Hip Hop and Professional Sports: The Cultural Bridge.

Semester Project Submitted for SOCY 2112

Tyler Piazza -Tpiazza1@uncc.edu

I can relate to kids going straight to the league, when they

recognize that you got what it takes to succeed and that's around the
time that your idols become your rivals, you make friends with Mike
but got to A-I him for your survival. I swear sports and music are so
synonymous, because we want to be them, and they want to be us. So
on behalf of the demanded and the entertainment that you take for
granted, you can thank me now.(Drake). These lyrics are a part of
Drakes song Thank Me Now. This portion of the verse in his song is
an example of a famous rapper giving the inside scoop on how he feels
about the crossover between the entertainment industries of music
and sport. He relates them by giving the example of student athletes
going on to play professional sports. He shares that much like his
arrival to the big leagues within the music industry, sports players
and rappers or others in the music industry all have to step up to the
plate at some point if they want to succeed. There comes a time where
you are the newbie on the scene and you have to show others what
youre made of, even those who you look up to or may be working with
or alongside of. He shares that the worlds of sport and music have
much in common because they all want to be like each other. He then
goes on to say that the entertainment given, regardless of whether the
medium is music or sport, everyone can thank him now for all he, and
others have brought to the table of entertainment and greatness.

Hip Hop and sports have grown and even overlapped even more over the past
twenty or so years in many ways. From artists and athletes supporting and cheering each
other on, the culture created behind them, the buy in available to fans, and the flashiness
that is glorified in this day and age, the crossover between music and sport have multiple
intersections that will be laid out to for readers to see.
Today in professional sports, we will see Drake, 2 Chains, DJ Khaled and many
other famous artists all sitting courtside on ESPN or TNT, cheering their teams on to
victory, all while gaining publicity. It can even be as simple as Future and Young Jeezy,
two rappers meeting up with Cam Newton on the sideline before his routing of the
Cardinals in the NFC Championship game. We see overlap! Rappers and singers are
getting closer and closer with athletes with some even going on to marry each other in the
case of Nick Young and Iggy Azalea.
However, it is even bigger that just a connection between millionaires, it is also
showing a rise in Black Culture and its importance no matter where you fall on the
economic spectrum people can always relate and tie in to this wave by being a fan boy or
girl (Cunningham). Today, we dont usually look at an athlete and strictly associate them
with their skin color or ethnicity; we now can see them as a valuable or invaluable
member of a certain team or system, and for that reason we will root for them or boo
them depending on our connection. With the rise of the hip hop culture it brings in a
whole new attitude of flashy, exciting, and lavish lifestyles that everybody desires. It is
more than just a sport game or match now. It is more than just music. This culture is a
way of life that connects these two different arenas, but more so it is something the public
can buy into and be a part of whether it is buying a CD, wearing your favorite players

jersey, going to a game or concert, or the need to have em sense behind Michael
Jordan sneakers that people riot over (Turner). Today, fashion is all the rage in
professional sports and music. We truly see some interesting outfits, so much so that
websites such as InStyle and shows like Entertainment News (E! News) have jobs
specifically for talking about what the latest trends are in the entertainment industry
behind these celebrities.
The hip hop culture also brings in a little bit of fun swagger, such as touchdown
celebrations often seen by Odell Beckham or even the bench going wild when Steph
Curry drains a 35 foot three pointer. Although it seems that the professional leagues are
getting stricter on celebrations and even small enough matters as dress code violations.
According to Phillip Lamarr Cunningham, a professor at Bowling Green State University,
these violations and fines are utterly ridiculous. In his article, he explains the cases of
Chad Johnson, a now retired wide receiver, and Terrell Owens, also retired, who were
fined more than anyone in the league from 2000 to about 2007. This is where we see the
rise in the flashy hip hop movement in sports, the era of, Please dont fine me again!
(Cunningham). Professional athletes are getting fined left and right for doing little
celebrations in the end zones, wearing flashy cleats and even for not having their towel in
their belt loop in the proper place (Cunningham).
In this time in the NBA we see a rise in defiance with Allen Iverson and Michael
Jordan who go on to fight the pre-game dress code and will not let up because as Iverson
once said about the pregame dress code, I really do have a problem with itIts just not
right. Its something Ill fight for.(Iverson). Michael Jordan received fines every game
for wearing shoes that were out of dress code and refusing to wear shorts that werent as

