There hasn’t been much mainstream crossover between sports and music since the dubious “Super Bowl Shuffle” was performed by the 1985 Chicago Bears. Jocks have beaten up band geeks since time out of mind, and the separation of these two groups usually continues into adulthood. Sometimes however, the track star will strap on a tuba and march along to the sounds of a John Phillip Sousa song. So to speak. Recently Colin Kaepernick gained some notoriety for his Beats headphones commercial, but he’s not the only music loving pro athlete. A few of his fellow pro-sporters have been known to bump tunes. A few have even produced a song or two. Mike Piazza played drums, Pelé was known to strum a guitar and Serena Williams has rapped a bit. Here’s a list of some other audiophile all-stars.
7.) Shaun White
The gold medalist snowboarder has mentioned in interviews that he is a fan of rock and roll. 
And, this past weekend his band Bad Things gate crashed a prom White was invited to by one of the students attending. He made the young lady’s dream come true when he not only accepted her invitation, but performed for her classmates.
6.) Manny Pacquiao
Pac-Man has been a pro-basketball player in the philippines, a representative of his home district in the Filipino House of Representatives, a Senior Master Sergeant in Philippine Army and he occasionally boxes. On top of all that Manny is a best-selling artist in the South Pacific. Check out his ballad “Para Sa Yo (This fight is for you)” below.
5.) DeSean Jackson
Despite the controversy that has surrounded the former Eagles star he remains a true audiophile. As the owner and founder of Jaccpot Records he works with a stable of young, dedicated artists. While the rap label is the reason he was released by Philedelphia Jackson has not made any effort to publicly separate from his brainchild. The video for his Snoop Dogg supported slow jam “Diamonds on My Neck” can be seen below.
4.) John McEnroe
The baddest boy in tennis is also a pretty bad at guitar. Bad ass, that is. When he’s not throwing rackets, or making cameos in movies he’s apparently practicing the old git-box. He’s played on radio and talk shows around the world. Below you can hear him jam on a Hendrix classic at a Spanish-Speaking late night show. He starts playing at the 2:05 mark below.
3.) Tony Parker
The french point guard is a six time all star in the States and a bonafide hip-hop superstar in his home country. Our high school French is a little rusty, but his rhymes sound tight as far as we can tell. His album peaked at number 19 on the nationally sponsored French music charts. Parker raps in his native language in “Premier Love” below.
2.) The 1998 Yankees
The number 2 sports team of all time according to ESPN had more talents than baseball. Not only is Derek Jeter is a big fan of songs with “New York” in the title but, outfielders Bernie Williams and Paul O’neill have performed as a rock duet. All of this is on top of the fact that the mention of this team is music to the ears of New York fans. Have a quick listen to O’Neill and Williams play “Mustang Sally” below.
1.) Shaqiulle O’Neal
Shaq is full of surprises. Te former NBA center has acted in several movies, including the upcoming Adam Sandler comedy Blended. He has a Ph.D. (not honorary) in education from Barry University in Florida. He was the star of his own martial arts video game called “Shaq Fu.” And, on top of all that, he has put out five studio albums. Now that he mostly does commentary it’s fun to look back on his early 90’s rap endeavor. The 1993 single ” I’m Outstanding” from Shaq Diesel can be heard below.
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