Thirty years ago, no one would have predicted that Flavor Flav would go from “Public Enemy” rap star to water polo hype man. But on Friday, there he was, sporting his new water polo bonnet and oversized clock necklace at the Paris Olympic media center to explain.
(PARIS) – Flavor Flav gave one of the most fun pre-Olympic press conferences in Paris, hands down.
He was there as USA Water Polo’s official hype man – a role that didn’t exist until he volunteered to take it on in May 2024. Fittingly, the rapper opened with a rhyme: “This is an honour and this is a pleasure and a perfect measure. I'm gonna keep this memory as a perfect treasure.”
Flav then took questions from sports writers from around the world. Here’s a condensed version of what he had to say:
What is your athletic background?
I played baseball, football, a lot of basketball. I was one hell of an athlete way back in the day. Yes, I was really good at everything. I recently got in the pool with the [US] girls and I got to learn how difficult water polo is. I treaded water for seven minutes – and, boy, was that the hardest seven minutes in my life! But I did good! The girls said I did good. I got to, luckily, score a goal on Ashleigh [Johnson]. So I think that completed my athletic background
Do I have a favorite Team USA outfit?
My favorite outfit is this, right now. I got my water polo clock, my water polo jersey that was gifted to me. My water polo cap – I think I'll wear this for the whole Olympics! I feel like an Olympian. I look like one!
What Olympic sport would you be best at and what Olympic sport do you think you'd be worst at?
If can be the best at something, maybe the 200-meter run? No, no, no, the 100-meter. I'm 65 right now so I don't think I could run 200 meters. Being the worst ain't gonna be in the vocabulary.
If you could put together a water polo team of rappers, who would be on it?
The only ones that I would put on a team is the ones that I think I could play. I will pick my boy Snoop Dogg to be captain. Let Pharell [Williams] be the coach. Word up. And you can put Flavor Flav in the water as one of the star players.
Have you had a chance to meet Snoop Dogg yet in Paris?
No, I haven't met Snoop here in Paris yet. But he sent a good message last night saying, ‘Hey, I'm glad you're over here. I'm proud of what you're doing with the water polo cause.’ I would love for him to come to a water polo match even though I know he's probably got a schedule that's off the chain right now. If he could fit that into his schedule, I feel like that will give my girls that extra boost, too, to do what they gotta do and win the Games.
How did this water polo role come to be?
The journey all started by [US team captain and three-time Olympic champion] Maggie Steffens putting out a story. My manager turned me on to the story. As I read the story, I was like, ‘Hey, I would love to step in…and see if I can help these girls out. Give them some type of sponsorship. Everybody wants to feel like somebody has their back. It gives them more energy to go get that [fourth] gold medal. They EASY bring home three-zie! I told the girls, ‘Hey, they come home with this water polo medal and I'm gonna give every single one of them a clock. For real.
Is the clock waterproof?
Sure it's waterproof. I mean, if it goes a certain depth, then water will get inside of the clock. These are shower clocks.
You signed a five-year deal. What is your long-term plan to support the US water polo teams?
I can’t really get into specifics of what I’m doing for the team. My main goal is to really hype this team up to get that fourth gold medal. Right now, I've got three stars on my hat that represents each [gold] medal that the girls got. I want to see a fourth star on my cap, you know what I'm saying? I'm having fun doing this. I just want to thank the girls, too, for even accepting my offer of sponsorship.
What about raising awareness among black youth who might want to get into water polo?
When it comes down to water polo, I don't consider that just a sport of color. I consider that a sport of everybody. I think by me jumping in the water with Ashleigh, could probably enhance more black people to play water polo. Not too many black people playing it. But there's a lot of black people that can play. Ashleigh, she's a very, very big inspiration when it comes down to the black communities. I commend her. I raised the roof on her and she's living proof that it can be done. [In 2016, US goalie Ashleigh Johnson became the first black woman from the US to make an Olympic water polo team. A gold in Paris would be her third.]
What did your family and friends think when you said, ‘I'm gonna be the hype man for water polo.’
Hey, a lot of my family and my friends they were proud of me for making a move like this. Not only that but a lot of people around the United States have been commending me for making a move like this. I'm just proud that girls accepted my offer of sponsorship. So, for five years, y'all got Flav!
Any Opening Ceremony plans?
My plan is to go and watch it and let my kids be part of this because that's what I flew them out here for. Hopefully this will inspire them to want to get into sport and all of that. I wish I could be performing because I love being on stage. I love being the center of attention and the whole nine. But sometimes I just gotta sit back and just be part of the audience. So that's my plans: to be part of the audience, watch my boy Snoop carry the torch and watch everybody else do their thing.