I want to start by saying this is not a top 5 list or anything like that. I know there are many amazing soundtracks out there for these games. These are just 5 great sports soundtracks that always got me pumped up. So in no particular order let’s get into it!
NBA Live 2000
One of the soundtracks most people might not agree with is NBA Live 2000. When I was young I never really was into sports games. That was until I was playing on my Nintendo 64 and my uncle brings me home a game from Walmart. That game was NBA Live 2000 with Tim Duncan as the cover athlete. When I got this game I was still kind of finding my way in my music interests as well. Once I turned on this sports game and hear Naughty By Nature’s song “Hip Hop Hooray” I was hooked. Sometimes I would find myself just sitting on the home screen singing with the game. NBA Live’s soundtrack also featured other songs from George Clinton, Rahzel, and Run-D.M.C.
Madden 2004
The next sports game we got up is none other than Madden 2004. Any sports game enthusiast remembers how much of a pain it could be to tackle Michael Vick in this game. I can’t tell you how many times I would mess with my friends. I would run all the way back to my endzone then wait for them to come then run all the way for a touchdown. Madden 2004’s soundtrack was absolutely phenomenal. You had a song from Joe Budden called Pump it up. There were others such as Blink 182, Alien Ant Farm, Bonecrusher, Jet, Bubba Sparxx, Avenge Sevenfold, Outkast, and more. I will tell you though my favorite by far was a song by Nappy Roots called Round Da’ Globe.
Madden 2003
Our third game on the list is one of my favorites in Madden 2003. I love using the Rams in this game because I was a big Marshal Faulk fan. I tell you I was a menace with Marshal Faulk and Isaac Bruce. This game’s soundtrack was a little smaller than Madden 2004’s only having 11 songs. Once again though we have one of my favorite groups Nappy Roots. They had a rock remix of their song Anaw which always had me hyped while playing. We had other great artists such as Andrew WK, Seether, Good Charlotte, Bon Jovi, and others. Many hours were spent in this game just like the others.
NFL Street
One franchise many people would love to see come back is the NFL Street franchise. The streets sports game we so much fun and kind of allowed people that backyard sports feel. This soundtrack was utterly amazing and featured multiple genres. We got artists such as Lil Jon, Korn, Lil Flip, Killer Mike, Wylde Bunch, Fuel, and many others. My friends and I would play these games for hours, especially this one jamming out. You can’t help, but rock out or headbang. Please EA I beg you to bring back the Street series!
NBA Live 2004
The last sports game soundtrack to get you pumped up has to be NBA Live 2004. The first basketball jersey I ever had was Vince Carter, which happens to be the cover athlete. I wore that jersey so much that people that didn’t know me would call me Carter when we played basketball. This sports game had legends such as Jermaine Dupri, Twista, Mobb Deep, Chingy, Outkast, Da Brat, and other amazing artists. I will tell you though my favorite song by far on NBA Live 2004’s soundtrack is definitely Flipside by Freeway. Just thinking about the song while writing this has got me jamming to it in my head.
Other Great Soundtracks
In closing, I just want to say there are so many great sports games that it’s hard to pick 5 favorites. I know I only included basketball and football game, but FIFA, racing, hockey, and many other sports have great soundtracks too. We will do this again in the future and I will shine some light on other amazing soundtracks as well.
