Philly Sports Jabronis
Since launching his own record label – Jaccpot Records – last year, a lot has been written and debated vis-à-vis DeSean Jackson’s foray into rap. While many have slammed the pursuit as a distraction, some like PhillyMag’s Tim McManus have been a bit more even tempered about the playmaking wide receiver’s right to pursue his passions off the field.
In February, ESPN The Magazine’s Carmen R. Thompson did a substantial profile on Jackson’s continued role in the music industry, offering snippets of lyrics from some of his rhymes and addressing the blow back he’s received from fans. “Everyone has their opinion,” he told ESPN. “I’m acting. I do commercials. I do charity work almost every week. There’s so many things where you could be, ‘Why is he doing this? Why is he doing that?’ I’m just living my life.”
It was only a matter of time before Jackson released his first official rap song, and that came recently, when Jaccpot released a video for “Diamonds in My Neck,” a song in which D-Jax raps alongside Snoop Dogg and Yung Chris.
I have no real interest in critiquing Jackson’s song, because I think the work does a very good job of speaking for itself. However, for those interested in some lampoonery, Merrill Reese did a dramatic reading of the song on Comcast SportsNet.
However, this whole brouhaha did make me reminisce about some of the other Philly sports stars who’ve dabbled in the rap game, and so I thought it might be fun to compile some of that output for Philly Sports Jabronis.
J. Roll from the Bay
Jimmy Rollins has actually found pretty solid footing as a behind-the-scenes player in the music industry since launching Jimmy Rollins Entertainment Group in 2007. He’s co-published a wildly popular Justin Bieber song and has even been acknowledged by Temple University’s Fox School of Business for his entrepreneurial achievements.
However, back before all of that legitimacy was built, Rollins contributed an original tune to Oh Say Can You Sing, an odd 2005 album that features songs from an assortment of baseball players. Most of the tracks are covers (including a pretty great version of Sam Cooke’s Cupid by Ozzie Smith that can be found over at NPR), but Rollins offers up Wish List, an original rap featuring rhymes like “In 1978 a star was born, in 2001 his career was on” and “one of the best in the game, from the ground to the fame.”
Jewelz
Allen Iverson is a “baller” with a lot of nicknames – AI, The Answer, The 3rd Degree, Bubba Chuck – but, as hard as it might be to believe, he was actually planning to assume yet another moniker for his rap career. Back in his Sixers heyday, he planned to release a rap album as Jewelz, but after the backlash from his first single 40 Bars, he opted to pull the plug on the project.
In 2010, some form of that album saw the light of day, however, only four of the 10 songs listed on Misunderstood (which is available on iTunes) feature Iverson, and none of those happen to be 40 Bars or any of the other ditties mentioned in a 2009 posting on “Allen Iverson Live.
Terrell Owens
Unlike the aforementioned athletes, Owens didn’t make connections and take part in an album of any kind. Instead, he simply self distributed “I’m Back” on his personal Web site. Although it’s since been removed, it’s on YouTube.
If you haven’t heard the song, it’s a must-listen for Eagles fans, since the whole thing is basically a diss track aimed at the team, including lines like “it’s a brand new year, got a brand new team, I’m a Cowboy now, no more black and green” and “this will probably be my best season by far, no more get my Eagle on, meet me at the star.”
E.D.I.D.
Although he’s certainly the least noteworthy Philly athlete I’m discussing here, Shawn Andrews’ musical stylings are my favorite, because his Get My Michael Phelps On is pretty damn hilarious. Like Owens, Andrews self-distributed his offerings, but it seems most of his content has been removed from his YouTube channel. However, a pretty good description of his videos can be found over at Philly.com. And, of course, there are plenty of YouTube clips that have used the song, including this one right here.
I’m sure that’s just the type of the iceberg though. Any I’m forgetting? Feel free to share thoughts and links in the comment section.
Frank Visco is a contributing writer to Philly Sports Jabronis.
