Kahlana Barfield Brown’s journey has been a woven web of life-affirming moments. The latest fruit of her fortuitousness labors is her very own Nike Yardrunner Air Force 1 sneaker—a wearable ode to the connective spirit of HBCUs.
“This is a shoe that represents all of us,” Brown said. A graduate of Howard University, Brown was an inaugural member of Nike’s Yardrunner initiative, which honors the cultural legacy of HBCUs and celebrates their impact through sports, fashion and heritage. “I was in the very first Yard Runners class, and that’s why this shoe is so significant because it feels like a full circle moment,” she reminisced. Air Force 1’s are a cultural staple within the Black community, and Brown was determined to do the sneaker justice.
“I didn’t want to mess up this shoe because we know what a classic a white Air Force 1 is. It’s our universal blank canvas shoe that you can wear with anything,” Brown shared. Far from messing it up, Brown breathed new life into the classic sneaker, tying in thoughtful nods to HBCUs to create a cultural relic you can wear.
Designing Her Signature Sneaker
Like a classic AF1, the sneaker wears a mostly white upper, but Brown luxed it up with premium leather, which was a non-negotiable for the fashion designer.
“I really wanted it to be premium leather because, as Black folks, we deserve premium things, so for it to be our shoe, I wanted to make sure that it was premium leather,” explained Brown. The Swoosh and sock liner are a rich brown, complemented by a dark chocolate sole, which points to the complexions that unite HBCUs.
“The first commonality between us — we’re brown. We have melanin, and I wanted to make sure that I found the right hue of chocolate to incorporate into the shoe.”. The sneaker also wears subtle nods to Brown’s alma mater, Howard University.
“I put the coordinates of Howard’s yard on the shoe because this is a Yard Runner shoe, so I wanted to make sure that we highlighted the meaning behind our yard because it really is the heartbeat of our universities,” she elucidated. The tips of the shoelaces are blue and red, a dually commemorative addition. “That’s a shout-out to Bison, but the red is a crimson color, and so that’s a shout-out to my sorority, Alpha Chapter Delta Sigma Theta.”
At the toe box, she signs off on the sneaker, a thoughtful salutation to the sneaker that embodies her collegiate experience. “Anything iconic is signed, so the signature is me signing off on a love letter to HBCUs,” she said.
Designing Her Legacy
A true multi-hyphenate, Brown’s titles include fashion editor, beauty expert and designer and she heavily credits her Howard experience with giving her the superstar combination of tenacity and style prowess that she uses in her career to this day. “On Fridays at Howard, we dressed to impress and that’s all about Black excellence,” she reminisced.
However, her HBCU lore goes back further than her matriculation at Howard University; as Brown explained, attending Howard was a full-circle moment, steeped in the legacy of the women who came before her. Brown’s grandmother attended Southern University, an HBCU in Louisiana, and was also a member of Delta Sigma Theta. Her passion for HBCUs was something she instilled in Brown from a young age.
“When I was 12 my grandmother bought a van and we did a road trip where we drove from Seattle across the entire United States and stopped at almost every HBCU,” she reflected, explaining that this road trip sparked her initial interest in attending Howard University.
“Throughout the trip, I saw Howard, Hampton, Florida, A&M, Clark Atlanta, Spelman and Morehouse; and being exposed to that literally set my intention and set my goals at 12.”
Brown’s grandmother passed away in 2020, the same year Brown became a Yard Runner. “That was its own full circle moment because I know how much HBCUs meant to her as an educator and as a product of an HBCU, so I just know she would be so proud because this was something that meant so much to her and I feel like I’m carrying her legacy.”
Becoming an Ebony Power 100 Awardee
Q4 was the definition of synergy for Brown. In addition to designing her own Air Force 1, she was also an EBONY Power 100 honoree, another cherished moment that feels deeply connected to her upbringing.
“I grew up going to the EBONY Fashion Fair with my grandmother whenever it would come to Seattle, and that had an impact on me working in fashion because I saw that at such a young age,” said Brown. “So now to be recognized by EBONY is mind-blowing. My grandmother would be so proud. She was such an inspiration, and I followed in her footsteps, and EBONY was one of her favorite magazines.”
And much like how grandmother opened her eyes to the boundless planes of Black excellence, Brown is doing the same with her own daughter.
