Jay Rock Leads Los Angeles Rams To Field In Game-Winning Home Opener

Naughty By Nature performed at the halftime show of the rivalry event.

September 24, 2024 2:57pm

Jay Rock performs as the Los Angeles Rams take the field in their home opener against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024

Los Angeles Rams

The Los Angeles Rams came back to defeat the San Francisco 49ers in Sunday’s (Sept 22) high-energy matchup but before kickoff, both fandoms were reminded that the home team is supported by their own, win or lose. Leading the 2022 NFL champions to the field, Jay Rock performed a version of his 2023 record “Still That Way” reimagined as “Rams That Way,” hyping the crowd as the powerhouse athletes arrived on the field. The surprise performance coincides with the L.A. native’s on-theme tune being used to soundtrack the Rams’ official tunnel entrance video this season and highlights initiatives to bolster homegrown and nationally-known acts both on and off the field.

At the SoFi stadium in Inglewood, Calif., red t-shirts and jerseys almost outnumbered bright royal blue, yellow, and gold paraphernalia. However, the Rams supporters were mighty in spirit as the Mariachi Rams kicked off the game-time entertainment. When it was time, Jay Rock subtly entered the arena opposite the players and it was soon showtime. For the Top Dawg Entertainment rhymer, the moment adds to his connection with his favorite team as he remains on-call for their entertainment, creative, and community needs.

“The creative approach was to just make it about the Rams. Just to give the fans something to chant and to turn up to. [I] just wanted to make it more about L.A., too,” explained the 39-year-old rapper to VIBE after the performance. “Even when I first made the record, I was in a sense of… I don’t know if you ever heard my song ‘Win’… I was just trying to do a ‘Win’ 2.0… I wanted to make it more about the Rams and give them a shoutout and big them up. They always showed me love, so I was just returning the favor.”

Jay Rock, who was raised in Watts, has previously supported the Rams with a performance presented by Pepsi to “open” SoFi Stadium in 2020 and has graced the stage at several Rams games performing the previously mentioned hit song, “Win,” among other tracks.

“This is a beautiful moment. And for them to call me, I wasn’t even expecting it. So for them to call me, it’s an honorable thing. And like I said, I’m just glad to be a part of it,” the “Easy Bake” rapper continued.

In addition to the pre-show celebration, the party continued with a performance from Naughty By Nature (minus Treach) at the game’s halftime. Although they did not hit the 50-yard line, the veteran rap group commanded the in-stadium stage, nestled in between the stands. Their eight-minute show included hits such as “O.P.P.,” “Hip Hop Hooray,” and a tribute to the late Fatman Scoop.

“Especially in sports shows, there’s a lot of energy there. It’s halftime, you never know if the home team is winning, or they’re down. You have to pick high-energy songs. Songs that’ll get the crowd engaged, and bring the party. So, that’s what went behind us assembling our set,” explained Vin Rock before the group took the stage.

Naughty By Nature performs a medley of their hits and pay tribute to Fatman Scoop during halftime at the matchup between the Los Angeles Rams and the San Francisco 49ers pic.twitter.com/l9QGfi5jCC

— VIBE Magazine (@VibeMagazine) September 22, 2024

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“Each individual performance is always tailored to what it is that it calls for, especially when you’re dealing with minutes. They tell you you got a certain amount of time, and then, you cater it and you make sure that you don’t… you allot a time you don’t go over. Especially when you’re dealing with television and different things like that, you cannot go over. So, it has to be spot on,” added DJ Kay Gee.

As for Jay Rock, he and the Rams might have something else coming soon, proving the player’s skills out of the weight room and in the studio.

“I got a version where I got most of the starting lineup on the record [including] Cooper Kupp,” revealed the musician. “Hopefully, they will get the record and they might play it throughout [the season]. You all might hear that real soon.”

This coming Sunday, the Rams look to build a winning streak against the Chicago Bears in the windy city. Take a look at images from both Jay Rock and Naughty By Nature’s performances at the 2024 home opener below.

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