NBA ALL-STAR GAME

Post Malone Brought Out 21 Savage During His Electrifying Performance At The 2023 NBA All-Star Game

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It was a Malone-heavy weekend at the 2023 NBA All-Star Game in Salt Lake City, Utah. Denver Nuggets coach Mike Malone coached Team LeBron, Utah Jazz legend Karl Malone was in the building to take in the sights, and the NBA tapped Post Malone to deliver a pre-game performance yesterday (February 19).

After being introduced by Slam Dunk Contest champion Mac McClung, Malone started his brief set with “Wow,” performing the track through smiles and high-fives with fans in the front rows. Then, backed by fiery pyrotechnics, he brought out 21 Savage to join him on their former No. 1 hit, “Rockstar.”

There was a lot of music at All-Star Weekend beyond Malone and Savage. Also pre-game, Jully Black sang “O Canada” and made a change to the country’s national anthem. Utah native Jewel also came through with “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Savage also played in the celebrity game earlier in the weekend, which also featured Janelle Monáe, Cordae, Kane Brown, Ozuna, and Nicky Jam.

Rapper Dame D.O.L.L.A. (who some might know better as Damian Lillard) showed out during the game and ended up being one of its leading scorers with 26 points. Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum won the game’s MVP award.

Check out Malone performing “Wow” and bringing out Savage for “Rockstar” above.

Jully Black Made A Subtle But Powerful Change To ‘O Canada’ At The NBA All-Star Game And People Are Here For It

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There were a lot of musical moments this past NBA All-Star weekend, whether it was Janelle Monáe putting in work during the celebrity game or Burna Boy, Rema, and Tems highlighting the halftime show. One that stood out most to some people, though, was the pre-game performance of “O Canada” by Canadian R&B icon Jully Black. Her vocal performance went without issue, but it was what she sang that got a reaction.

The opening line of the song usually goes, “O Canada! Our home and native land!” However, Black instead sang, “O Canada! Our home on native land,” seemingly a nod to the Indigenous people who lived in the country before European settlers came over.

People enjoyed the change. One Twitter user wrote, “Today in #popculturehistory @JullyBlack sings the Canadian anthem at the #NBAAllStar and seamlessly made the lyrics more inclusive while reminding us all, we are indeed on native land.” Another tweeted, “Jully Black just changed the words to the Canadian national anthem by singing ‘Oh Canada, our home ON native land’ and I thought it was beautiful [Canadian flag emoji].”

Chuck D dug the performance, too, as he tweeted, “My girl @JullyBlack just kicked the most soulful O Canada i ever heard at 2023 #NBAAllStar game.”

Before the performance, Black spoke some about how she was going to approach her rendition:

The NBA Celebrated Africa’s Global Contributions With An All-Star Halftime Performance Featuring Burna Boy, Rema, And Tems

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The NBA has become more and more global in the past few years, incorporating a greater volume of international players from Asia, Europe, and especially Africa. In celebration of African contributions to the league (and the league’s partnership with FIBA in creating the Basketball Africa League), the 2023 All-Star Game Halftime Show featured three of Africa’s most prominent Afrobeats/Afropop performers: Burna Boy, Rema, and Tems, who were all introduced by the Toronto Raptors’ Pascal Siakam, who is from Cameroon.

The show opened with Burna Boy, who played his hits “Anybody” and “It’s Plenty,” followed by a truly exuberant performance by Rema, who got the crowd hyped with energetic renditions of “Calm Down” and “Holiday.” Tems came out last to close things out with a huge set of her own featuring “Crazy Tings,” “Free Mind,” her verse from Wizkid’s “Essence,” and her verse from Future’s “Wait For U.”

They were all accompanied by dazzling visual effects, a dance team that incorporated both traditional and modern African dances, and a band that kept the vibe lively. And just when it appeared that things were winding up, Burna Boy returned for renditions of his megahit “Last Last.”

You can watch the performance above.

Burna Boy is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

21 Savage Fatefully Scored His Team’s 21st Point In The NBA Celebrity All-Star Game

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The internet is abuzz over the NBA Celebrity All-Star game this weekend. Several notable entertainers have hit the court over the past two days to show up their skills on the court, including Simu Lu, Janelle Monáe, and 21 Savage.

Today (February 18), the “Rich Flex” rapper accomplished a rather fateful feat. At one point in the game, 21 Savage scored the 21st point in the Celebrity All-Star Game.

Surely, this accomplishment marks another milestone in 21’s career, making his hometown of Atlanta all the more proud.

