Peep this set of almost mint And1 VHS mixtapes released as promotional items via Footaction with the purchase of sneakers in 1999. It was one of the most successful promotional giveaways ever. This launched the And1 mixtape tour dominating many summers to come. See some of the history below.
I always enjoyed watching these tours on ESPN.
AND1 began in the summer of ’93 in Philadelphia as a graduate school project of Jay Coen Gilbert, Seth Berger, and Tom Austin who were selling t-shirts out of the backseat of their cars.
The brand was founded with an aggressive, street ball, in-your-face attitude using basketball trash talk slogans on t-shirts, like "Pass. Save yourself the embarrassment." AND1 marketed itself towards the “ballers," those who hone their craft on the streets and always think they’re the best players on the court.
1994
THE PLAYER
With the increasing success of the trash-talk tees, the iconic AND1 player logo was soon created.
1996
STEPHON MARBURY
In 1996, legendary NBA player and future Hall of Famer Stephon Marbury became AND1’s first NBA ambassador.
1998
THE SKIP TAPE
In late 1998, a videotape containing streetball stunts was delivered to AND1 by a high school coach in New York. The low-quality video was a “mixtape” of hip-hop music and dazzling basketball moves by a streetballer named Rafer Alston (Skip To My Lou) who had just entered the 1998 NBA Draft.
1999
THE MIXTAPE
Once the “Skip Tape” created major buzz for AND1, the brand began to produce multiple “AND1 Mixtapes." The Mixtapes were all similar to the Skip Tape - clips of highly entertaining streetball moves with hip-hop and rap playing in the background.
2000
THE DUNK CONTEST
The AND1 Tai Chis were always one of the brand’s greatest shoes, known for both performance and style with a yin yang look. But in 2000, they were instantly vaulted into the stratosphere. At the time Vince Carter was between contracts, so he decided to give the Tai Chis a go. Carter then put on one of the greatest performances in NBA Dunk Contest history—all while wearing the red and white Tai Chis.
2002
THE MIXTAPE TOUR
In 2002, the brand’s annual summer tour officially expanded into the AND1 Mixtape Tour. Legendary streetballers such as “Hot Sauce” and “The Professor” would go from city to city, court to court to challenge the greatest streetballers in one-on-one’s, entertaining fans and providing much of the footage for the ensuing Mixtapes. The streetballers who prevailed through the very end of the summer tours would receive endorsement deals from AND1.
