Rapper Jack Harlow drops New Balance kicks 

American rapper Jack Harlow spent a decade grinding out independent mixtapes and selling CDs from his backpack before his breakthrough in 2020 with the hit "Whats Poppin”, which reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100. The following year, the rapper featured on Lil Nas X’s banger "Industry Baby", which was followed in 2022 by "First Class" sampling Fergie's "Glamorous" - a global hit featuring Ludacris, which debuted at number one on the Billboard charts.

The Kentucky-born rapper is a talent on the fast track, already mixing it up with the titans of hip-hop, including Drake ("Churchill Downs"), Lil Wayne ("Whats Poppin" and "Poison"), and Eminem (featuring on the "Killer" remix with Cordae), while racking-up six Grammy nominations. He’s featured on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, and has successfully transitioned into Hollywood, making his acting debut in the remake of White Men Can't Jump (2023), and starring in the action-comedy The Instigators in 2024. He’s currently touring for his fourth album Monica released by Atlantic Records, and has somehow found time to collaborate with sneaker brand New Balance on the T500 "Olmsted".

The rapper, who signed-up with New Balance in 2022, has already put his stamp on the 1906R "Rose Runner". This new shoe is inspired by Frederick Law Olmsted, the landscape designer behind New York’s Central Park and the park system in the rapper's hometown, who promoted the creation of accessible public green spaces as democratic sanctuaries for all social classes. His kicks reintroduce the T500 originally released in 1982, designed for walking rather than competition in synthetic brown leather with a simple “N” logo.

Harlow is launching the T500 "Olmsted" at a pop-up activation at Hogan’s Fountain, Cherokee Park in Louisville, Kentucky on August 28 (between 3pm and 7pm local time) - an event that takes place ahead of his two hometown gigs in Louisville on the 29th and 31st August.

2026 Tour Dates:

Sat Aug 29 – Louisville, KY – Old Forester’s Paristown Hall

Mon Aug 31 – Louisville, KY – Old Forester’s Paristown Hall

Thu Sep 3 – Charlotte, NC – The Fillmore

Fri Sep 4 – Atlanta, GA – Coca-Cola Roxy

Sat Sep 5 – Orlando, FL – House of Blues

Mon Sep 7 – Houston, TX – 713 Music Hall

Tue Sep 8 – Dallas, TX – South Side Ballroom

Fri Sep 11 – Denver, CO – Fillmore Auditorium

Mon Sep 14 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Palladium

Thu Sep 17 – San Diego, CA – Gallagher Square at Petco Park

Fri Sep 18 – Oakland, CA – Fox Theater

Sat Sep 19 – San Francisco, CA – The Masonic

Tue Oct 13 – London, UK – KOKO