Nike Obtains Restraining Order Against Lil Nas X’s “Satan Shoes”, Blocking All Sales

Nike is waging an all out war with the devil. The clothing company successfully blocked the sale of Lil Nas X’s “Satan shoes“- at least for now.

A US district court on Wednesday approved Nike’s request for a temporary restraining order against MSCHF, the art collective that collaborated with the rapper to create a pair of sneakers containing “a drop” of human blood. They used modified Nike Air Max 97s for the collaboration.

“Nike filed an infringement and trademark dilution complaint against MSCHF today regarding the Satan footwear,” Nike told CBS News in a statement Thursday. “We have no further details to share on the pending legal issues. However, we can tell you that we have no relationship with Lil Nas X or MSCHF. The Satan shoes were produced without approval. or permission of Nike, and Nike has no connection with this project. ”

The order, issued by the Eastern District of New York, states that the Brooklyn-based agency cannot fulfill any orders. As of Monday, 665 pairs of devil-themed sneakers, priced at $ 1,018, sold out in just one minute.

Fans can enter a contest to win the 666th pair of final shoes.

The controversial sneakers, denounced by countless conservative politicians and religious leaders, feature a bronze pentagram, the number “666” and a small amount of human blood obtained from the MSCHF team.

The award is a reference to the Bible passage Luke 10:18, which says, “I saw Satan lightning down from heaven,” the collective told CBS News. The release coincided with Lil Nas X’s new song and music video for “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)”, in which the 21-year-old attempts to seduce a horned devil as a tribute to his acceptance of his bizarre identity.

Earlier this week, Nike told CBS News it had no role in designing or releasing the shoes with the Grammy Award-winning artist or the art collective.

“We don’t endorse them,” the company said on Monday.

Later in the day, Nike filed a complaint against MSCHF, arguing that the swoosh infringes its trademark and damages its trademark.

The sneaker giant argued that the shoes are “likely to cause confusion and dilution and to create a mistaken association between the MSCHF and Nike products”, claiming that there is “already evidence of confusion and significant dilution in the market, including calls to boycott Nike in response to the launch of MSCHF’s Satan shoes based on the mistaken belief that Nike authorized or approved this product. ”

“As a direct and immediate consequence of MSCHF’s wrongdoing, Nike has suffered, continues to suffer and / or is at risk of suffering damage to its brands, commercial reputation and goodwill that money cannot compensate for,” added the lawsuit. “Unless otherwise specified, MSCHF will continue to use Nike’s claimed trademarks and / or similar confusing trademarks and will cause irreparable damage to Nike for which Nike has no adequate legal remedy.”

The rapper, born Montero Lamar Hill, didn’t shy away from online disapproval, even joke to go to court with Nike.

However, he also tweeted Monday that the “backlash” has an “emotional impact”.

“I try to cover it with humor but it gets difficult,” he says. “My anxiety is higher than ever.”

MSCHF did not immediately respond to CBS News’ request for comment on the trial, although it had previously said: “We expected a backlash and we are all for it.”

Lil Nas X is not named as a defendant in the lawsuit.