T-Pain has been taking notes from Shaquille O’Neal’s business blueprint.
The “I’m Sprung” artist was a guest on O’Neal’s podcast, “The Big Podcast with Shaq,” and revealed that since 2018, O’Neal has been influential in how he approaches business. O’Neal is one of the greatest centers in NBA history and has established a booming $500 million business empire that includes various franchises, such as Shaq’s Big Chicken and Papa Johns, where he also served on the board of directors until 2024.
He has also secured a slew of endorsements, including PepsiCo. In 2023, he reunited with Pepsi for a new partnership that led to a commercial putting a fresh twist on Skee-Lo’s 1995 single “I Wish,” as AFROTECH™ previously told you. This came nearly three decades after he appeared in Pepsi’s Big Slam commercial. Additionally, O’Neal was offered a $40 million Reebok deal but declined to release affordable shoes with Walmart. However, he later returned to Reebok and now serves as its President of Basketball, according to AFROTECH™.
His knack for cultivating business relationships and unlocking new opportunities has shaped T-Pain’s business approach, including selling his publishing catalog and select master recordings to HarbourView Equity Partners. He says the deal is structured as an ongoing partnership, allowing them an opportunity to invest in his ventures beyond music, such as Nappy Boy Gaming and the Global Gaming League, an esports organization.
“In the deal, they’re always open to buying anything that I got going on. Now, if Nappy Boy Gaming jumps off or GGL, I’m like, ‘Hey, do y’all want to?’ Not only are they offering to invest in things that I’m doing to make them bigger in order to purchase later, but they’re always open to everything,” T-Pain said on “The Big Podcast with Shaq.” “So, I did let them purchase some of my publishing in good faith, like, ‘Look, I’m down to do business,’ and then also come in on another thing.”
Speaking of O’Neal’s influence in his approach, he later commented:
“I see how he does business. It’s—it’s never like a one-time thing with Shaq. Nobody can ever say, ‘Look what we got Shaq to do.’ It’s always like, ‘Shaq is doing that thing with those people…’ Shaq never does like a transactional thing. It’s never like a—a celebrity-paid advertisement. It’s never anything like that. Once I saw that and I got my business back on track after a while—like since 2018—I’ve been studying things you do, so, you know, that’s really what got my business back on track.”
