Steve Natto is a YouTuber and content creator with a love for all things sneakers. When he wore MSCHF’s viral Big Red Boots to Sneaker Con Philadelphia last week, the response was instantly crazy.
“I could barely walk through any part of the event without somebody coming up and asking me questions about them, trying to take pictures of them, trying to touch them, just get any information about them,” said Natto. Naturally, we had the same response. So we got on the phone with Natto to ask all of our burning questions about the Big Red Boots hype and the experience of feeling like a walking cartoon. Read on for the Q&A, which has been edited for length and clarity.
How did you get the Big Red Boots? Were they sent to you by MSCHF?
Yes. I’m a YouTuber and content creator of pretty much all things sneakers. So yeah, one day they just showed up at my door, and they were just pretty crazy to see. Definitely big and red. And yeah, I was excited to check them out.
Did you know what to expect when you got some mysterious package from MSCHF? What was your first reaction when you got them?
I did have an idea that something was coming along the lines of a boot but I really didn’t know what to expect in hand. The first thing that hit me was just the size of the box. The box was just really big and way bigger than any other sneaker box I think I have ever seen. And, you know, my feet are size 10, so I can only imagine what a size 13 would be like they’re just really really big.
What do they feel like when you put them on?
They’re surprisingly comfortable. I really didn’t know what to expect but they’re definitely just big and a little bulky and feel way different at least on the height of your foot or leg compared to any other shoes. But when you’re actually walking, whatever they’ve done to the insole and how the shoe feels it is actually kind of comfortable.
Credit: Steve Natto
Is it more like a springy Croc material or is it a little bit harder than that?
I would say similar to Crocs or even some of the other foam shoes that are out there like the Yeezy Foam Runners. So it definitely has that sort of feel to it, but just bigger and maybe a little bit harder of a material.
Were they hard to walk in? Did you have to take some time to adjust?
It took a little bit of walking to sort of get used to it. But once you are used to it, I feel like you could wear them for pretty long periods of time. I went to Sneaker Con this weekend and wore them for the whole event, so I pretty much had them on all day and they were great.
Credit: Steve Natto
Do you know if they’re waterproof?
I feel like they would be. I haven’t tried it, but it almost seems like they could be almost a rain boot or snow boot. Maybe I’ll have to test that out.
Did you have a hard time getting them off?
It takes a little bit of time to figure out how to take them off or how it works, but it’s definitely not bad. You kind of just have to hold the shoe down and you’re able to lift your foot out of it. But you can’t really slip it in and out. It is a little bit tighter than that.
There’s that one video of somebody getting the shoe stuck. It seems like that could definitely happen if they’re too small. Mine fit correctly and I have a little bit of room but, I think if they are too small to get your foot in, you might not be able to get your foot out.
Did you think about how to style them at all? Are you thinking about that when you wear them in future outings?
Yeah, I feel like I’ve seen a bunch of different things online at this point where it seems like the popular angle is to kind of go with baggy pants to have them kind of lay over the shoes. It really just shows the bigger part of the actual bottom of the shoe beyond the pants. So that seems like a popular look.
I went with the pants tucked inside the boot to let the shoes kind of speak a little bit more, so they could easily be seen more. But yeah, I thought about it a little bit. I think it’s gonna be interesting to see what other people continue to do as the shoes into more people’s hands.
What was your experience like when you wore them at Sneaker Con?
I think the most common question I was asked was about taking them off. A lot of people were really interested in the feel of it too. And I think just so many people are really excited to see it in person or just see what it looks like in real life. But it was something I’ve never experienced before and being at a lot of different shows like these in the past, other Sneaker Cons, and these were just the craziest issues that attracted attention I have never seen for anything else before.
Did you get any negative reactions from people?
Most of it was definitely positive which I also thought was really interesting. Plenty of people were like, ‘Eh I don’t know,’ or ‘I don’t think I would wear them’ or make some kind of joke about them looking like, Boots from Dora the Explorer or Astro Boy or whatever, but it really felt overwhelmingly more positive than negative.
It’s cool to see how style doesn’t have to take itself so seriously.
Yeah, which is a nice refresher for shoes because a lot of things that happen with sneakers feel the same. A lot of the time it’s just a lot of the big brands doing the same kind of things just repeating different colorways, and it’s nice to see something different for once even if it’s a little fun or just different than normal. It’s nice to see something that’s a little bit of a change of pace.
What did it feel like being basically a walking cartoon? Were you nervous? Did it feel liberating?
I was definitely just a little unsure what was going to happen when I first got there. But as soon as people saw the boots and started talking to me about them, that pressure just kind of faded away since the response was pretty positive right away.
I didn’t do any kind of crazy fit or anything. I tried to do a little — y’know — something a little more subtle, and just let the shoes speak for themselves and just kind of see what everybody thought. So it was definitely just cool to see.
What are your predictions for the Feb.16 drop?
I’m definitely looking forward to it, and I’m sure it’ll be an instant sell-out. I think it’ll be a raffle because that’s what [MSCHF has] done for previous shoes where people have 24 hours to enter into the raffle, and then they’ll just be notified if they win or not. But however they do it, it’s definitely going to sell out.
