Lil Wayne is expanding his portfolio.
It was announced Tuesday that the Grammy-winning rapper will join a powerful ownership team for a stake in the Texas Ranchers — one of eight founding Major League Pickleball teams.
“Pickleball is a moment and I’m excited to be a part of the Texas Ranchers ownership group,” Lil Wayne said in a statement. “I enjoyed watching and couldn’t pass up the opportunity to join this team of owners.”
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Lil Wayne.
Frazer Harrison/Getty
Ranchers also shared a joint Instagram post with his record label Young Money to celebrate the partnership.
“Welcome @liltunechi to @rancherspickleball!” the fast began.
The upload featured a photo of the New Orleans native wearing a leopard print jacket and shades with his new title at the bottom of the image.
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“As a strategic advisor, Lil Wayne will provide creative direction for the #TexasRanchers brand and the development of future apparel collaborations. He joins the powerhouse ownership group to help build the USA Pickleball team,” it continued.
According to a press release, the “A Milli” hitmaker is one of more than 30 owners of Ranchers.
Golf pro Scottie Scheffler, radio personality Bobby Bones, Dallas Cowboys player Micah Parsons and Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett are also part of the ownership group.
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Lil Wayne attends the 2023 ESPY Awards in July in California.
Kevin Mazur/Getty
“We are so excited to have Lil Wayne on board,” Ranchers CEO Evan Floersch said in a statement. “From the very beginning, we set out to build a team that was, at its core, focused on pop culture to support our mission to become one of the most recognized brands in American sports. Having Wayne lead the way, along with the rest of this incredible ownership group, underscores our stance on redefining ownership of the sport and being a positive force for good in our local pileball community and beyond.”
For those unfamiliar with the fast-growing sport, it can best be described as “a smaller version of tennis, but a bigger version of table tennis.”
Lil Wayne isn’t the only high-profile rapper investing in popular entertainment.
In July, Major League Pickleball announced that Drake, formerly of Weezy F. Baby, Young Money, was joining as an investor in the Brooklyn Aces, along with Michael B. Jordan.
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“We are thrilled to have this incredible group of investors join the Brooklyn Aces as we continue to grow the team and raise the profile of Major League Pickleball as a whole,” said the team’s majority owner, Rich Kleiman, in a statement shared with THE PEOPLE. “In addition to the marketing and creative acumen that Michael B. Jordan, Drake and Steve Stoute bring to the table, our investor group includes some of the smartest entrepreneurs in the business. We look forward to what our second season brings.”
In 2022, NBA stars like James, Kevin Durant, Kevin Love and Draymond Green also invested in pileball teams.
The pros have joined other athletes such as retired NFL players like Tom Brady and Drew Brees who are also involved in the sport.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education