Air Jordan 5, particularly the "Grape" colorway, is integral to the history of the sneaker. To chart the story of the sneaker's rise from flimsy running shoe to a defining element of fashion and athletic wear, you have to mention several key individuals and events, including Taylor Hatfield, Michael Jordan, Air Jordans, and the rise of Jordans on the feet of megastars like Will Smith. The AJ 5 "Grape" colorway combines all of those elements.
Air Jordans are the reason there is a Brand Jordan today. The sneakers were primarily designed by Taylor Hatfield, the athlete-turned-architect-turned-shoe-designer responsible for several of Nike's biggest hits of the '90s. Those hits weren't entirely due to the massive importance of the Swoosh's relationship with Michael Jordan. Some sneakers started to show up on other famous feet, like those of Will Smith in the "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."
The Air Jordan 5 Retro "Grape WT/P" release is a throwback to a colorway that made two instantly iconic appearances in popular culture in the 90s: on Michael Jordan's feet on a Wheaties box and Will Smith's feet in his epoch-defining role as the Fresh Prince.
Grape WT/P Design Details
Cast your mind back to the 2018 AJ 5 "Grape/Fresh Prince" release — you remember, the one with no laces and no eyelets to even put laces in if you wanted them. Arguably, the biggest impact of that release was to create a real hankering for an authentic retro and reimagined Grape sneaker: Something as close as possible to the original, with none of the laceless gimmickry of 2018. His Airness heard the call, and here we are in 2025, greeting the return of an icon that's as close to its original form as you can get without unearthing a '90s shoe-making factory.
The Air Jordan 5 Retro OG "Grape WT/P" brings back every glorious detail of the original:
- Slightly enlarged mudguard: This feature restores the shoe's profile to that of the original sneakers, distinguishing it from other AJ 5 releases.
- Sole overlays: On the bottom of the shoe, check out how the translucent ice-blue sole overlays atop an emerald Jumpman logo, sandwiching an opaque white block carrying the Nike swoosh. The famous "shark's tooth" on the midsole is picked out in emerald green against a grape ice background.
- TPU mesh: The emerald Jumpman logo on the tongue sits above a TPU mesh. Designed for breathability, the mesh was a first-of-its-kind feature in sneakers at its original launch in 1990.
