The 2023 ESPY Awards saw rapper Lil Wayne perform at the opening ceremony. He started off with a creative rendition of his song, “A Milli.” Instead of singing the original version of the song, the rapper ended up referencing a range of athletes who grew relevant across sports in the past year. This included the 2023 NBA draft number 1 pick Victor Wembanyama, along with his new coach Gregg Popovich.
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Of course, Lil Wayne’s rendition was not an original, but a creative version that he created for the ESPY Award ceremony. Apart from Wemby, San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich was also shouted out in the song:
“You pop ‘em ‘cause we pop ‘em like we coaching Wembanyama.”
Victor Wembanyama is being hyped as the greatest prospect to join the NBA, since LeBron James. In fitting fashion, he has followed in the footsteps of LeBron James to feature in a major rap song.
James’s relationship with the likes of Drake and Lil Wayne led to him receiving his own song ‘Forever’ that chronicled his rose from Akron, Ohio to becoming the face of the NBA in a few short years. Jay-Z is another A-list rapper who LeBron has become very acquainted with over the years.
Jay-Z is a long-term friend of LeBron James
Rapper Jay-Z and LeBron are known to be long-term friends. The rapper has been spotted attending a number of LeBron James’ matches over the years. The “Blow the Whistle” song was not the only Jay-Z creation that saw LeBron being mentioned.
The rapper included both LeBron and his former teammate Dwyane Wade in his popular rap song “Empire State of Mind.” The song was released back in 2009, almost a year before the two actually became teammates.
Over the years, a range of NBA stars have been featured in pop culture. This includes various video appearances, references, and promotion involvements. While Wembanyama surely has a headstart, he is hardly the trendsetter when it comes to NBA and pop culture.
