Pickleball is all the rage, and some of the world’s brightest stars want to get involved. The latest to throw their hat into the ownership ring is hip hop icon Lil Wayne.
The GRAMMY Award-winning will join the Texas Ranchers’ ownership group and serve as a strategic advisor, per a news release.
“Pickleball is the moment and I’m excited to be part of the Texas Ranchers ownership group,” said Lil Wayne. “I’ve enjoyed watching and couldn’t pass up the opportunity to join this team of owners.”
Lil Wayne will help amplify national and local fandom for the sport and collaborate on creative strategy for apparel design among other duties.
“We’re so excited to have Lil Wayne on board,” said Evan Floersch, CEO of the Texas Ranchers. “From the get-go, we set out to build a team that, at its core, was centered in pop culture to support our mission of becoming one of the most recognized brands in American sports. Having Wayne’s guidance, along with the rest of this incredible ownership group, emphasizes our stance on redefining sports ownership and being a positive force for good in our local pickleball community and beyond.”
He’s not the only celebrity interested in ownership within the Pickleball space.
As previously reported by ESSENCE, Naomi Osaka, Lebron James and Draymond Green invested in new Major League Pickleball team. Maverick Carter, James’ business partner is reportedly rounding out the team of investors.
“When I started playing pickleball, I immediately connected with the sport’s community and its capacity to be both fun and competitive,” said Carter in an interview with CNBC. “To see the sport growing in communities all over is really exciting, and we’re looking forward to bringing our expertise together to try and build a championship team.”