long as he wanted. Now the shorts have gotten longer and athletes wear shoes of their
choice. Cunningham goes on to explain that he believes These NBA and NFL sanctions
are the most recent in a series of power-plays between white managerial forces and black
athletes. (Cunningham). This can lead to people regarding the NFL and NBA as a hot
bed of hip hop culture. We see such athletes as Chris Webber, Allen Iverson, Adam
Pacman Jones, Leveon Bell and Iman Shumpert have all gone on to produce hip hop
records on private labels, and no matter how much money they earn or what city they are
in they want to stay connected with their roots and what they truly enjoy. What is
amazing is that in these years of celebration and flashiness both the NBA and the NFL
have had record attendance years.
The popularity of African American athletes, rap, and hip-hop artists are no
longer confined to the African American community. Their influence has crossed the
traditional boundaries of race, class, and gender. In addition, the globalization of sport
and rap has crossed geographical boundaries, this is the opening quote from The Race,
Hip Hop, and Sports Learning Community at LSU by Louis Harrison (Harrison). What
Harrison is stating is that sport has created a bridge that has closed the gap between hip
hop and society, and has even brought it to the fore front. This is exemplified this past fall
with Cam Newton and his Dab. This notion swept the nation with everyone from
Obama to your mama doing it, but where did it come from? Well, it actually came from
the North Atlanta rap trio know as Migos who claim they originated the dance. Another
instance of this can be seen by players running in place, imitating the rapper plies in his
video for his song Ritz Carlton. It is not just celebrations though, when it comes to the
NFL we also see Rappers actually use their favorite teams as a premise to their song such

as Green and Yellow by Lil Wayne about his team the Packers. These connections have
sprouted friendships between artists and players such as Cam, 2Chains, Young Jeezy, and
Future or Odell Beckham Jr. and August Alsina. These connections are everywhere.
In conclusion, whether it is the mash up of artists and athletes hanging out or even
dating, the rise in flashiness in both fashion and celebration seen between entertainers,
the buy in available for fans to join the culture through buying clothes or products tied to
their favorite artists or athletes, or whether it is attending games and concerts, it is all
there. The past twenty years have been filled with examples of this change in the way
entertainers display themselves. This line doesnt end with them though; it is broadcasted
through the media and available for each one of the viewers to partake in.

1.) Turner, Thomas (2013) The Sports Shoe: A Social and Cultural History, c.1870
c.1990. PhD thesis, Birkbeck, University of London.
2.) Drake, Lil Wayne, Cortez Bryant, Gee Roberson, Alicia Keys, Nicki Minaj, T. I.,
Swizz Beatz, Dream, Young Jeezy, and Jay-Z. Thank Me Later. Cash Money Records,
2010. MP3.
3.) Cunningham, P. L. ""Please Don't Fine Me Again!!!!!": Black Athletic Defiance in the
NBA and NFL." Journal of Sport & Social Issues 33.1 (2009): 39-58. Proquest. Web.
4.) Harrison, Louis, Jr., Leonard N. Moore, and Lynn Evans. "Ear To The Streets: The
Race, Hip Hop and Sports Learning Community at Louisiana State University."
Jbs.sagepub.com. Sage Journals, 7 Mar. 2006. Web. 15 Mar. 2016.
5.) Beattey, Zatella. "IVERSON on Showtime." SHO.com. Showtime, 27 Apr. 2014. Web.
31 Mar. 2016.