While Carmelo Anthony is best known as a professional basketball player, there are many dimensions to the star. In recent years, Carmelo has been hard at work launching his STAYME7O clothing brand, which culminated with the release of the label's first collection in December.
But in addition to being a legendary hooper and fashion entrepreneur, he can now add playlist curator to his accomplishments. As part of our Black History Month celebration, we tapped Carmelo to create a Spotify playlist of the songs that inspire him every day.
Drawing from a blend of hip-hop, Afropop, and R&B from the likes of Future, Lil Baby, Tems, Wizkid, H.E.R., and more, the STAYME7O playlist strikes the perfect balance between high-energy bangers and mellow jams.
For the Record talked to Carmelo about his approach to the playlist, the role music plays in various aspects of his life, and the importance of supporting Black creatives.
Can you tell us a little bit about your playlist? The mood that I tried to create with this playlist revolved around the question, what do I want the STAYME7O tribe to vibe to? So I give you songs that bounce, and I give you the trap music, and the songs with the big, big drums. But I also mellow it out for listeners and take them on a spiritual journey a little. I've sat and really listened to the playlist a few times now, and it's just a vibe. I also tried it out in different environments, too, like when I was watching the game last weekend with people. I like to look and listen to see who's nodding their head and who's not. So I took all of that into consideration.
What is it about music that inspires you? I just love the art of music, and the craft that goes into it. I love the way that music can make a person-or a group of people-feel. And I love to see artists and creatives in their element. I love how they take their worlds, their feelings, their stories, and shape them into a rhythmic flow.
What role does music play in reflecting your own identity and place in culture? Well, music is a way of actually telling the story. I think everybody can identify with different genres of music or different artists or different sounds and different ways of digesting music. For me, it's a way of telling my story. I find music that I can relate to. I find music that uplifts me. I find music that I enjoy. But also I get a chance to learn about the artist, go through their journey, and understand what they're actually feeling. So if I can connect with artists on that level, that's a plus.
How does music factor into the message and mission of your brand, STAYME7O? STAYME7O is a mindset. Everything is based off of a mindset. The mantra of the STAYME7O community is When in doubt, stay mellow. And music ties into that because music feeds the soul. It is food for the soul. It's a mix of vibrations and sounds that have the power to change our mood, whether it uplifts us or makes us feel sad. And ultimately, that's what the STAYME7O community is also about . . . vibrations and sounds coming from people in real time. So you get a chance to get into that mindset and put this rhythmic sound together, and you have a community there. You get a chance to survive, you get a chance to tell your story, you get a chance to be confident in what you're speaking about. And so it offers some of the same things that music does and what music creates.
How did music fit into your life growing up? So much of what I've done, and what my family has done, and what we've witnessed was soundtracked by music. Music was always there in the background, whether it was cleaning up on the weekends, having breakfast together, or playing cards together.
Back in the '80s, there was a lot of rhythmic music, like Teddy Pendergrass, James Brown, and Marvin Gaye playing in my house. At the time, I didn't yet know what my mom was playing, but that's the cadence and bounce that I picked up.
In what ways do you feel like music and basketball are similar? Basketball shares a lot in common with jazz. To some people that may seem unorthodox, but I always used to have Miles Davis playing during my workout. And some people would come in and be like, What is he doing listening to Miles?
But listening to the notes of Miles Davis is my way of catching that cadence as I'm on the court. When you listen to Miles, you don't quite know what he's going to do, but you know he's going to do something special. I think playing with that rhythm in my head gives me an edge because nobody knows if I'm going to drive to the basket or when I'm going to shoot the ball.
Like what you heard on the STAYME7O playlist? Check out more of the hottest rap hits featured on RapCaviar.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
21/04/2026
Cloud-based production isnt going anywhere, and BitFire is doubling down by prov...
21/04/2026
The topic of artificial intelligence has a stranglehold on the sports-video-prod...
21/04/2026
5G is still a hot topic in live event production, and this workflow continues to...
21/04/2026
At the 2026 NAB Show, Ed McGivern, GM and President of Appear US, discusses the ...
