When LeBron James approached the unprecedented 50,000 career points milestone, artist Vincent Jordan, known by his stage name OkaySpade, felt a surge of inspiration. He knew it was the perfect time to create a song commemorating the achievement. Jordan searched YouTube for a suitable beat and found one posted nearly two years prior that felt ideal for the track he envisioned.
After listening twice, Jordan decided. He commented on the beat`s YouTube video, “Finna make a LeBron James tribute [right now].”
Recording the song took Jordan no more than 10 minutes. The catchy chorus, “LeBron, LeBron, LeBron James,” was perfected in just two takes. He added harmonies and matched the chords sung in E-flat, then layered a falsetto “LeBron James” to build the melody.
“I didn`t do too much editing. I still wanted it to be raw because it`s a comedic song,” Jordan explained. “I really could`ve put more into it, but I didn`t. And I`m kind of glad that I didn`t, because at the end of the day, it kind of has a feeling of something I made at home… something that`s real simple, and I like it. It`s not complex.”
After James officially set the NBA scoring record on March 4th, Jordan shared his song, aptly titled “Reigning in LA (LeBron James Anthem),” with his friends. Encouraged by their reaction, he decided to post a 35-second snippet on TikTok and continued with his day.
At the time, Jordan had only 100 followers. He woke up the next morning to thousands of notifications. Philadelphia 76ers guard Jared McCain, a well-known social media influencer, even commented, “This fire,” under the post.
Following the song`s viral spread on TikTok, Jordan released a longer version (one minute, thirty-five seconds) on streaming platforms. As March progressed, other TikTok creators began contributing to the nascent trend, crafting their own LeBron James songs by remixing popular R&B hits with lyrics centered on the Lakers star.
And thus, a significant trend was born. Jordan`s original song has since accumulated over 7 million views and 800,000 likes, and his TikTok follower count has surged past 6,000.
The widespread circulation of “Reigning in LA” on social media captured the attention of Fyrehouse Records. The label flew Jordan to Los Angeles to discuss business, treating him to his first Lakers game. He ultimately signed a deal allowing him to record six songs for the label.
“Dreams do come true,” he shared.
Music has always been a central part of Jordan`s life. His parents` involvement in the entertainment industry, particularly within the rhythm and blues genre, exposed him to music from a young age. His mother performed breakup R&B songs, while his father sang love songs and is also an actor. Jordan stated, “I can`t imagine my life without music.”
However, building a career in music seemed like a remote possibility to him initially. “I just didn`t believe there was a chance,” Jordan admitted. “Because in my head, everybody wants to do music, so what makes me different from everybody else?”
Jordan`s inspiration wasn`t solely from his musical background; it also stemmed from being a dedicated fan of the Los Angeles Lakers star. The 24-year-old became a fervent admirer of James after the veteran`s pivotal role in leading the Cleveland Cavaliers` historic 3-1 comeback against the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals.
“The situation shows him at odds and them coming through and fully beating one of the best teams ever assembled in basketball at a disadvantage,” Jordan recalled with a smile.
He never could have anticipated that his creation for TikTok would, in turn, become a source of inspiration for others.
TikTok user Cortez Miles grew up singing and playing instruments in church. While his father and friends recognized his musical talent, he hadn`t posted much of his music on TikTok, and what he did post didn`t gain significant traction – until the LeBron James trend emerged.
“I started [to] hear some of them, like at first, it was a joke because I do music – I do R&B music,” Miles said. But then his musical instinct kicked in, urging him to join the trend.
Miles wanted to avoid remixing just “trendy” or “poppy” songs. His goal was to create something distinctive and unconventional, hopefully reminding listeners of what he calls an era of “good R&B.”
He decided to test the waters with his audience. His first LeBron James remix adapted Drake`s “Girls Love Beyoncé.” Miles freestyled lyrics about the 21-time NBA All-Star`s achievements, attempting to match the flow of the original song.
“I did the template of the actual song of whatever the flow was and just redid it with LeBron`s accolades,” Miles explained. “I kept the same flow… I just go off of what I know and what I`ve seen. Clearly, he`s the GOAT.” He added humorously, “If I had to perform these songs, I couldn`t probably even do it because I don`t even know my own lyrics after posting it.”
Miles explored the neo-soul side of R&B with remixes of Charlie Wilson`s “Charlie, Last Name Wilson” (reimagined as “LeBron last name James”) and Jon B.`s “They Don`t Know.” His “LeMix” of Chris Brown`s “Residuals” also saw higher than usual engagement on TikTok.
As Miles posted his renditions, users began requesting new remixes in the comments. One user asked him to remix T-Pain`s “Buy U a Drank” and title it “Le`Get You a Ring” – he did, and it became widely popular.
“I wasn`t expecting none of them to go crazy,” Miles shared. “So once they did, people were suggesting, `Hey, do this song,` and if I thought it would [sound] all right, I`d do it right then and there and post it. Like, it takes seconds.”
Miles found the most success with his remix of Plies featuring T-Pain`s “Shawty,” which he renamed “Le`Shawty.” He sang, “We know he is the greatest of them all, yeah I`m talking about LeBron James.” That single version alone has garnered over 46,000 likes and continues to grow.
Following the Lakers` victory over the Houston Rockets on March 31st, reporters asked James if he was aware of the trending songs. LeBron confirmed he had heard many of them. “It`s almost impossible [to not see them]. My younger son, Bryce, actually showed me one… we got a good laugh out of it. There`s quite a few out there,” James commented after the game.
Miles wondered if any of his specific “LeMixes” were among those James had seen, but he wasn`t dwelling on it. “If he`s seen it, he`s seen it, but I more so like the interaction with other people and being able to connect and just enjoy the trend,” Miles stated. “The fact that it ended up getting to him is cool. That`s good for anybody who was on the trend.”
LeBron James wasn`t the only NBA superstar to be celebrated with a viral TikTok song, however.
Just days after Jordan`s “Reigning in LA” took off, TikTok user Trynden released his own original 40-second R&B song focusing on Stephen Curry.
At that point, other LeBron James songs hadn`t yet gone viral. Trynden explained that while he didn`t want to simply copy Jordan`s initial idea, he had a strong intuition that a song about Curry could also become a hit on the platform.
“I just did it for fun and kind of thought it could get big,” Trynden said.
The lyrics for his song captured Curry`s signature shooting prowess: “Oh Stephen Curry, oh No. 30; when he shoots the ball, he`s gonna turn around; don`t gotta see. It`s going in, all you hear is green.”
“I was really happy when it went viral, and it was just kind of surreal. I thought it could happen, but when it really did, I was kind of taken aback,” he reflected.
Trynden currently doesn`t plan to create additional songs about Curry in the future. However, artists like Miles and Jordan have indicated they will continue making songs inspired by James as long as he remains in the league, especially as he pursues further championships.