Last year, 21 was granted his own holiday in the state of Georgia. In a recent interview with Complex, 21 said he only wants to keep his accomplishments on an upward trend.

“I just want to drop a good ass album that everybody loves so it helps solidify me,” 21 said. “I want that level-up album. You know how everybody has those moments in their career where it’s like, ‘He was doing this and this and then he dropped this.’ I feel like I’ve had those albums for every stage of my career. I had all my mixtapes, then Savage Mode came, and that was a pivotal moment. Then Issa Album built up, “Bank Account” built up, and then I Am > I Was was another pivotal moment, with “A Lot” with J. Cole, the Grammy, all that sh*t.”

You can see the clip from the NBA Celebrity All-Star game above.

Janelle Monáe’s NBA All-Star Celebrity Game Training Is Going… Well?

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As a certified hoop junkie, I have to say: Hoop skills trainers have become a plague on social media. While many offer a useful, helpful, and arguably needed service, others have become a little too obsessed with engagement (which can lead to employment, fair enough) and begun incorporating some truly ridiculous drills, props, and suggestions into their videos.

And yet, somehow, Janelle Monáe would still have been better off with one of them than who she actually got for her NBA All-Star Celebrity Game training regimen. Cream E Biggums is a well-known basketball influencer whose humorous videos make excellent use of his roly-poly figure to juxtapose some truly goofy basketball form with what one might expect from a pro player.

Here’s Janelle showing off her training with Biggums in matching workout ensembles — right down to the probably not totally necessary goggles. Let’s just say if she tries to pull these moves in the actual game, nobody is going to be making Allen Iverson comparisons.

(In reality, Biggums is a side project of comedian Anthony “Spice” Adams, who actually was a professional athlete at one point, albeit in a different sport. He played three seasons with the San Francisco 49ers and another four with the Chicago Bears prior to his flourishing comedy career.)

The whole thing’s pretty funny and a prime example of Monáe’s sense of humor, which is perfectly honed for social media these days. Let’s just hope someone gives her a pair of real hoop shoes before the game because those Air Max 270s are not it — although they are better than the big red boots.

Burna Boy, Rema, And Tems Are The Performers For The 2023 NBA All-Star Game Halftime Show

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There is perhaps no greater sign of the rise of Afrobeats (aka Afropop, aka Afrofusion) in the US than this: The upcoming 2023 NBA All-Star Game features a wealth of Nigerian stars as halftime performers. Burna Boy, Rema, and Tems have all been announced as the performers for the halftime show, along with the performers for the national anthem and a pregame show featuring none other than Post Malone.

In addition to the three huge names listed above, the NBA announced that the pregame show will be performed by Post Malone, while the US national anthem, “Star Spangled Banner,” will be performed by singer-songwriter Jewel, who was actually born in Utah, where All-Star Weekend is being held this year (she was raised in Alaska, though. It probably can’t be easy finding too many nationally famous stars from Utah). Meanwhile, the Canadian national anthem, “O Canada,” will be sung by R&B star Jully Black.

Burna Boy, Rema, and Tems have all have huge breakouts in the past year or so. While Burna gained notoriety, headlining festivals like Afropunk and the upcoming Afro Nation in Miami, Rema teamed up with American pop star Selena Gomez on a remix of his breakthrough hit “Calm Down.” Likewise, Tems had a huge year, winning a Grammy for her collaboration with Drake and Future on “Wait For U,” for which she was also the first African artist to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. She also penned Rihanna’s Wakanda Forever ballad “Lift Me Up” while contributing her own cover of “No Woman, No Cry.”

The 2023 NBA All-Star Game will be held on Sunday, February 19 at 7 p.m. ET on TNT.

Burna Boy is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Vin Diesel Will Perform The Introductions At The 2023 NBA All-Star Game

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The NBA likes to find ways for people outside of the world of basketball to get involved in its All-Star festivities. The obvious way is for folks to participate in the Celebrity Game on Friday, but over the years, the league has made the entire weekend into a larger and larger event, with some of the biggest names in the world of entertainment playing prominent roles.

On Wednesday, the NBA announced the various celebrities and artists who will participate in All-Star weekend this time around. Things will begin on Friday night, when Ben Affleck will hop on the mic for the Celebrity Game to announce the participants — you can see who is playing in this year’s game right here.

Sunday’s game will be a star-studded affair right from the jump. Jewel and Jully Black will sing the national anthems of the United States and Canada, respectively, while Post Malone will put on a pregame show after the All-Star Draft. And before things tip off, Vin Diesel is slated to do the intros for this year’s game.