21/04/2026
Studio Network Solutions (SNS) has announced an on-premise AI suite designed for...
21/04/2026
Suite Studios has integrated its file-streaming technology into the newly announced Frame.io Drive, a desktop application from Adobe company Frame.io. The colla...
21/04/2026
Net Insight has integrated InSync Technology's FrameFormer into the Nimbra E...
21/04/2026
Fox Sports has selected Appear as a technology partner to support the next phase...
21/04/2026
Diversified has appointed Tyler Affolter as Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) to lead the company's commercial organisation. The appointment follows the firm'...
21/04/2026
Layercake has formalised the integration of Bitmovin's video streaming infra...
21/04/2026
The International Judo Federation (IJF) has extended its distribution partnershi...
21/04/2026
Glookast has launched the Cinnafilm Tachyon plugin for its Media Producer and Me...
21/04/2026
Eutelsat has entered into an agreement with Cadena Tres, a division of Grupo Ima...
21/04/2026
Dolby Laboratories and TV Azteca have partnered to introduce Dolby Atmos immersive audio to free-to-air television broadcasts. The implementation utilises the A...
21/04/2026
FOX Entertainment partnered with Verizon to overcome significant production hurd...
21/04/2026
Osprey Video has announced its technology showcase for the NAB Show 2026, highli...
21/04/2026
Riedel Communications (Booth C4908) introduced a range of new solutions at NAB S...
21/04/2026
The NAB Show is in full swing, and the SVG and SVG Europe editorial teams are chasing down the hottest stories from all over the Las Vegas Convention Center. He...
21/04/2026
Blackmagic Design has announced the URSA Cine Immersive 100G, an immersive cinem...
21/04/2026
Clark Wire & Cable is continuing its evolution from cable supplier to full-scale solutions partner for broadcast and live production. At the 2026 NAB Show, we s...
21/04/2026
Rashad Frett attends the 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere of Ricky at Eccles Theatre on January 24, 2025, in Park City, UT. (Photo by George Pimentel/Shut...
21/04/2026
Five years ago, Spotify arrived in Pakistan, opening a new chapter in the country's music scene. Since then, local listeners have explored across genres, ge...
21/04/2026
Since its launch in 2020, RADAR has been our program for spotlighting emerging artists around the world. This year marks the sixth edition of RADAR Spain, our o...
21/04/2026
Offers compact wireless solution for pedalboards
Taiwanese audio brand Cloudvocal have announced the availability of a new pedalboard-friendly wireless syst...
21/04/2026
Latest hybrid sampling/synthesis instrument arrives
Arturia's Augmented series offerings rely on a mixture of sampling and synthesis, allowing users to ...
21/04/2026
Rohde & Schwarz to host Power Electronics Online Conference From Design to Vali...
21/04/2026
MAS and Lockheed Martin partner to establish an F-35 depot in Canada, enabling in-country sustainment and creating high-skilled aerospace jobs....
21/04/2026
Advertising strategies shift as competition grows for a large, active and qualit...
21/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
21/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
21/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
21/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
21/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
21/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
21/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
21/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
21/04/2026
Layercake Deepens Bitmovin Integration to Power End-to-End Media Orchestration w...
21/04/2026
Cobalt Digital Announces Launch of blueCORE at NAB Show 2026: Compact Powerhouse...
21/04/2026
On-Premise AI Suite from Studio Network Solutions Debuts at NAB Show 2026
Melanie Ciotti April 21, 2026
0 Comments
Unlimited processing, no cloud depe...
21/04/2026
London, 21 April 2026 IBC today announced the appointment of Tim Banham as its first Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), a newly created role that reflects the or...
21/04/2026
Motion Design Tools - April 2026
Roland Kahlenberg April 21, 2026
0 Comments
Within 2 days, Maxon and Canva announced pro-level motion design apps - A...
21/04/2026
Chaos and Zero Density to Showcase Real-Time Ray Tracing for Virtual Studios and...
21/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
While Carmelo Anthony is best known as a professional basketball player, there are many dimensions to the star. In recent years, Carmelo has been hard at work launching his STAYME7O clothing brand, which culminated with the release of the label's first collection in December. 
