It's no secret that there are many athletes that once had a dream about rapping and being a big hip-hop artist. With their newfound money and success, some athletes take that dream and make it a reality, bringing us quite possibly some of the funniest and worst performances of all time.

LeBron James is the newest to bust out a freestyle by releasing a snippet of his version of Jay-Z and Kanye West's hit single, 'N----s in Paris.' The Miami Heat player is actually pretty good on the mic.

To celebrate that feat, TheDrop.fm takes a look at 10 Athletes That Made Rap Dreams Come True.

  • 'Strait Playin,' Shaquille O'Neal

    In 1997, Shaquille O'Neal released his single, 'Strait Playin.' The track came from the album 'You Can't Stop the Reign,' which sold 207,000 copies.

    That's a big drop from 'Shaq Diesel' which saw success by going platinum. This accomplishment was a big deal considering he earned way more sales than any other athlete who has tried to go down this same rap path.

    The song's video features Peter Gunz and DJ Quik as they bring some East and West Coast flavor to the mix.

  • 'Gangsta, Gangsta,' Chris Webber Feat. Kurupt

    In 1999, Chris Webber, who was playing for the Sacramento Kings at the time, decided to drop an album titled '2 Much Drama.'

    His lead single, 'Gangsta! Gangsta! (How U Do It),' actually reached No. 10 on the Billboard Rap Singles chart that year with the help of the Dogg Pound's Kurupt.

    The video showed nothing "gangsta" about the future Hall of Fame player though as they just partied it up, raised the roof and watched some women pull off some ridiculous dance moves.

    Unfortunately, his Fab 5 swag couldn't translate into the rap world as the rest of the album didn't reach the same success for C-Webb.

  • 'Ya'll Musta Forgot,' Roy Jones, Jr.

    In the midst of a losing streak in the mid 2000s, Roy Jones Jr., released a song reminding us (or himself) of his overwhelming greatness.

    This 2006 single, 'Ya'll Musta Forgot,' goes through all of his achievements in the ring as he tried to impress us on the heavy bags.

    "The best pound for pound is mine / Hit Percy Harris with four hooks at one time / Ya'll must've forgot when I beat Bernard Hopkins and won the IBF," he raps.

    We didn't forget Roy. This was a single off his 2002 LP, 'Round One: The Album,' which carried features from Mystikal, Dave Hollister and Scarface.

    Unfortunately for Jones, the project didn't earn him chart-topping accolades, which erased the hope for a round two. At least he has a successful post-boxing career analyzing fights for HBO.

  • 'What the Kidd Did,' Jason Kidd Feat. Money B

    Before becoming head coach of the Brooklyn Nets, Jason Kidd played for three other teams including the Dallas Mavericks, Phoenix Suns and New York Knicks. Yet, many people forget his laid-back West Coast-esque track from 1994, 'What the Kidd Did.'

    He had just got drafted at the time, on the road to becoming the co-rookie of the year (with Grant Hill). During that era, he apparently had a break to team up with Money B and record this track, which was placed on the 1994 classic compilation album, 'B-Ball's Best Kept Secret.'

    "Let’s go back, a few years to be exact / High school the fools didn’t know how to act / At St. Joe’s the hoes treated me different, but I was good on the dribble like an infant," he raps.

    It's safe to say Dr. Suess could have come up with better rhymes, but with a cool West Coast vibe, Kidd can get a pass as all he needs to do is remind people about that blond afro he once rocked.

  • 'K.O.B.E.,' Kobe Bryant Feat. Tyra Banks

    On the road to becoming one of the greatest basketball players of all time, Kobe Bryant decided he wanted to be a rapper in 2000.

    His first single, 'K.O.B.E.,' sampled popular single 'Daisy Lady' by 7th Wonder and also featured beautiful model Tyra Banks on the hook.

