SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The NBA brought in Grammy-winning rapper Nas and three-time Emmy-winning composer Nicholas Britell to help tell the tale of this season’s NBA Finals.
The league debuted a new spot — “History is Calling” — promoting the finals early Wednesday, hours before the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks begin this year’s title series.
Britell — the composer known for “Succession,” “Moonlight” and “Andor” — envisioned a piece that the league said, “draws inspiration from the emotional progression of basketball, from anticipation and momentum shifts to the defining moments that shape outcomes.”
Nas provides the voice, with nods to the 80-year history of the league and what it takes to get to the NBA Finals. Nas worked closely with Britell on the music itself, collaborating to shape the final sound of the project.
“Thirty teams start this journey, but only two are left standing,” Nas begins. “The math is simple. The quest, anything but. This isn’t just a series. This is legacy. Everything’s on the line, because history is calling. This is the NBA Finals.”
The NBA said Britell’s score “marks the first expression of the league’s new signature audio identity,” and that Britell and Nas will have an expanded partnership with the league going forward.
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