LOS ANGELES — Curious about which songs are fueling the Olympians competing in Paris starting this month? 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 — all of which can be found on our Spotify playlist.
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.
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.
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.”
- Fernando Dayán Jorge, Refugee Olympic Team
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.
“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.
“I 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.”
