The Missing Link to Kentucky Basketball Success: A Rap-Song Dedicated to the Team

Since Kentucky's last Final Four appearance in 2015, John Calipari detractors are quick to place the blame for UK's absence at the feet of the head coach. When they point their fingers at Coach Cal, there are four pointing right back at them. Some will say Calipari has lost his recruiting touch, that he's not able to adapt to the modern game. There's one thing missing from the last five years of Kentucky basketball that was prevalent through Catch Cal's first five years: great Kentucky basketball rap songs. When John Wall made it to campus, it did not take long for everyone to flex to the left and throw some money out their hands. Like Kentucky basketball, Troop 41's "Do the John Wall" is the Gold Standard of Kentucky basketball rap songs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meYIbAt2iaQ The John Wall dance was so popular, it was responsible for not one but TWO songs. https://youtu.be/eFPpKoTpURM "Do the John Wall" was still ringing through campus when Kentucky went to the Final Four in 2011. A fall later, one player stepped into the Kentucky basketball rap game. The BBN got lucky when the Real T Jones taught us bout Kentucky. Is it a coincidence that Terrence Jones averaged 12.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game as a starter for the 2012 National Champions? I think not. https://youtu.be/NSvsJHhy0E4?t=79 Shortly after the Cats won No. 8, the torched was not passed quick enough. "Number 9" made its debut after Nerlens Noel suffered a torn ACL against Florida. The chorus was inspirational. "Feeling straight cause we got number eight. Now it's time to grab number nine." Fans only grew more excited when Nerlens appeared on the track, instilling confidence that the Cats could still accomplish the mission. "Shout out to my team. Yeah we still gon' win it," Noel said shortly before rhyming 'history' with 'Missouri,' then revealing, "I might come back." Unfortunately, neither happened. https://youtu.be/d1xtkjmN8n8?t=93 Nerlens' news-breaking made "Number 9" popular. In a similar fashion, "Wildcats, Wild Out" became popular as folks clicked to see if they were included in the music video that was shot at a Kentucky football tailgate. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOngS5LYg_w Despite the setbacks from 2013, the Harrison Twins reinvigorated hope across the Big Blue Nation. Even though 40-0 dreams were quickly dashed, John Calipari had one final trick up his sleeve. "The Tweak" was the catalyst behind Aaron Harrison's great story that spanned two Final Fours and served as the muse for Inside Joke's "The Tweakables." The song's chorus is a beautiful piece of lyrical artistry. "Cal tweaked it like this. He tweaked it like that. He tweaked it with a whiffle ball bat."  https://youtu.be/qaEhZu7Xk_0 Since Kentucky's incredible run, the Big Blue Nation has heard a few Kentucky-themed songs. Kentucky Joe and producer K. Kyle Mann gave us "Got It," and Benny the Bandit (a.k.a Benny Snell) dropped a few bars during his freshman season. Is it a coincidence that the Kentucky football program has experienced unprecedented success? I think not. Instead of asking what can Kentucky basketball do for you, what can you do for Kentucky basketball this March? BBN, it's time to inject some hip-hop back into the Kentucky basketball program to help the team take more dubs back to Lex. https://twitter.com/TJWalkerRadio/status/1236385867540959234 For brevity's sake, I did not include every single UK basketball song to hit YouTube in the last ten years. With the help of T.J. Walker, we've compiled a songs that served as either the background to a highlight video or used an instrumental from another song. Enjoy at your own risk.

• Scoupe -- "Calipari, Calipari"
• Kentucky Basketball Brother's Keeper
• Kentucky Basketball 2012
• Big Blue Nation (Black and Yellow Remix)