Hoops and music

Looking at Brian McKnight, you’d think the 6-4, 205-pound is a basketball player and not the accomplished singer that he is. Until he warbles — and ooh, does he warble.

McKnight, of course, is a byword in the industry. He’s a songwriter, instrumentalist, producer, and purveyor of a kind of music that’s categorized as poetic romance. McKnight signed his first recording contract in 1989. Today, he remains one of the hottest and most durable artists in the international scene.

The secret of McKnight’s longevity? Love. The theme of romance is prevalent in McKnight’s music. And there’s nothing more compelling. Love is "the wonder behind McKnight’s melody, the mystery behind his lush harmonies."

So when Viva Concerts executive Bobby Grimalt phoned the other day to break the news of McKnight performing on Feb. 14 and 15 with Regine Velasquez at the Araneta Coliseum, I immediately reserved for tickets. What a Valentine’s treat, I thought — McKnight, the ultimate romantic singer, paired with the songbird. That’s some combination.

Not too many fans know that McKnight is a jock by heart. "I play basketball every day for two to three hours," says McKnight in his website. "Sometimes, I’ll work out with the big boys, buddies like Karl Malone or Charles Smith. But mostly, it’s just my own crew. Then it’s off to the studio where I work until 3 or 4 in the morning. Musically and physically, I stay in shape."

McKnight, 32, describes himself as a sports freak. As a boy, he idolized Julius Erving and was a rabid Philadelphia 76ers fan. His childhood dream was to become a pro athlete. In junior high school, he was a starter on the varsity basketball and football teams plus ran track.

But there was too much music in McKnight’s head. When it came to a choice between sports and music, McKnight went with the flow. Clearly, the music fever hit McKnight long before he was introduced to sports. At the age of four, he learned to sing on his mother’s lap in the alto section of the Seventh Day Adventists church choir. Then, McKnight joined his three older brothers in a gospel quartet.

While McKnight blossomed as a music icon, he never lost his love for sports, particularly basketball. He owns a luxury box at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. When he watches the Lakers play in his box, there are five TVs on the side airing games simultaneously in other venues. McKnight says he keeps abreast of developments in the National Basketball Association (NBA) that way. At home, he has two satellite dishes to track the action.

McKnight plays in the NBA’s so-called Entertainment League with showbiz people like George Clooney and "Ripley’s Believe It Or Not" host Dean (Superman) Cain. He’s played against NBA players like Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, Ray Allen, Malone, and Smith. He’ll never forget playing one-on-one against the 6-10 Smith, a former New York Knick. "It blew my mind how a guy 6-10 can be that agile," he says. "I had to stand 10 feet away from him to shoot over him. That’s how big he is."

When he was younger, McKnight says he used to streak up and down the court to dunk. Now that he’s older, he just settles for a three-point shot.

McKnight says NBA players are the best of the best. "A lot of them have a work ethic I find inspiring to me as a musician," he notes in Hoop Magazine (April 2000).

Do sports and music mix? In McKnight’s case, they do. He sang the national anthem at the 1996 NBA All-Star Game. Kobe Bryant was a guest rapper in McKnight’s latest CD. And McKnight recorded Stevie Wonder’s "Signed, Sealed and Delivered" for the "NBA At 50" CD. Incidentally, McKnight calls Wonder "the Michael Jordan of music."

A year before Jordan’s return to hoops, McKnight predicted it. "Michael Jordan will come back and play," he foretold in Hoop. "Michael is so competitive. Six rings won’t be enough for him . . . Michael will just have to return." And so he did.

Curiously, Jordan isn’t McKnight’s favorite player. Dr. J used to be. Now, McKnight’s idol is Scottie Pippen. "He has this incredible basketball mentality," says McKnight, a native of Buffalo, New York. "He took his raw talent and he nourished it with a studied appreciation for the less flashy parts of the game. When you look at a boxscore, you don’t see the intangibles Scottie brings to the floor. You don’t see how many times he forced a turnover that changed a game’s momentum."

Before I forget, here’s a tip. Get your tickets to McKnight’s concerts early because I expect a sellout. If you buy your tickets not later than Jan. 25, you can avail of a 10 percent discount so hurry. Where to go for tickets? Bobby says tickets are available at Araneta Ticketnet, Tel. 911-5555, Viva Tel. 413-2572, and SM Ticketnet.