“They Put Me in the Celebrity Circus”: 4 Years After “Not Getting Paid” Admission, $400 Million Worth Shaquille O’Neal Reflects Upon 35 Year Old Passion

Shaquille O’Neal is a multifaceted celebrity. The basketball icon is a business mogul with a net worth of $400 million, a philanthropist, and a DJ. The Basketball Hall of Famer recently opened up about his love & obsession with music. The Los Angeles Lakers legend discussed how he transformed himself from being stereotyped as a “celebrity DJ” to becoming a seasoned artist and reflects on how his 35-year-old passion for music has impacted his life.

The creator of the “Big Chicken” restaurant discussed his challenges when entering the DJ industry. Notably, DJ Diesel once admitted that he didn’t receive payment in his initial days as a DJ, despite having multiple albums under his belt.

Shaquille O’Neal had to earn his respect

Shaquille O’Neal, in an interview with Yahoo Entertainment, spoke about his motivations and journey into the Dubstep genre. The four-time NBA champion credits DJ Skrillex’s Miami performance, drawing him into the Dubstep genre. He said, “I went to see Skrillex in Miami, and he kind of had the hip-hop thing going with the hard sounds I was like, you know what, this right here is what I want to do.”

He recognized that this style resonated with his personality, which he described as a “hard face” ready to push through challenges. Shaq opened up about the initial criticism and stereotyping by critics. People likened him to a celebrity DJ like Paris Hilton. However, he made a name for himself with his skills and efforts.

O’Neal stated, “Well, they put me in the celebrity circus, they said, ‘Oh you want to be a celebrity DJ like Paris Hilton.’ And I was like, ‘Oh, my girl, Paris.’ But I said, ‘OK, no problem.’ … It was kind of rough, but once people saw what I was able to do and I got put in front of some eyes, we earned our respect. ”

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Shaq emphasized his motivation is not just self-promotion or money but the adrenaline rush he experiences while performing. He compared his experiences in a concert with the championship parades. He expressed the sense of fulfillment and excitement he felt was missing after his retirement.

DJ Diesel’s unpaid gigs: Passion over profit

Shaquille O’Neal has been active in the music industry since his days in the NBA. Notably, O’Neal had a platinum hip-hop album to his name, but he never considered being a DJ until Tomorrowland 2015 happened. The 4x NBA champion was hooked on the genre since then. In the interview with SiriusXM, Shaq admitted that he was “not getting paid” for any of his DJ gigs; he just did it for the adrenaline.

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