And for this year’s All-Star halftime show, the league will turn to Burna Boy, Tems, and Rema.

The festivities on Sunday are slated to begin with the All-Star Draft at 7:30 p.m. EST on TNT.

Janelle Monáe Continues To Get In All Star Spirt, Compares Herself To Allen Iverson In Funny Meme

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Janelle Monáe seems ready for NBA All-Star weekend and has already compared herself to legends like Allen Iverson. The singer will be appearing alongside a bevy of celebrities and entertainers like 21 Savage and Cordae. The annual sporting event weekend will take place in Salt Lake City this year from February 17-19. Ahead of her upcoming game, Monáe posted a hilarious meme of her face photoshopped over Allen Iverson.

Before that, the singer and Glass Onion star shared her shooting skills on Instagram while sporting the infamous and now-viral MSCHF boots.

Monáe will be a part of former NBA All-Star Dwyane Wade’s team, alongside 21 Savage and Nicky James, while Utah Jazz governor Ryan Smith will coach the other team. Smith’s roster includes several stars as well, like Cordae, country star Kane Brown, and Latin trap singer Ozuna.

Other notable celebrities and professional athletes such as Albert Pujols, Calvin Johnson, DK Metcalf, the Miz, and WNBA stars like Arike Ogunbowale and Diamond DeShields are expected to participate in the celebrity sporting affair.

The All-Star Celebrity Game is scheduled for Friday, February 17, at 7 pm ET/4 pm PT (5 Mountain Time).

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

21 Savage, Cordae, And Janelle Monáe Are Playing In The 2023 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game

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It’s that time of year again: NBA All-Star Weekend is almost upon us. And you know what that means: The rosters for the All-Star Celebrity Game have been announced!

This year, All-Star Weekend will take place in Salt Lake City, Utah, so the teams will be coached by the Utah Jazz governor Ryan Smith, as well as minority owner — and former NBA All-Star — Dwyane Wade.

While Smith says he has no intention of playing, his team is stacked with talent — just maybe not the basketball kind. He’s got a ton of musicians on his team, including rapper Cordae, country star Kane Brown, and Latin trap singer Ozuna.

Not to be outdone on the music front, Wade’s tapped his own all-star squad of the musical variety, with 21 Savage, Janelle Monáe, and Nicky Jam all suiting up.

Of course, neither team is lacking for athletics. Albert Pujols, Calvin Johnson, DK Metcalf, and the Miz are all on rosters, along with WNBA stars like Arike Ogunbowale and Diamond DeShields. It should be a fun game all around — and really, isn’t that the point?

The All-Star Celebrity Game is scheduled for Friday, February 17 at 7 pm ET/4 pm PT. (5 Mountain Time… thanks a lot, Utah. First, you don’t have internet, now this).

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The 2023 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game Features Janelle Monae, 21 Savage, And DK Metcalf

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NBA All-Star Weekend 2023 is rapidly approaching, as the basketball world will descend on Salt Lake City for the annual midseason break. The rosters for the All-Star Game and Rising Stars Game have both been announced, with some injury replacements still to come, leaving the Saturday night festivities and Friday’s Celebrity Game as the last remaining pieces to the All-Star Weekend puzzle.

On Wednesday, the Ruffles NBA All-Star Celebrity Game roster was unveiled, as the 11-player teams will play for honorary captains Ryan Smith (Jazz owner) and Dwyane Wade (future HOFer and minority owner of the Jazz). Coaching Team Wade will be Giannis Anetotkounmpo, with his brothers, Thanasis and Alex, serving as assistants along with Lindsey Vonn. Team Ryan will be coached by a “surprise guest” with Astros third baseman Alex Bregman as an assistant.

The two WNBA stars joining the 20 celebrities will be Diamond DeShields and Arike Ogunbowale, with stars from all over the sports and entertainment world joining them on the court.

Team Ryan
Cordae
Diamond DeShields
Calvin Johnson
DK Metcalf
Hasan Minhaj
Marcos Mion
The Miz
Everett Osborne
Ozuna
Guillermo Rodriguez
Sinqua Walls

Team Wade
Kane Brown
Nicky Jam
Jesser
Simu Liu
Janelle Monae
Arike Ogunbowale
Albert Pujols
21 Savage
Ranveer Singh
Frances Tiafoe
Alex Toussaint

I’ll be honest, just from a sheer size perspective, Team Ryan seems to have an edge with DK Metcalf and Calvin Johnson. That said, I really hope Janelle Monae is an absolute hooper. We’ll find out all of their basketball abilities on Friday, February 17 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.