Nike goes hardcore

Nike recently sponsored a show with, among others, the Cro-Mags in honor of the hardcore retrospective book Radio Silence:

Massive thanks to Nike who funded this event, let us do whatever the fuck we wanted, made sure it was all-ages, removed seats from their venue and covered the orchestra pit to make sure everyone could have fun and treated hardcore with the respect it deserves, an idea which was the root and heart of Radio Silence. The Ricardo Montalbán Theatre is now the oldest standing theatre in Hollywood and was in great need of a makeover until Nike volunteered to restore it. They gave the building a massive overhaul and host a variety of community events at the venue for kids and adults. Time, money, blood and sweat was put into this space and they opened their doors not knowing what the fuck would happen in honor of a good time. Thank you again to Tim Bergevin for coordinating the event, Robbie Labelle Nike Sportswear’s brand manager, Nils, Brad and the entire staff on hand that made this an epic night.

My take
From 1989 until 2001 or so, pretty much my entire life revolved around hardcore, especially going to hardcore shows. So not only am I excited to read Radio Silence, I'm also stoked to see that Nike is taking steps toward tapping the passion and potential of hardcore as a venue for sponsorships. Hardcore kids have been wearing Nike gear since forever, and many of them are also skateboarders who are familiar with Nike in that context as well. This is a perfect fit for Nike, so I hope to see them reach out to the hardcore scene more often.

The only wrinkle here is that Nike defines itself as a company that makes products exclusively for athletes, and hardcore has nothing to do with athletics (unless you count dancing and fighting). I think they can solve that problem by perhaps sponsoring the right people that have roots in both hardcore and sports, such as, say, skateboarder Mike Vallely or an MMA fighter like Dan Lauzon (who has been sponsored by Deathwish Inc. in past UFC appearances).