Yeezys are back — Is that a good thing?

After months of speculation, we’re here — Yeezys will officially be back on sale next week.

The “Onyx” and “Carbon Beluga” Yeezy Boost 350 V2s are the first Yeezys to hit the Confirmed app with future remaining Yeezy product expected to come. The draws for both colorways are open now through May 31 and both will have a retail price of $230. The Confirmed app notes that all sales are final and that it could take up to 23 days to ship the product.

Of course, it’s impossible to talk about this without referring to the journey that led us here. Back in the fall, Adidas made the initial decision to step away from its partnership with the controversial Kanye West. At the time, it seemed like a no-brainer. From his continued online harassment of his ex-wife’s then-boyfriend Pete Davidson to online harassment of Adidas executives to wearing a “White Lives Matter” T-shirt at a Paris fashion show, making anti-Semitic statements that led to him being kicked off Instagram and Twitter and making false claims about the death of George Floyd, maintaining a relationship with Ye became too untenable, no matter how popular his line was.

Unfortunately for Adidas, they ended up sitting on over $1 billion in Yeezy product. They were stuck in between a rock and a hard place — they didn’t want to appear to be supporting or endorsing Ye’s controversial behavior and comments but that was so much product to sit on. The brand says it even considered burning the product, but that proved to be a no-go for environmental concerns. Thus, here were are.

Adidas CEO Bjørn Gulden said in a press release: “After careful consideration, we have decided to begin releasing some of the remaining adidas YEEZY products. Selling and donating was the preferred option among all organizations and stakeholders we spoke to. We believe this is the best solution as it respects the created designs and produced shoes, it works for our people, resolves an inventory problem, and will have a positive impact in our communities.”

Adidas took pains to note in the above press release that items being released are “existing designs and designs initiated in 2022 for sale in 2023,” which indicates that at this point there will be no new Yeezy product in the pipeline beyond what has already been made (although that is certainly subject to change). It also noted that part of the proceeds from these Yeezy sales will be donated to “selected organizations working to combat discrimination and hate, including racism and antisemitism,” including among others the Anti-Defamation League and the Philonise & Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change.

Whew. Obviously, these Yeezy releases have become something more than just a sneaker release. Even for those who liked Yeezy sneakers, which I admit I had become a fan of the 350 V2, especially, prior to this whole situation really exploding last fall, it’s become more of a charged decision since then. For some, this is great news as they loved the designs and the comfort of the Yeezy line, which cannot be denied. For others, it becomes another case of trying to separate the artist from the art, which I admit I am struggling with.

This is a lot of spilled digital ink to say that the decision to jump back into buying Yeezys will be a personal one for each individual. I don’t see myself being able to buy or wear Yeezys ever again, but everyone is different and it should be noted that ADL CEO Jonathan A. Greenblatt praised Adidas for how it’s handled all of this for what it’s worth (also at least Adidas had the courage to initially walk away from Ye, unlike Nike which has only put out vague statements about its relationship with Tom Sachs, who has also been accused of some terrible misconduct).

As for the shoes themselves, Adidas will start on May 31 by releasing two colorways of the Yeezy Boost 350V2 — the Onyx and the Carbon Beluga. I’ve written about the technical aspects of the 350V2 multiple times in the past. The upper of this sneaker is constructed of Primeknit and combined with a Boost midsole has proven to be one of Adidas’ most comfortable models. The Carbon Beluga colorway will feature “SPLY-350” along the lateral side in an orange stripe.

The two colorways will be released through a drawing process, as was used for Yeezy drops in the past. The draws are open now and will continue until Wednesday, May 31, at 5 a.m. EDT. Right from the Confirmed app, here’s how the draw works:

Yeezys remain popular on the secondary market, with nine pairs currently seeing an average sale price above $500 on StockX as of writing. There’s also the possibility that these could really be it for the Adidas Yeezy line, so it’s kind of a now-or-never situation if you’ve been looking to pick up a pair (at least until Adidas makes some move to continue the partnership beyond the remaining product they’ve been sitting on). Best of luck to all looking to pick up a pair!

UPDATE: Adidas has added three more styles to the Confirmed app, including a live drop for the 380 and two draws set to conclude on June 2.

UPDATE 2: It looks like we could be getting a mini Yeezy Day with three more live raffles added to the Confirmed app for 10 a.m.

UPDATE 3: More Yeezys are set to drop at noon.

UPDATE 4: Two more dropping at 2 p.m. ET.

To see more of this month’s releases, check out our release date calendar.