We are only few weeks into the new year and—to everyone’s surprise—LiAngelo Ball is the first breakout artist of 2025.
Yes, you read that right: LiAngelo Ball, the former professional hooper, the second-born son to father of the century, Lavar Ball, and the brother of NBA stars Lamelo Ball and Lonzo Ball.
The Ball Brothers—known for their basketball careers and their family’s Big Baller Brand—have always dabbled in music with Lonzo releasing tracks as far as back 2018. One of Zo’s most notable collaborations was with rapper DC The Don, who was a former teammate to Lamelo’s back in their AAU days.
Gelo (who now doubles as G3) has made an immediate and enormous splash in music, due to the success of his viral track “Tweaker.” Debuting the track on stream with N3ON, once it hit fans’ ears, the rest was history. The song quickly began to trend across social media, with fans, athletes, musicians, streamers, news anchors and many others sharing and posting videos of themselves listening to the track. Like everyone else, “I might swerve bend that corner WHOAHHH,” has been stuck in my head for WEEKS.
Its nostalgic sound reminded fans of the early 2000s, drawing sonic comparisons to prime Nelly and 50 Cent. Additionally, the track has attracted the attention of several rappers who are interested in hopping on the remix—such as MoneyBagg Yo and Boosie.
“Tweaker” officially released on Jan. 3 and has amassed nearly 9 million views at the time of this writing. It became the No. 1 trending track on YouTube and sold 94,000 first-week units, debuting at No. 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 (Jan. 14). It netted a combined total of 12.8 million streams.
G3 now joins both Shaquille O’Neal and Damian Lillard as the only NBA athletes with Billboard-charting tracks. However, you might be able to add Lonzo Ball to that list as well, as he is a credited writer and lyricist on “Tweaker.”
On Monday (Jan. 13), the 26-year-old hooper-rapper hybrid signed a joint record deal with Def Jam and Universal Music Group, which is valued at $13 million with $8 million guaranteed. In addition to the 7-figure sum, Gelo owns all of his masters and has complete control of his own music.
But Gelo’s Ws don’t stop there. Rolling Loud enjoyed the track as much as the rest of the world, and added him to the annual festival’s California lineup, which is slated for March 15-16 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
It’s safe to say no one has had a wilder start to 2025 than LiAngelo Ball. Fans, celebrities and just about everyone eagerly anticipate what’s next for the former basketball player turned rapper. Lavar truly went three-for-three, setting up his sons for success with all of their careers flourishing—and they’re just getting started.
Run back “Tweaker” below!