The tune of sports

Lobster and salmon. Both are seafood, but they taste, look, and smell, completely different.
Music and sports. Both are forms of entertainment, but they attract different fans, express different emotions, and they each find a different place in our soul

But really, music and sports are quite intertwined. If you’ve ever stepped foot inside an arena or stadium, you’d hear right away how closely the two are connected. If you’ve ever gotten chills watching old NFL Films videos (or Burger King commercials), listening to the Sam Spence Orchestra, you understand how music can enhance sports. If you’ve ever listened to the ‘Super Bowl Shuffle’, you understand how sports can enhance music.
The songs we listen to can also be symbolism for the lives we lead. So when athletes names are mentioned in songs, what do they mean?


Have a n**** who smoke, Reggie Miller/ Coughing and choking constantly
-Three Six Mafia, “Stay Fly”
This is a funny one, because when most people think of Reggie Miller, choking is not something that usually comes to mind. Reggie was as clutch a shooter you would find, and his three-pointer in Game 3 of the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals is still burned in my mind. (As is Jordan’s rim out with .4 seconds left from half-court) True, he never won an NBA title, but I never really held that against him. The only choke that relates to Miller is that little gesture he made to Spike Lee in the first round of the ’94 playoffs.



Mad cause I got floor seats at the Lakers/ See me on the fifty yard line with the Raiders/ Met Ali he told me I'm the greatest
-Will Smith, “Getting Jigggy With It”
Do I doubt that Big Will can afford floor seats to see Kobe or mid-field seats to see Randy Moss? Nope, I’m sure that the Fresh Prince can buy the entire Staples Center if he’d like. The question regarding this line is the one about Ali calling Smith out. I copped the “Big Willie Style” album when it came out, memorized all the words to ‘Wild Wild West’ and often find myself watching ‘The Fresh Price of Bel Air’ reruns during WGN rain delays, but there is no way in the entire ‘Men in Black’ galaxy that he is greater then Muhammad Ali, the definition of greatness. Hell, I’m sure if Ali was writing this rap, he could have come up with a better line then this.


More than a street legend, homey it's Hova/ More than a relief pitcher, I'm the closer
The Mariano of the Mariott/ If money talks, the whole world's bout to hear me out
- Jay-Z, “Go Crazy (Remix)”
I’ve never been to the Bronx, which is probably why I didn’t realize that Yankee closer Mariano Raviera was a street legend. But I like Jay’s comparison. Mariano is not just another relief pitcher. If you were creating the greatest bullpen of all time, he would be the closer. And Jay is not just another rapper. MTV just named him the greatest of all time in that category. The only big question with this line is, why are Jay-Z and Mariano Raviera staying at a Mariott?


I ball for real, y'all n***z is Sam Bowie/And with the third pick - I made the earth sick/ M.J., hem Jay, fade away perfect
- Jay-Z, “Hola’ Hovito”
Get me on the court and I'm trouble/ Last week fucked around and got a triple double/ Freakin n***z everyway like M.J./ I can't believe, today was a good day
-Ice Cube, “It Was A Good Day”
Musicians want to reach a Michael Jordan level. They want to be so good, so amazingly talented, that they don’t even have to brag about how good and amazingly talented that they are. Both Jay-Z and Ice Cube are top-notch MCs that really don’t have any equals in the rap game, so they scale themselves up with M.J. I like Jay’s line better of the two, only because he tells the lesser rappers that they are Sam Bowie.