The songs that get Olympians hype to throw down

PARIS — Curious about which songs are fueling the Olympians competing in Paris? The Associated Press has an idea.
Some of the world’s top athletes from the Olympics and Paralympics have shared their favorite warmup tracks, revealing what gets them pumped before a crucial game, meet or match. The results range from The O’Jays to the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Drake, spanning genres and eras,
Sunny Choi’s warmup songs change often. The breaker had Kendrick Lamar’s infectious “Not Like Us” on rotation. But recently, she’s zoned out to her boyfriend’s favorite song, “Étouffée” by Vince Staples.
“It’s a nice chill kind of vibe,” she said. “But it’s actually good for warming up like right before a battle. It gets you into it.”
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Choi, 35, said her other go-to song is Nas’ “Hate Me Now” featuring Puff Daddy.
“It gets you in the mode to go destroy something,” she said. “I’ll turn this on when I’m sprinting. … It helps to motivate me. I can use the music to kind of change over time my mood. I can ramp up or ramp down using the music.”
Jaydon Hibbert likes to slow down the pace before sprinting into the triple jump.
His No. 1 song to make that happen is Drake’s “Uuugly.” He also mentioned the Canadian rapper’s two tracks “Controlla” and “Redemption.”
“I’m not the fast song kind of listener,” the 19-year-old said. “I don’t like things too fast. … But the moment I start a slower-paced song, it clicks. It’s a cozy kind of vibe. It’s kind of weird for warmups, but that’s what I like.”
Fencing might be a technical sport, but Miles Chamley-Watson sometimes wants to take his mind away from the competition with some upbeat melodies.
Chamely-Watson’s biggest hype man during warmups is rapper BossMan Dlow’s hood anthem “Get In With Me.”
“He’s the most hood person ever from Florida. I love him,” the three-time Olympian said before he recited a lyric from the song. “‘Pair of shoes, twelve-fifty.’ He gets me so hype. It’s ridiculous.”
Chamley-Watson, 34, who was born in London and raised in New York City, said he enjoys listening to songs from Future and Drake along with British rapper Central Cee, who known for songs such as “Sprinter” and “Did It First” with Ice Spice.
“I don’t really care about words,” he said. “I love the beats.”
Marcell Jacobs jumps from one playlist to another almost better than he can long jump.
One thing is for sure: He has an infatuation with Italian rap music.
“It depends on the moods,” he said. “It’s more exciting songs, more like gang songs. Every week I change my playlist for new music, so I like that change.”
Jacobs, 29, doesn’t have a particular song. But there are some artists he regularly taps into including Italian rapper Baby Gang along with Travis Scott, King Von and the late Pop Smoke.
Before Brittany Brown sprints past other track stars, she primarily listens to two songs from musical legends: Beyoncé’s “American Requiem” and Stevie Wonder’s “As.”
For Brown, it’s only right.
“It just puts me in a good mood,” she said. “It would have me smiling and singing before. Those are my go-to songs right now.”
Brown, 29, said “As” give her the inspirational Black church feeling that exudes happiness.
“In that song, she was like ‘You thought y’all was going to play in my face,” she said. “But you guys aren’t anymore. I love how Beyoncé is a woman who shows that she’s going to keep coming back. I’m going to keep rebirthing myself. I love to see women do that.”
Julien Alfred listens to several types of Caribbean music: dancehall, soca and calypso.
But the sprinter, 23, leans on one particular genre: gospel. She finds her peace through Cody Carnes’ “Firm Foundation (He Won’t)” with Maverick City Music with Chandler Moore, “You Will Win” by Jekalyn Carr and Josh Baldwin’s “Evidence.”
“I need something that’s going to keep me calm,” she said. “When I’m getting ready, I get super nervous. I’m like ‘This is it. I have to get ready now.’ The gospel is really helpful for me.”
When it comes to music, track star Andre De Grasse is unapologetically biased. Before anyone else, the sprinter plays songs from Canadian artists from The Weeknd and Drake.
After them, De Grasse’s second line is Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole.
“It keeps me calm and in the moment,” De Grasse, 29, said. “Definitely motivational factors behind some of the songs making sure I’m getting ready for the biggest races of my life. All those things put me in that mood to get ready.”
Before Rai Benjamin races past the competition, the sprinter and hurdler listens to a slew of musicians for the ultimate hype session.
Benjamin, 26, doesn’t have one particular song. He’s more about listening to particular artists like Drake and G Herbo, along with film scores including “Interstellar” and “The King.”
“It gets me up here,” Benjamin said, raising his hands above his head. “By the time I get out here, I got to bring it back down and be ready to do what I’m about to do.”
Benjamin said he needs a baseline between upbeat and calming music.
“I get pretty amped when I get out there with the energy from the crowd and seeing everyone and wanting to do well,” he said. “It’s good to get the mind going and get out of you head … just to get over those 10 barriers.”
During Rebecca McGowan’s preparations, the taekwondo specialist has two songs on deck before launching her roundhouse kick. The Scotland native vibes to Panic! At The Disco’s “High Hopes” during warmups and walks out to “Can’t Stop” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
“It kind of gets myself going and into my headspace to compete,” McGowan, 24, said of “High Hopes.”
“Don’t give up and keep going,” she continued. “When things get tough, that’s the song I listen to. … I just put it on and grind out the rest of the session and grind out whatever I’m doing.”