    He spit lyrics such as, "Whether she push a buck and a six, bumpin' some mad chips, out on her own / Or live out of mom's and pop's home / Watch time, fashion, Adidas attire or Timbo's / I don't know, yo, these women come and go, like the wind they blow / How do I know it's you for sure?" he raps.

    One can only wonder if he used those lyrics to reconcile with his wife just last year.

    In addition, Grantland has a great behind the scenes rundown of the rise and fall of Kobe Bryant's very brief rap career.

  • 'Anything Can Happen,' Brian Shaw

    In 1994, Brian Shaw became part of the basketball collaboration album, 'B-Ball's Best Kept Secret.'

    Now a coach for the Denver Nuggets, Shaw actually held his own and sounds natural on the West Coast-influenced track.

    Shaw took a very conscious approach here, in which he rapped, "It's so tragic, man if I had magic /
    I'd make a wish for the homies who got blasted / you feel me? That's real G."

    One can only wonder what a track featuring Common Sense would have sounded like. Hmm.

  • 'Must Be the Money,' Deion Sanders

    Deion Sanders was always a character on and off the field, so naturally he had to make an album for himself.

    At the time, 'Must Be the Money,' from his one and only album, 'Prime Time,' was released, he was a superstar for both the Atlanta Braves in baseball and the San Francisco 49ers in football.

    His album peaked at No. 70 on the Billboard charts, which pretty much ended his rap career right before winning a couple Super Bowls with the Dallas Cowboys.

    There's nothing like making a song telling people how obnoxiously rich you really are. "Diamond Rolex, with 'gators on my feet / I got two pair for every day of the week / My hair is done, my fingernails too," he raps.

    In case you didn't get it the first time, he stays humble in the second verse: "Limousines, in first class I fly / I'm livin' large and you know I can't deny / And my rides, a drop-top Benz when I'm with my lady friends / My truck's a six-four with my homie's makin' ends."

    This almost sounds like an old WWE theme song.

  • 'Top of the Game,' Tony Parker Feat. Fabolous & Booba

    In 2007, San Antonio Spurs superstar point guard Tony Parker decided to jump into the world of rap.

    He released his album, 'TP,' which is almost entirely in French. He had some big features on the project with guest appearances from Fabolous and Jamie Foxx.

    A few months after the release, Parker won the NBA Championship with the Spurs, winning MVP of the series.

    As for the video, get your translators ready because we're still trying to find out what he's saying. For all we know, he could be cursing us out in French.

  • '40 Bars,' Allen Iverson

    As one of the biggest NBA stars at the time, Allen Iverson shocked the world by releasing some new music in 2000.

    The superstar guard had a different style than his athlete rap hopefuls peers. He went the gangsta rap route, cursing, using hardcore lyrics and street sound effects, which caused outrage in the NBA community.

    As his alias Jewelz, the track '40 Bars' was supposed to be on his debut album, 'Misunderstood,' but was scrapped due to the controversy of his lyrics.

    "Get murdered in a second in the first degree / Come to me wit f----- tendencies, you'll be sleepin' where the maggots be," he rhymes.

    Iverson ended up going to the NBA Finals in 2001, and was also named the NBA Most Valuable Player that year.

    Soon afterwards, he got to showcase his rap skills during his Reebok A6 commercials.

  • 'Yep,' Floyd Mayweather Jr.

    In 2007, the always entertaining Floyd "Money" Mayweather, Jr., released a track titled 'Yep.'

    The song seemed to be just a random attempt to rap, but it was just as bad as his brief WWE career (in which he used this as his theme song).

    With lines such as, "I make it storm, I make it rain, I throw a mil, it ain't a thing / You want my life and you want my swag, you want my bitch, you can kiss my ass," he makes Waka Flocka Flame sound like Rakim.

    For the video, you can't help but be entertained by the amount of bottles and women in the pool as he enjoys life in Las Vegas, as the horrible dancing and quality time with his boys is pretty funny to see.

    On the flipside, Mayweather went on to have a pretty successful year in his true job as a boxer, beating both Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton while staying undefeated.

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