Shaquille O' Neal hasn’t released an album in eight years but it seems like he’s getting that itch again. On a new album from
DJ Kayslay and
Greg Street called The Champions: The North Meets the South Shaq Diesel appears on three tracks, “Can’t Stop the Reign 2006,” with
Bun B and
Papoose, “In The Ghetto” with
Fat Joe,
Jim Jones,
Cassidy
and
Sheek Louch
, and “Can’t Stop the Reign Remix” with
Busta Rhymes,
Papoose and
Remy Ma.
Not much has changed since we last heard Shaq rhyme except that he’s cursing a lot more and he talks about some of the issues he faced in the past year or so. Peep this nugget:
“What’s beef? Who gives a f*** I’m not knowin’/Stop asking about Cole, D. McNabb and Terrell Owens/The world is mine and you can’t get with it/I’m a king not a rat, get it?/And I don’t pay chicks, they used to pay Deez a visit/until I married someone exquisite…” You can actually peep the cliché’-ridden video for “Can’t Stop the Reign 2006”
here.In other Shaq news, the big fella opened his second
24 Hour Fitness Shaq Sport in Pembroke Pines, Florida. The first Shaq Sport opened in Coconut Grove, Florida in December as part of the partnership between 24 Hour Fitness and O’Neal.
"I've been working with 24 Hour Fitness for two years now, so I can tell you these guys really know what they're doing," O'Neal said in a statement. "I wouldn't work with them if I didn't believe they were the best in the business. I'm 100% confident you will enjoy this club as much as I do. So come check out my new club. I want everyone to get healthy with me and 24 Hour Fitness."
Diesel plans to open a third club in Texas before the end of the year.
Chad Johnson, LT, Kobe Play Cover BoysWe’ve let you know before how good it makes athletes feel to get on the cover of video games, so it’s kinda sort of a big deal when it happens. So in recent video game cover news, EA announced that
Chad Johnson will grace the cover of its latest incarnation of NFL Street, set to hit shelves later this year.
“This is a big honor to be selected for the cover for NFL Street 3 since street football was the first step to learning our moves for our pro careers,” Johnson said in a statement. “I really like this game and it is so much fun to play with all the new airborne moves you can do now. I’ve always been known to have style when I play but now I can show how stylin’ I am in NFL Street 3.”
EA also announced that in addition to
Tracy McGrady appearing on the cover of NBA Live 07, which other athletes will appear on the cover in different countries.
Tony Parker and
Boris Diaw will share the cover in France;
Dirk Nowitzki will model for the cover in Germany and
Pau Gasol will rep for the game in Spain.
Sticking with basketball, Sony announced that
Kobe Bryant will be on the cover for NBA 07, hitting stores this fall for Playstation 2 and PSP.
“Kobe Bryant has distinguished himself as one of the truly elite players in the NBA and we are thrilled to have him represent NBA ‘07 as our newest cover athlete,” said Sharon Shapiro, senior director, promotions and sports product marketing, Sony Computer Entertainment America in a statement. “With his explosive game and storied rise to the top of the NBA’s ranks, Bryant is a great ambassador for NBA ’07 and its unique gameplay-driven story mode ‘The Life: Vol. 2.’”
Now back to football, Lawrence Taylor is at it again as Quentin Sands in the upcoming Blitz: The League. This time however, LT is joined by Bill Romanowski who’ll play as Bruno Batagglia one of the most feared linebackers in the Blitz world. Both of the defensive bad boys will appear on the cover of the game.
Now that should do it for video game covers for the rest of the year.
Rice Wants More Reality TVIt appears that
Jerry Rice is turning his post-football career into a reality TV career. After appearing on Dancing with the Stars and Pros vs. Joes, Rice is developing a reality show called The Underdog. Rice said the show would focus on helping to motivate people and communities. Rice said being on Dancing with the Stars helped him take a shot at developing his own show.
''I reached a whole different audience by being on that show, people that might have not been into sports or anything like that,'' Rice told the Associated Press. ''I hear a lot that I am a dancer. ... It's amazing how many people tuned in to that show. It took me to a whole different level.''
Rice is currently shopping his show idea to networks.
A.I.’s Momma Gets into the ABALast week the
ABA announced that Ann Iverson,
Allen Iverson' s momma is not the majority owner and chairperson of the Richmond, Va. franchise. Former Virginia Tech player Michael Davis will coach the team.
"Richmond is a great basketball city and will be a great ABA city,” ABA CEO Joe Newman told the Associated Press. “We are pleased to be back there. We have a tremendous ownership group, very knowledgeable and experienced and we know that they will do a terrific job."
Since 2000, the ABA has struggled to stay afloat due to financial issues and waning interest. The league hopes that with the new investment from A.I.’s mom that it might get popular.
