5 NBA stars who tried their hand at hip hop music featuring Shaquille O'Neal and Damian Lillard
Basketball and hip hop music go a long way back so much so they have become inextricably intertwined. One of the ways this kinship is being manifested is through how rap music is being used by played to motivate themselves.
But while some players turn to hip hop to pump themselves up, there are others who were bold enough to translate their passion for it to a possible recording career.
Here are five players who tried their hand at making a career out of hip-hop music:
5 NBA stars who tried their hand at hip-hop
#1. Shaquille O'Neal
While he was starting to build his legend in the 1990s, Shaquille O’Neal also began dipping his hand in making hip-hop music.
His debut album, Shaq Diesel (1993) was certified platinum-selling while his follow-up album Shaq Fu: Da Return (1994) went gold. The 15-time NBA All-Star added to his discography three more solo studio albums, namely You Can’t Stop the Reign (1996), Respect (1998) and Gorilla Warfare (2023). He was also part of the soundtrack for the movie Steel (1997), which he starred in.
#2. Damian Lillard as Dame D.O.L.L.A.
Seven-time NBA All-Star Damian Lillard, a.k.a. Dame D.O.L.L.A., now of the Milwaukee Bucks, has produced for albums already like The Letter O (2016), Big D.O.L.LA. (2019), Don D.O.L.LA., and Different on Levels the Lord Allowed.
He first became known as a rapper on Instagram, where he started #4barFriday which steadily grew as a weekly platform for Lillard to throw rhymes.
The former Portland Trail Blazers superstar does not rap about typical topics like guns, money, and women. Instead, he talks about his struggle while growing up in Oakland.
#3. Chris Webber
Basketball Hall-of-Famer Chris Webber also tried his hand as a hip-hop recording artist as ‘C. Webb’ in the 1990s, releasing the studio album 2 Much Drama in February 1999.
The album featured 21 tracks, including “Gangsta! Gangsta! (How U Do It)” featuring Kurupt, which reached #10 on Billboard’s Hot Rap Singles at the time of its release.
In the album, he showed he could hold his own in the rap game. He, however, focused on his basketball after, having stops in Golden State, Washington, Sacramento, Philadelphia and Detroit.
#4. Lonzo Ball
The eldest among the Ball brothers playing in the NBA, Lonzo Ball, has also showcased his talent and passion for rapping.
In 2017, he released his first single “Melo Ball 1,” which is a song about his youngest brother and Charlotte Hornets All-Star point guard LaMelo. After that, the rap artist called Zo dropped his second song “ZO2,” which is a rhyme for his line of shoes.
#5. Tony Parker
Newly inducted Basketball Hall-of-Famer and San Antonio Spurs legend Tony Parker also threw his name into the rap game by way of his album TP in 2007.
The 11-song album was all in French and received mixed reactions. But the track “Premier Love”, featuring French R&B artist Rickwel, hit the ninth spot on the Billboard France digital song sales chart.