As for “Can’t Stop,” McGowan said, “it’s just a really good beat. It gets me pumped up.”
Logan Edra might be a part of the new breakdancing regime, but her foundation is built on old-school hip-hop.
Edra, a Filipina American, said she regularly presses play on Malcolm McLaren’s “World’s Famous” from 1983.
“I felt like I was brought back to when breaking first started,” said Edra, known as B-Girl Logistx. She first found “World’s Famous” while listening to an old mixtape.
Edra, 21, said the music has the ability to time travel.
“I’m starting to see how the music brings us together,” she said. “The music connects the generations. Every time I can listen to it and vibe to it, I feels like a remembrance or homage to the people in the past eras.”
Bradly Sinden always tries to put up a great fight, showcasing his strength in taekwondo matches after walking out to Kanye West’s “Stronger.”
“It’s a fight song — a more of a pump-up song,” he said of the track written by the rapper and Daft Punk.
Sinden, 25, became fascinated with song after the final fight scene in the 2008 film “Never Back Down,” starring Sean Faris and Cam Gigandet.
“From that film, it’s always been my favorite song,” said Sinden, who won a silver medal for Britain at the Tokyo Games.
“It’s just gets you into that mood. Now it’s like ‘I’m ready to go in there and do my business,’” he added.
Veronica Fraley normally vibes out to Afrobeat melodies. But when the discus thrower needs to lock in, she turns on rap music like Future’s “March Madness” before stepping in the circle.
“It’s a lot of things that’s not safe for work,” Fraley, 24, said with a chuckle. “Just something to get the blood pumping, get the anger going to be honest.”
Fraley said the music she subscribes to helps her tremendously.
“It gets me in the zone,” she said. “Kind of in the mood to be a fighter. It helps me come with my hardest energy.”
When Fernando Dayán Jorge steps into his red-and-white canoe, the two-time Olympian listens to one song that matches his energy.
Anytime Jorge, 25, practices or does warmups, the canoeist turns on “Legendary” by blues rock band Welshly Arms.
“I connect with this song,” Jorge said of the 2016 track, which was featured on NBC’s “Shades of Blue” and the 2018 film “Den of Thieves.”
Jorge, who as a Cuban rower won gold in Tokyo for the 1,000-canoe sprint, will be competing this time as a refugee. He’s joined a growing number of Cuban athletes who have defected.
McKenzie Coan is a huge Britney Spears fan, particularly drawn to “Circus” and “Womanizer.”
“Those are my two favorite pump-up songs,” said Coan, a Paralympian gold medalist in swimming. Her career began with aquatic therapy in 2001 after she was diagnosed as a child with osteogenesis imperfecta, known as brittle bone disease.
Coan, 28, has a Spotify playlist, which features artists such as Spears and Rihanna.
“Some of those songs I can’t listen to unless I’m getting ready to race, because it gets me so amped up,” she said. “I can’t even handle it. … I listen to things I can really move to.”
When it comes to music, Rachel Glenn calls herself the ultimate “hype girl.” Before she competes in the high jump and 400 hurdles, it’s all about listening to several upbeat songs like Y.G.’s “Perfect Timing” with Mozzy and Blxst.
“I’m a big music person,” said Glenn, 22, who listens to the likes of Snoop Dogg, Soulja Boy, Lil Vada and Tommy the Clown.
“I like to listen to music anywhere I go,” she said. “I’ll listen when I’m doing my homework, when I’m trying to go to sleep. It’s super important. Track and field is a mental thing. If your mentality right, then you’re going to compete right.”
While Jaydin Blackwell warms up, the Paralympian sprinter focuses more on motivational speakers than songs.
Blackwell’s speech of choice? The inspirational intro to Madden NFL 13, which features two-time Super Bowl champion Ray Lewis.
He also listens to David Goggins, an ultramarathon runner.
Asked the kind of music that does catch his ear: “I like the mushy music when I warmup,” said Blackwell, 20, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age 6.
Daniel Roberts isn’t an ‘80s baby, but his musical taste derives from tunes created nearly two decades before he was born.
The hurdler often goes the old-school R&B route, selecting the 1979 classic “Use to Be My Girl” by The O’Jays.
” don’t listen to music that’s going to get me hype, but music I enjoy,” Roberts, 26, said. “If I like the music or song a lot, it’s going to bring that good energy. I’m going to dance. I’m going to move.”
Roberts plays a diverse range of music to help him find his ultimate groove heading into a race.
“You got to be able to get into that rhythm,” he said.
Even though Cordell Tinch hardly ever listens to music during his warmups, some songs do cause the hurdler’s head to bobble with enthusiasm.
“Today, it was ‘God Did.’ That was the last song I listened to before I took my headphones off,” Tinch said of the track by DJ Khaled, featuring Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, John Legend and Fridayy.
“It was that song today, but it could be different another day,” he said.
Tinch, 24, said he consumes a healthy dose of Broadway songs. Rod Wave’s “Yungen” is another favorite.
During training for the Paralympics, cyclist Samantha Bosco usually leans on two songs: Pink’s upbeat “I Am Here” and the gospel-inflected “Chant” by rapper Macklemore and Australian singer Tones and I.
“Those are my songs,” said Bosco, who was born with a posteromedial bow of the right tibia and a calcaneal valgus foot that was corrected at the age of four by having a wedge of bone surgically removed. She first rode a bike at age six, riding to and from school with her dad.