Lil Wayne is set to take on new role co-hosting ‘NFL Gameday’
Lil Wayne recently fell out with the NFL and Roc Nation after he realised that he wouldn’t be performing at the Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show in New Orleans next year. However, it seems the emcee has reconciled with the league, as it has been announced that the Louisiana legend will be joining the league’s NFL GameDay Morning program as a weekly co-host.
As an avid fan of American football, Tha Carter creator will be joining several popular sports correspondents weekly to discuss matches, assess players’ performances, and see how teams are shaping up over the season.
NFL GameDay Morning is hosted by various sports correspondents throughout the season, and Wayne will join Rich Eisen, Kurt Warner, Steve Mariucci, Gerald McCoy, Ian Rapoport, Cynthia Frelund, Colleen Wolfe, Mike Garafolo, Tom Pelissero, Daniel Jeremiah, and Kyle Brandt. The lyricist will also be liaising with NFL Network reporters on the ground at matches.
The ‘A Milli’ emcee is joining forces with the NFL Network as it attempts to expand internationally, which it has done so with some success recently, picking up an increasing number of viewers around the world. Lil Wayne is seen as a key component in this marketing strategy.
In 2009, ESPN magazine reported that Lil Wayne would appear on shows to provide commentary as a special guest on occasion, and in 2016, his hit single ‘No Mercy’ became the theme song of the well-known sports show, Skip and Shannon: Undisputed.
The Cash Money rhymer regularly appeared on the show to speak about his favourite American football team, the Green Bay Packers, and would also be featured to talk about his NBA team, the Los Angeles Lakers. However, during one appearance, he caused a little controversy, commenting on the phrase “All Lives Matter”.
Earlier this year, after the announcement of Kendrick Lamar as next year’s Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show headliner, many believed that Lil Wayne would never partner with the league. However, in a public statement, he clarified, “That hurt. Hurt a lot. You know what I’m talking about? It hurt a whole lot. And for just automatically mentally putting myself in that position like somebody had told me that was my position”.
Furthermore, at his Lil Weezyana Fest in New Orleans, Weezy spoke about the Super Bowl, telling the crowd, “I said to myself, ‘I want to be onstage for the Super Bowl one day, in front of my mom and I worked my a** off to get that f**kin’ position. It was ripped away from me”. However, he evidently sees it as a decision primarily made by Roc Nation and not the NFL.