Free The Youth started the way most youth movements do: kids with cameras, posting fits online. In 2013, Jonathan “Joey Lit” Coffie, Kelly “Kurlz” Sekfafor Foli, Richard “Kweku Maposh” Ormano, and the late Winfred “Shace” Mensah were trying to show people a different side of Ghana. Street style shots on Tumblr and Facebook. Local events. Building community around the idea that their city had more to offer than the tired narratives of poverty and conflict.
A decade later, FTY runs as a streetwear brand, creative agency, and NGO. They’ve done collaborations with Off-White and Daily Paper, styled Wizkid’s tour, and built a store on Liberation Road that doubles as a workshop space where young people can actually learn screen printing instead of just talking about it. Most importantly, they didn’t wait for anyone to tell them they were allowed.
In late 2025, FTY announced a partnership with Jordan Brand. FTY became the first West African streetwear brand to officially collaborate with the Jumpman. Part of Jordan’s “Unbannable” campaign, which spent the year celebrating rebellion and the 40th anniversary of the Air Jordan 1.
The collab dropped as an Air Jordan 1 Mid. 175 pairs only, Friends & Family, not for sale. The shoe itself is an exercise in layering. You see the AJ1 bones, but everything else is Ghana. Smooth leather mixed with this particularly fuzzy suede that looks tactile even in photos. Color blocking pulled from the national flag: red, yellow, green, blue, orange. None of it subtle. Oversized FTY branding in green on the quarter panel, matching laces, a blue-and-orange hang tag. There’s an upside-down FTY logo on the side, a metallic eagle patch you can move around (it “flies” at any angle, apparently), individual numbering on the tongue, and Okodee Mmowere graphics on the insole.
But the real statement is on the heel. Where you’d normally see the Wings logo, there’s the Okodee Mmowere instead. An Adinkra symbol from Ghana’s coat of arms. It means “talons of the eagle.” Represents bravery, unity, strength. It’s not trying to be subtle about it. This is Ghanaian iconography taking over one of the most recognizable sneakers in the world.
The 175 pairs went exactly where you’d expect for a Friends & Family drop. Ghana President John Dramani Mahama got a pair hand-delivered by the founders in early 2026. Artists got pairs: Stonebwoy, Sister Derby (who apparently got multiple), Sarkodie, Black Sherif, Rema (seen wearing them at Afro Future), Fabolous during his Ghana trip. DJ Khaled posted his on Instagram. There were giveaways in Paris during Fashion Week. The usual hype mechanics, but the distribution genuinely amplified the story. Each pair became its own talking point.
The actual distribution happened at FTYRAVE, FTY’s 10th anniversary event on January 7, 2026, at Ghud Park in Accra. A$AP Ferg headlined. Maphorisa, Amaarae, Sarkodie, Stonebwoy, King Promise all performed. Classic move: drop the shoes at your own party, control the narrative completely.
The Air Jordan 1 Mid was the preview. The real release is an Air Jordan 16 dropping June 13, 2026, for $250. Nike.com, SNKRS, select Jordan Brand retailers globally. The AJ16 comes with a removable shroud that reveals orange-to-black gradient underneath, FTY branding throughout. First retail sneaker release between FTY and Jordan Brand, which means this one’s actually accessible beyond the 175 people who got the F&F pair.