We’re now less than four weeks away from the start of the 2023-24 NBA season. In preparation for this, on the same day players reported to training camp and media day for their respective teams, Rolling Stone published an interview with Miami Heat star player Jimmy Butler. During their conversation, Butler discussed being the basketball world’s biggest advocate for country music, while revealing that he has a country album of his own on the way.
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“Now, I’m in the lab writing and producing country music,” he told Rolling Stone. “We got some real artists and songwriters. We probably got around 45 tracks right now, and I hope to go write some more. Maybe a week before training camp I’ll get down and do some. There’s definitely going to be an album. That’s the goal. I just don’t know when. The date I want to do it always gets pushed back because this other job that I have, playing basketball, overshadows everything. [Laughs] And maybe some of the songs will be down the line for my second or third album. I can’t wait to get it to the people.”
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Throughout his career, Butler has been one of the most vocal fans of country music of any U.S. professional sport. Earlier in his RS interview, he told the story of how he first got into country music, which happened as a result of being petty towards his teammates.
“I fell in love with country music in the fall of 2010,” he said. “It was my senior year at Marquette, and everyone in the locker room was listening to Lil Wayne and Jay-Z… I kept telling them to turn the music down. They said, ‘Worry about what’s in your headphones.’ So, I went home and googled, ‘What’s the most country song?’ The first song that came up is ‘Don’t Take the Girl’ by Tim McGraw. I downloaded it, went back into the locker room, and started blaring that song over and over again and everyone was going, ‘Turn that shit down! Ain’t nobody want to hear that!’ And I went, ‘Uh-uh. Same thing you told me last time: ‘Worry about what’s in your headphones, and I’m going to listen to mine.’
“Then, I started to listen to the lyrics and learned about more country singers, women and men. So, I went from Tim McGraw to Faith Hill to Brad Paisley to Kenny Chesney to Trisha Yearwood and Garth Brooks. It was an ever-winding road of musical talent. Now, you have country music that’s basically like hip hop or R&B. You have Dan + Shay who are singing these incredible notes. Now, in 2023, I’m knee-deep in it and try to see as many concerts as I can.”
Once he became a fan, as noted above, Butler then began to soak in the culture of country and tried to befriend as many big-name artists as he could. This led to him making an appearance in the music video for Luke Bryan’s 2017 song “Light It Up,” as well as building a friendship with Morgan Wallen.
Additionally, Butler has publicized his love for Luke Combs, evident in the November 2022 video he posted to Instagram of him singing Combs’ song “She Got the Best of Me.” Check out the clip below.
Ultimately, it’s beginning to seem like more and more athletes are dipping their toes into the music industry. Just last week, upon leaving his longtime team the Portland Trailblazers for the Milwaukee Bucks, NBA star Damian Lillard released his rap song “Farewell” to address the Portland fans.
However, while Lillard has already put out five albums as an MC, Butler is still very new to being a musician. But, with the superstar friends he’s been able to make in the country landscape, hopefully, they’ll share a few pointers with him.
Check out Butler’s appearance in “Light It Up” below.
(Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
