Shaquille O’Neal Talks Life As DJ Diesel, The “Black Skrillex”

NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal is fresh off from a summer of djing at festivals around the world, like Chicago’s Lollapalooza, Belgium’s Tomorrowland and Hard Summer in Los Angeles. For those who didn’t know…yes, Shaq is, in fact, a world-renowned disc jockey.

For his next set, Shaq a.k.a DJ Diesel will be rocking crowds this weekend in New York at Randall’s Island Park for Electric Zoo, and then later at a Brooklyn Mirage afterparty. The 47-year-old retired basketball star chopped it up with The New York Post to talk his love for Djing and being deemed “a black Skrillex.”

Shaq explained that watching DJ Terminator X at a Public Enemy concert in San Antonio is what spawned his desire to spin records for arenas one day. “I lived by this pawn shop, and they had two [Technics turntable] 1200s and a Gemini mixer in the window,” he said.

”I worked my way, I cut grass, I did everything I could to get that. Taught myself how to DJ, used to DJ high school parties, make little mixtapes and all that stuff. Did the same thing in college,” he continued. 

After basketball, Shaq said his interest was reignited after attending TomorrowWorld Festival in Atlanta back in 2014. “I was like, ‘Holy s – – t!’ It reminds me of a Game 7 [in the] playoffs. You’re up there; the crowd expects you to get a lot of points, shoot a lot of threes, get a lot of dunks. It’s like I’m Shaq getting a pass from Kobe [Bryant], throwing it down,” he said. 

“A DJ and a top athlete, they have the same type of pressure. People pay their hard-earned money to see you perform — you gotta give ’em a good show,” he stated.

DJ Skrillex is who helped the baller recognize his own style of mixing records. “I saw Skrillex in Miami, and he was mixing EDM with hip-hop, and I was like, ’That’s my style right there.’ Now I’m more like a black Skrillex. I do EDM, hip-hop, and dubstep at all my shows. I just like to get the kids banging their heads, having a good time,” Shaq said. 

When it comes to people taking the basketball player seriously in the music world, Shaq said, “I realize that when you step into somebody else’s culture, there’s always gonna be some doubts. I kinda take that personal, but the more I take it personal, the better my shows are. It’s like basketball or sports or anything in life — you have to prove yourself.”