Last week we hosted our event for the launch of our SL 72 RS – size? exclusive down at Jumbi in the heart of Peckham, championed by the relentlessly inspiring likes of the Rebel Dread himself, Don Letts. The weather outside was poor, but nobody was too fussed about that. It was what was happening inside that really mattered.

Chunkier than other more slimmer versions of the SL 72 that you would’ve seen before – our size? exclusive SL 72 arrives Reshaped, and in two retro colourways that bridges time and space from 1972 to 2024. Hardly short in heritage, the SL 72 was the first adidas shoe ever to signal the Trefoil, and arrives in its favoured nylon upper and streamlined suede tooling; but with a raised EVA midsole to set it apart from its 20^th century predecessor.

Onto it then. Kicking the night off, @shaynatmarie was in control of the decks as the crowd arrived in damp, steady waves. A red haze ushered us inside, a hue prolific with Jumbi from its multiple charming glow lamps. Luminous Trefoils cut through it all, dissipating Originals heritage over nearly each and every wall. 

The panel talk was penned in for 9pm, but we were able to get a few words in with Don beforehand. ‘Blues not really my colour palette man,’ he told us, as he was wearing his ‘Indigo’ pair of SL 72 RS – size? exclusives. The man’s a rebel, we expected no less. ‘But I’ve always worn adidas.’ Briefly, we touched on the topic of true Originals, past and present. ‘I knew Sinéad when she was a young girl,’ he went on to say, referencing the late Sinéad O’Connor. You could see memories flicker through his eyes then – even from behind his sunglasses. We shared our mutual love for the colour green and its many different shades. And that was that.

Hosting the panel talk, @jamzsupernova initiated the debate while the masses gathered cosily around the decks in anticipation of a culturally rich conversation. Sat around Don were David and JoJo Sonobu to the right, @aleighciasings to the left. Topics discussed spanned from the ‘70s – when the working classes had to out-style the upper classes – to the rudeboy skinhead culture which instigated Don’s interest in fashion. ‘I was no good at football,’ Don remarked, ‘but I always understood style.’

This led to black culture as a whole, with @aleighciasings discussing her dual Welsh-Jamaican heritage, what it means to her, and how this has shaped her career journey so far. There was talk of how black culture is rife in the arts industries, but still lacking in the foundations of other, wider industries as a whole – something that needs to change. One of the last questions @jamzsupernova directed to the panel was on originality – and how to achieve it. ‘Always be yourself,’ said @aleighciasings instantly. That got the Rebel Dread seal of approval.

Straight after, Don was at the helm of all things tunes-related. Roots speakers that you’d usually associate with being outside on the streets began to blare the dub that’s synonymous with his entire being, nicely positioned in front of Jumbi’s legendary vinyl wall – proper idyllic. Closing the night, @jamzsupernova kept the heat well alive into the later hours.

The SL 72 RS – size? exclusive is readily available to purchase now at size? in two different retro colourways.