Using Fame For Good

There aren't many places in the world where one will cross paths with both the Blue Man Group and Flavor Flav in the same location, but Las Vegas seems to have that going for it. As cool as the Blue Man Group is for their brand of music, I'm here tonight to talk about Flavor Flav because this guy might be one of the coolest dudes on the planet when it comes to supporting others who need a hand-up rather than a hand-out. If there's one thing that I appreciate more than anything, it's those who have amassed more money they need and, in turn, return that money to good causes for no other reason than because they can. It isn't often that we see this, but Flavor Flav should be the example of how rich millionaires can do so much good simply by being good people.

The 65 year-old rapper, who rose to fame with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame rap group Public Enemy, isn't being absolved of anything here on HBIC. After all, Flav's got a rap sheet as long as his arm with several varying degrees of offences to his name, he starred on some of the most vapid reality TV shows ever produced, and his venture into being a restaurant owner ended up with his business being evicted. None of that is being overlooked as Flavor Flav, born William Jonathan Drayton Jr. in Roosevelt, NY, has worked to clean up his act from his days of trying to live above the law.

What's happening in Paris at the 2024 Summer Olympic Games with Flavor Flav is rather awesome, though, and I feel there about a dozen hockey men who could be doing what Flav is doing. That is, specifically, helping other athletes reach their dreams and goals.

You may not be aware of this, but water polo isn't the biggest spectator sport on the planet. While that seems obvious, sponsors often struggle to support a sport like water polo because the athletes have 90% of their bodies hidden below the water, so product placement and advertising opportunities aren't as plentiful as in other sports. The ladies may wear Speedo-branded swimsuits, but not many are going to see that branding unless the players are out of the pool.

Enter Maggie Steffens, seen to the right, who is one of Team USA's most lethal players in the pool. The 31 year-old helped the Americans win gold medals in 2012, 2016, and 2020, and she set a new Olympic record for the most goals scored by an individual player over her career in women's water polo at the Summer Olympic Games. With Team USA gunning for a fourth Olympic gold medal, Steffens would be front and center for the team as one of their top players yet again. It should also be noted that Steffens and her eldest sister and sibling, Jessica, are both part of the Team USA squad and her dad is an NCAA water polo champion and three-time Pan-American Games competitor, so water polo runs in her blood.

On May 4, 2024, Steffens wrote an Instagram post about the team's struggles, highlighting that many of her teammates "aren't just badass champions, but also teachers, business owners, coaches, physicians assistants, and more. Some may not know this, but most Olympians need a 2nd (or 3rd) job to support chasing the dream (myself included!) and most teams rely on sponsors for travel, accommodations, nutritional support, rent/lodging, and simply affording to live in this day and age." Clearly, she's passionate!

And that's where Flavor Flav comes in because he saw Maggie Steffens' post on Instagram as a call to action, responding on Maggie's post, "AYYY YOOO,,, as a girl dad and supporter of all women's sports - imma personally sponsor you my girl,,, whatever you need. And imma sponsor the whole team. My manager is in touch with your agent and imma use all my relationships and resources to help all y'all even more. That's a FLAVOR FLAV promise."

Liberal use of commas aside, that's a pretty awesome thing for Flav to do, but Flav's not known for being quiet. And that's where this story gets awesome because Flavor Flav made some noise.

On July 1, 2024, Flavor Flav signed "an unprecedented five-year sponsorship deal as the official hype man for the USA Water Polo Women's and Men's National Teams." The terms of the agreement see Flavor Flav continue to financially assist the 2024 USA Women's Water Polo Olympic Team, and will extend to seeing Flav make "multiple appearances annually at USA Water Polo events" and "extensive social media collaboration" between the parties.

"This is one of the biggest things that I feel that I could have ever done in life, outside of the other accomplishments that I've made to music," he said in an interview with NBC Olympics. "By sponsoring a water polo team and helping these girls out, this is bigger than me winning a Grammy."

Honestly, how cool is that?

Just think about what it would be like for the Canadian fencing team to have Ryan Reynolds hyping them on social media or the Australian handball team having Hugh Jackman hype them. Yes, those two men have a hugely popular movie in theatres right now, but how much attention would they draw to sports that don't get the same coverage as hockey or soccer or swimming at the Olympics if they threw their celebrity behind those athletes? I guarantee everyone would tune in to see Reynolds go bananas over a key touch in fencing or Jackman hyping an incredible goal in handball, but it would also keep the sport on the map in countries where these sports are seen as niche sports. Growth for those sports matters a lot.

"What I’m doing right now, I think it's huge and nobody else is doing it or done it," Flavor Flav said to NBC Olympics. "Usually, I'm known to be the first to do something and everybody else follows my trends. So I'm hoping that this will be a trend that a lot of people will follow because I think it’s a really good thing. Come and step up and sponsor some of these teams."

It's here where I look at some of the fortunes made by athletes like Connor McDavid and LeBron James and Tom Brady, and I know they all give back in their own ways to various causes. But how hard would it be for any of those men to carve off $1 million from their vast fortunes to support a national team like archery, artistic swimming, or one of the many cycling teams seen at the Olympic Games? That money would change the sport for the athletes in those disciplines, and all it takes is using one's celebrity to make that difference.

I'll let Flavor Flav get his friends from the entertainment world involved in his style of philanthropy, but even if some of these athletes named above helped to build and finance sports facilities and leagues, they'd be making a huge difference in the lives of the kids who use the facilities and play the sports. Without that funding, some of those facilities may close and some of those leagues may fold, pushing kids into other sports where costs are less prohibitive when it comes to that sport surviving and thriving.

The next generation always fills the void left by an older generation in sports. Kids coming up today face greater hardships than we faced growing up, yet we're seeing incredible efforts at these Olympic Games by a pile of athletes who have take their sports to a new level like Maggie Steffens. With Flavor Flav's work on behalf of the USA Water Polo, I'd expect the Americans to remain dominant in the pool for some time as more kids see Flavor Flav's work with water polo and potentially get in the water to try the sport. Some will dislike it while others may love it, but the hope is that another young Maggie Steffens can be found.

That's the power of fame, and I commend Flavor Flav for using his fame for good. Tne only question left to be asked is who will be the next celebrity to step up and throw his or her support behind one of the less-funded national teams?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!