Vans Unveils a New Era of the Old Skool, Highlighting Its Counter-Culture Heritage

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Vans has adapted and evolved with the punk and skate scenes, sported onstage and in every mosh pit, soaked in beer or thrashed to threads in concrete skate parks. To toast the brand’s status as an icon of subculture, Vans convened a two-day global media summit celebrating Vans’ classic silhouette, the Old Skool. Multiple generations of punk icons, hip-hop legends, DIY artists, and skateboarders crowded into the Kohn Gallery in the heart of Hollywood last week to put their own spin on the sneaker staple.  

The gallery featured rare photos from the Vans archive, plus memorabilia like concert posters from legendary SoCal bands like Fear and Black Flag. “In the exhibition Noise From The Archive, I wanted to honor Los Angeles and Hollywood’s legacies within the history of punk during its formative years,” explained Vans archivist Catherine Acosta. 

Henry Rollins, the Linda Lindas’ Bela Salazar, and Blink-182’s Travis Barker were on hand to highlight three generations of punk’s enduring relationship to Vans and skate culture for a panel moderated by Acosta. Additionally, Jahil Nzinga from hip-hop group The Pack (known for their hit 2006 single “Vans”) highlighted the Old Skool’s cross-genre appeal, with Vans becoming a staple of the alternative hip-hop scene of the mid-2000s.

Barker talked about his connection to the skate scene growing up in Orange County, explaining that “Skateboarding taught me so much. It taught me what music to listen to, it taught me how to dress,” while Rollins, in his signature all-black outfit, highlighted Vans’ importance to the punk scene across decades, from his hometown of Washington, D.C. to his time as the lead of seminal LA punk band Black Flag in the 1980s.

The summit celebrated the updated version of the Old Skool, first introduced in 1977 as Style 36. The first capsule collection in the Vans Premium Old Skool Music Collection, inspired by the punk and hardcore scene of the ‘70s and ‘80s, drops today, Feb. 6. Speaking to the inspiration behind the design, Diandre Fuentes, Head of Design for Lifestyle Footwear at Vans, explained, “When we were brainstorming, the team and I were exploring ways we could celebrate the legacy and cultural significance of the Old Skool in a way that celebrates heritage but would feel fresh and intriguing to new consumers.”

The new Premium Old Skool includes a leopard print pattern that nods to the punk origins of the shoe, with modern features like upgraded cushioning and glossy sidewalls for an elevated take on a classic. The punk drop will be followed by a March release celebrating the ‘90s and 2000s Vans Warped Tour era (making its triumphant return in 2025), which Diandre Fuentes called, “a true misfit circus dripping in checkerboard, studded belts, and bleached tips. A Y2K explosion of alternative sounds and Vans spirit.”

Finally, a hip-hop-inspired capsule will drop in April, with bold colorways on gum soles, inspired by “Indie Hip Hop of the mid-2000s. Think Odd Future and other groundbreaking artists that were pushing the genre to new places at the intersection of different music scenes, street culture, indie culture, and skateboarding,” said Fuentes.

For the campaign, Vans tapped into a new generation of musicians who embody non-conformity including The Paranoyds, Voice of Baceprot, Little Simz, and HiTech.

What connects the disparate subcultures that have rocked Vans for over 50 years is a strong sense of individuality and a DIY ethos, so Vans invited press and influencers to customize their own Premium Old Skools. Nicole McLaughlin led the customization workshop, acclaimed for her unique designs that reinterpret everyday objects into fashion (her take on Vans includes a pair of slip-ons inspired by gardening totes). 

“I think models like the Old Skool or Slip-On are the perfect canvas for customization. They invite you to want to wear them, scuff them up, draw/paint on them, or even fully deconstruct and reconstruct them,” said McLaughlin. Street artist Chito also put his spin on the Old Skool during a live art event, tagging the sneakers, shoeboxes, and gallery walls with splatter paint and bold lettering reading “Bad Idea.”  

Further cementing its skate bona fides, Vans also recently unveiled another take on the Old Skool, dubbed the Skate Old Skool 36+. The sneaker features ample cushioning on the tongue and heel, with a campaign starring Vans Team skateboarders Zion Wright and Etienne Gagne. 

Wright, Gagne, and other Vans Team skateboarders took to the mini half pipe set up in the Kohn Gallery during Sky Jetta’s DJ set at the Vans media summit. After hours, Henry Rollins returned to spin punk classics, and buzzy indie rock band Horsegirl took to the stage for a guitar-heavy set. Finally, Tyler, the Creator tourmates Paris Texas brought their high-octane blend of hip hop and punk for a raucous set that pulled even the most sedate media members into the mosh pit.