New York Jets Player Brandon Marshall Is a Huge Fan of Kevin Gates and Chance The Rapper

Champs Sports has announced its newest installment of the “We Know Game” campaign with Under Armour, which features New York Jets' star wide receiver Brandon Marshall and acclaimed hip-hop artists T.I. and Quavo.

The “We Know Game” campaign is a declaration of Champs Sports’ shared values with its consumers. Committed to equipping its consumers for the win, no matter the landscape, the latest Champs Sports campaign will help provide platforms for athletes and other celebrities to share their personal stories of perseverance. Inspired by this powerful message, the “We Know Game” campaign kicks off nationwide with a 30 second digital spot entitled, “The Moment” featuring Under Armour athlete, Brandon Marshall. Sharing a personal story about a pivotal moment that helped him in his journey, Marshall aims to inspire people to embrace their true self expression as they progress in life.

In partnership with T.I. and Quavo, last week, Champs Sports released “Baller Alert,” an exclusive song inspired by Brandon’s path to greatness. The track is now available on Youtube and Champssports.com.

With Marshall at the helm of this campaign, XXL caught up with the Jets' Pro Bowler to find out more about his Champs Sports campaign and his musical preference. Check out the full interview below.

XXL: Tell us about this Champs "We Know Game" campaign and what made you want to join this campaign?

Brandon Marshall: Initially, I didn’t care for it because it was right before camp and I had to fly from Florida to LA and then I jumped on the phone with the Champs team and the Under Armour team. They told me the concept and it hit me right away that this is the first campaign that I was going to be a part of that was really meaningful. You know, usually what brands do is they partner with the athlete and and say, “Hey, we’re going to throw you into our business. This is what we’re doing this year!” For this campaign they really asked me, “What is your moment?” They built the whole campaign around that and that’s what was special.

What we’ve been noticing is the more we tell our story, the more people are starting to identify with it and also get the help they need, as well as navigate through their life stresses. And for me, my moment pretty much happened in a closet in 2010 where I was heading to a game on a Sunday and literally was sitting in my closet for an hour and I had a suit in one hand and I had a linen shoe in the other. I had joggers and slippers and loafers sitting on the floor trying to figure out what I was going to wear and I couldn’t and my wife just walked in my closet and said, “Be yourself!” And that moment wasn’t just pivotal for that moment, it was pivotal for the direction I was going to take after that for the rest of my life because what happened was I spent three months in an out-patient program just trying to figure out who I was. Why I did the things I did. Why I was the person I was and left with skills and tools to be able to navigate through these things.

What was interesting is all that hard work that I did, I started being someone that I wasn’t because I knew that there was going to be four or five cameras in my face every time I took the field just to get my reactions and my emotions. Even when I walked off the field I knew people were going to be watching and reporting everything that I did so I tried to become what they wanted me to become or what was clean cut I would say. That moment really change the rest of my life when my wife told me that and from there I threw down those suits, put on a Marlins fitted hat, white tee, jeans, sneakers, threw the Benz keys in the drawer, picked up my 1970 Cutlass keys with four 15’s in the back and took off to the game and had one of my better games.

What kind of elements are needed for you to join a partnership or a campaign of this caliber?

It has to be organic you know? A lot of people talk about my brand, my brand, my brand, but I look at it as who I am. I never want to put my hat on something that just phony or not real and it doesn't matter if it's shoes or a beverage or clothing. It doesn't matter what it is, I just want it to represent who I am and for Champs Sports to say, "Listen, we're building a campaign on moments and we want to know your moment," it was an easy decision from there.

Along with the announcement of the campaign, a music video was released titled "Baller Alert," that featured you at the studio alongside T.I. and Quavo. How was that experience?

It was awesome man. It was great to see them in their environment. That was the first time that I was able to really be in the studio with someone of that caliber and it was awesome, man. It reminded me of just being in the locker room. It's no different how we prepare and how we approach practice everyday or a game on Sunday, it was the same. Some people look at it as you go to a studio and it's one big party, but T.I. and Quavo were about business and it was cool to see them do their thing.

For a moment there I thought you were going to spit some bars on the track...

[Laughs] I told T.I. he had to write a few for me first.

How long was the studio session and what stood out the most to you during the recording process?
We spent the whole day working on different things man and it was awesome. The thing that I was most impressed with was the conversation. You know, it was between the beats and being in between the booth and hearing those guys talk about real life stuff and what's going on in the world was very interesting. T.I. dropped knowledge and it was a great.

Who do you find yourself listening to nowadays?

Kevin Gates and Chance The Rapper are the two rappers that I find myself listening to the most. I love Kevin Gates' sound. He's really good at what he does. Chance The Rapper is just taking things to a whole another level. I really believe that if he puts out another album like Coloring Book he'll be the hottest in the game. You know, he doesn't have this massive infrastructure behind him so he's definitely grinding and his hard work is paying off.

What about before games or practices to get amped up?

I love listening to Jay Z. The reason why I love listening to Jay Z is because obviously his music is awesome, but when you think about Jay Z the first thing that comes to mind is "Set Apart" and that's my whole alter-ego. When I take the field I'm set apart from everybody else on the field and that's how I try to practice and that's how I try to play and the swag I try to carry so I listen to a lot of Jay Z.

I know you're from the Northeast, but since you played down South did your playlist change a bit?

Yeah man. I grew up listening to a lot of Biggie and a lot of East Coast rap and then moving down South I started listening to a lot of T.I. stuff, Trick Daddy, all of those guys and I can't forget about J.T. Money.

What are some albums that stay in heavy rotation for you?

Aww man, I would say J. Cole's Forest Hills, Chance The Rapper's Coloring Book, any of Lecrae's stuff and of course anything Jay Z.

What expectations do you have for the Jets?

You know what man we're going to stick to the process. We feel like we have a great team and great coaches, and now it's all about putting in the work so we'll see what happens.

Do you feel more pressure playing for a major market like New York City?

Not me but to some players it may. We have a bunch of young wolves and they don't care about the big city and the big lights, they just want to eat.

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