First Look: Michael Jordan’s ‘Grape’ Air Jordan 5 Returns With Original Details for the First Time Ever
2025 marks 40 years of the Jordan Brand which will be celebrated in a big way with releases like the “Banned” Air Jordan 1 ’85, but that’s not the only model that will receive a major push this year. Also celebrating a milestone is the Air Jordan 5, which hits its 35th anniversary and will be released in several original colorways. One of the most anticipated of the bunch is the return of the “Grape” style, which is actually rereleasing with its original details for the first time ever.
After news of the Air Jordan 5 Retro “Grape” first surfaced in June, more details have come to light including a first in-hand look at the upcoming sneaker. Shared by leaker @prm.cotd on Instagram, the ’25 version of the Air Jordan 5 “Grape” features of all the sneaker’s signature elements including a purple-and-emerald midsole fashioned in the style of fighter jet planes, a two-tone nylon tongue and an icy translucent outsole.
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Also present is the Air Jordan 5’s adjustable lace lock toggle and translucent TPU netting on the tongue and side panels. But the defining aspect of the ’25 iteration is its heel Nike Air embroidery, an element which has not appeared on the shoe since its original 1990 release.
Aside from the ’90 original, the “Grape” Air Jordan 5 has been rereleased in 2006 and again in 2013. In 2018, Jordan Brand paid homage to Will Smith’s “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” character by launching a version of the sneaker without shoelaces, a reference to the way Smith would wear his shoes on the show. While laceless ’18 pair included Nike Air branding, the upcoming ’25 release will be the first time the shoe has been reissued with all of its bells and whistles intact.
The “Grape” Air Jordan 5 is unique in that it is the only original colorway of the model that Michael Jordan didn’t wear in an NBA game. He did, however, wear the colorful pair during a fall ’90 Nike Flight Collection photoshoot — and one of the images made it to the front of a Wheaties cereal box.
With a full colorway of “White/Grape Ice/New Emerald,” the ’25 version of the Air Jordan 5 Retro “Grape” is set to be released on April 19 for a retail price of $210. The shoe’s SKU is HQ7978-100 and it will be available in full-family sizing. This story will be updated with any potential changes.
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