Inside the Warriors’ New Record Label

…And they’re both secret theater kids. No wonder Steph is so good in commercials. They told Vanity Fair about their entrepreneurial spirit, scary movies, and high school electives. 

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These days, if you really want to be a household name, you’ve gotta diversify. The Warriors know that, and they’re taking strides to be more than just an NBA organization. Golden State is the only NBA team that also houses a record label: Golden State Entertainment.

Music and sports have always been close. Sports are more fun to play with music on. That’s a fact that, if you’ve ever shot hoops to “Forever” by Drake, Kanye West, Lil Wayne, and Eminem, you know very well. (For the children in the chat, yeah, those guys used to make music together). There’s even Lil Wayne’s famous quote that “athletes wanna be rappers, rappers wanna be athletes.”

GSE’s first album, For The Soil, was produced by legendary Bay Area rapper and friend of the Warriors P-Lo. It’s set to feature all the Bay Area greats: E-40, Too $hort, and G-Eazy, and is already set to be the anthem of NBA All-Star Weekend. P-Lo already performed it at the All-Star tip-off party last night.

The idea to start a label came from Warriors’ Chief Business Officer David Kelly, who was a rapper himself in a previous life. Since the Bay has always had such a vibrant hip-hop scene (shout out Mac Dre, Kamaiyah, Lil B, and hundreds more), it was an easy yes from owner Joe Lacob and ilk. 

The question is, which player will get in the studio first? Perhaps Jimmy Butler found a label for his country album?

Welcome back to Take Five, a series where our community taps in to curate the music, style, restaurants, trends, and influencers that have caught their eye. From the things that inspire them to what or who we should all be paying attention to.

We’ve already chatted with cultural leaders and icons Naomi Osaka and Kyle Kuzma.

Today we’re talking to NBA skills coach and author of your new favorite book Stop Bullshitting Yourself, Drew Hanlen.

Name a player, and Drew’s probably worked with them—or at least played with them in one of his private runs. A born entrepreneur, he self-published his first basketball drill book in high school and sold over 5,000 copies. Fast forward to now, this book is more focused on the mental work it takes to change your life, and it works for everyone—not just hoopers.

Let’s get into it.

OffBall: Who inspires you?

“So many people inspire me. Michael Jordan’s winning mentality and relentless competitiveness shaped how I approach success. My parents’ tireless work ethic taught me the power of sacrifice and selflessness.

I also get inspiration from the players I work with. Watching Joel Embiid go from barely playing basketball as a teenager to becoming MVP, Jayson Tatum evolve from a high school freshman to an NBA Champion, and seeing Bradley Beal, Tyrese Maxey, Tyrese Haliburton, Zach LaVine, and Tyler Herro become All-Stars inspires me to dream big and relentlessly work until those dreams become reality.

Truthfully, I’m inspired by anyone who refuses to settle—the kid grinding before school, the entrepreneur betting on themselves, the single parent doing whatever it takes. The ones who don’t make excuses. The ones who just get it done.”

When did you stop bullsh***ing yourself?

“When I was 12. That’s when I made the decision to go all in. I stopped talking about wanting to play college basketball and started proving it with my actions. I gave up sweets, candy, soda, and desserts. I also started waking up at 4:59 a.m. to shoot 1,000 shots before school every day. I may not have been the most talented player, but I refused to be out worked.”

You’re at a party with every player you train. Who is getting the AUX?

“Probably Brad Beal. I know I’m going to get some old-school Lil Wayne, Jeezy, current hits, and being from St. Louis, I know he’ll include a few of Nelly’s best songs.”

Who’s the biggest surprise guest to show up to one of your runs?

“We usually try to keep our runs pretty private, but we’ve had almost every All-Star come through at some point.

Our biggest surprise was probably when 2Chainz showed up with his basketball shoes on and asked if he could get in a game. He was a solid hooper so we agreed to run an extra game after we finished the series that day and he knocked down a few shots and had a good time.”

What region runs basketball?

“Going with my heart here and saying St. Louis! Our guy JT just won a title while leading his team in points, rebounds & assists, so I’m rolling with my hometown!

Saying that, it’s hard to argue that LA’s got the deepest talent in the NBA with Kawhi, Harden, Westbrook, DeMar, PG, etc.”

Thanks for chatting with us, Drew!

@alexday5

Founding Father Justin Jefferson 🇺🇸 #nfl #justinjefferson #vikings #nflfootball