Reebok Gives Rap the Heave-Ho

Whoah--didn't see this one coming. I know that when Adidas purchased Reebok, it said it was going to make it more performance-oriented, but I didn't think that would mean taking the juice out of recent deals with Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Phareel, Nelly, Lupe Fiasco...you name the rap artist, he's probably signed to Reebok.

Here's a link to the article and here's a snippet:

We've been a little bit too lifestyle-focused maybe over the past couple years, and we want to shift actually more toward the performance side of our business," Paul Harrington, president and CEO of Reebok, said in an interview with TheAssociated Press at Reebok's Canton headquarters.

Harrington and Herbert Hainer of Adidas said that Reebok will continue to strike endorsement deals with individual athletes, but leave it to Adidas to reach such deals with entire teams, in soccer and other sports.]

Poor Lupe. Just a couple weeks back he was complaining about his songs being leaked and saying how maybe it was time to focus on the shoe he's doing with Reebok. Looks like he better stick with his day job.