Throwback to when NBA legends LeBron James and Kevin Durant collaborated for their single ‘It Ain’t Easy’
With Kevin Durant's appearance in Drake's latest song 'Laugh Now Cry Later', we remember the time when the Brooklyn Nets star rapped with NBA superstar LeBron James back in 2011. Never heard of the story? Perhaps its because the song was never released back then and was only released in 2018, 7 years after it was recorded. Let us look back at this NBA story that many of you might not be even aware of.
Kevin Durant and LeBron James hit the studio in 2011
During the 2011 season lockout, the preseason and regular-season games were canceled due to a breakdown in negotiations between the league and the players. At the time, Kevin Durant was playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder. He was spending his free time at the Spider Studios in Cleveland, Ohio.
It so happened that the then Miami Heat superstar, LeBron James was also in his hometown of Cleveland and happened to come by the Spider Studios while Kevin Durant was working on his personal music. Kevin Durant and LeBron James went on to pen down a song titled 'It Ain't Easy' and record it during the lockout.
The song was never released by either Kevin Durant or LeBron James. So how do we even know of it?
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The song was finally released in 2018 by the producer Franky Wahoo
The track lay dormant for years with producer and sound engineer Franky Stewart, also known as Franky Wahoo. Wahoo tweeted out a 30-second clip of the LeBron James Kevin Durant collaboration during the 2018 NBA Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors.
With the teaser of the song going viral, negotiations began on how to proceed with the release of the song. LeBron James' camp wanted the song to feature in the NBA 2k19 video game but that eventually did not happen.
Wahoo eventually remixed the song using a beat that he created himself, and released the song on SoundCloud.
What is 'It Ain't Easy' all about?
'It Ain't Easy' is a very honest story of Kevin Durant and LeBron James's struggles and successes en route to superstardom in the NBA.
Kevin Durant speaks about the effort he had to put in prior to entering the NBA. He spoke about the hate he received and even made a reference to Skip Bayless who called LeBron James the most overrated player back in 2010. Kevin Durant used the song to pay homage to his hometown of Maryland where he grew up.
LeBron James' verses were reflective of his appreciation of his friends and family that believed in him throughout his journey to the NBA. He spoke about how he made it out of poverty when nobody expected him to.
The song features very personal experiences from both the superstars and gives us a unique look into their lives as human beings and not just the athletes on the basketball court.
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