Shaquille O’Neal is back behind the microphone, 30 years after he scored his first Top 40 hit.
In recent years, O’Neal, 51, has embraced EDM through his DJ persona DIESEL, but the “What’s Up Doc?” (Can We Rock)” rapper reminded the world that he had not forgotten his hip-hop roots by becoming a member Rick Ross And Meek Mill on their new collab album. Too good is truereleased on Friday, November 10, closes with a remix of the album’s lead single, “SHAQ & KOBE,” which features the four-time NBA champion rapping alongside fellow baller, Damian Lillard (who raps under his Dame DOLLA persona.)
“As I sit on my throne / I reminisce about how long I’ve been in my zone / I find them and remind them ’cause y’all forget,” O’Neal raps, adding, “How I held on the show was on the road all the time, but I got a kick out of it / I did it my way, that made me rich.
Lillard, 33, as DAME DOLLA, also incorporated some basketball imagery into his verse. “I’m getting shot / I ain’t standing still and not hoggin’ / Pass the ball, we run it up and we don’t jog / It’s a team, we close the circle and lean up / And when we get to the spot, they’ll know that we’ve seen a lot,” the seven-time NBA All-Star raps.
Ross, 47, and Mill, 36, released the O’Neal/Lillard remix of “SHAQ & KOBE” ahead of Too good to be true‘s drop, but the song took on a new focus when the full album arrived. The highly anticipated project also features performances by French Montana (“Millionaire Row”), Future (“In love with money”), Only And The dream (“Fine lines”), Teyana Taylor And DJ Khaled (“Above the law”), Vor And Fantastic (“Dead Last”), production duo Cool & Dre And RAY (“Go to hell”) and Jeremiah (“Gold medals”).
The world came to know O’Neal as a rapper in 1993, when “What’s Up Doc? (Can We Rock)” from his debut album, Sjaak Diesel, rose to the top of the charts. The second single, ‘(I Know I Got) Skillz’, was another Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, but subsequent singles – including 1997’s ‘You Can’t Stop The Reign’ featuring The Notorious B.I.G. not in replicating that. good luck.
After dropping SHaquille O’Neal presents his Superfriends Vol. 1 in 2001, he stepped away from hip-hop to seemingly focus on his growing interest in EDM.
Earlier this year, O’Neal – as his DIESEL character – released his debut EDM album, Gorilla warfare, via Monstercat. O’Neal worked with his friend and producer Brian Bayati to build the track list and recruit young talent that the retired athlete wanted to showcase.
“Brian and I are real DJs – from the crate era,” O’Neal said Variety when discussing the album. “I had to go steal milk crates. I used all my money from mowing lawns to buy records. I had SP-1200s sampling workstations and a Gemini mixer. I was a battle DJ.”
O’Neal acknowledged that he was “in the celebrity DJ box and had to prove myself.” After performing at Lollapalooza in 2019, O’Neal has paid his dues by performing at Lost Lands, Tomorrowland, EDC LV, Electric Zoo, Forbidden Kingdom, Beyond Wonderland, and a Vegas residency at Wynn.
O’Neal also mentioned that his recent run as a DIESEL has created jitters since he retired from professional basketball in 2011. “In the NBA and the championships you have parades, but then it’s all over and you need it back. he explained. “I went to Tomorrowland and saw Tiësto with 100,000 people there. I got that feeling back. I thought, ‘I’ve been DJing since ’88, let me try it.'”