Burna Boy, a Nigerian-born singer, songwriter and record producer, stole the show on Sunday with his halftime performance at the 2023 NBA All-Star Game. The Grammy Award-winning artist spoke to NBA.com about his passion for basketball and traveling to Salt Lake City for All-Star weekend.
Editor’s note: The following 1-on-1 interview has been edited and condensed.
What is a memory of yours of watching or playing basketball growing up?
I’ve got too many, too many. I wanted to play basketball at first – I was in high school, where I was on the basketball team, and we used to kill everyone [laughs]. You get me?
Even before then, it’s always been a dream of mine to play basketball. The roads of life turn different, and yeah – I’m here, still at the NBA. I still made it to the NBA [laughs].
What does it mean to you to be performing at the 2023 NBA All-Star Game?
It’s a dream – it’s amazing. I had dreams of playing in the NBA as a kid, but I got to perform at the NBA, so I guess I made it.
What do you think about the connection Nigerians have with basketball?
Everybody, at some point, wants to play basketball. Even if you don’t want to play at some point, even if you’re streetball, something, it’s always entertaining. There’s always something that pulls you towards basketball.
Obviously, Nigeria is a football-dominated, soccer-dominated country. But at the same time, we have some of the best basketball players.
🌟 2023 NBA All-Star Game halftime performer @burnaboy 🌟#StateFarmSaturday #NBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/GyaA9ssoqf
— #NBAAllStar (@NBAAllStar) February 19, 2023
