'NBA 2K24': David Kelley Says New Soundtrack Is the 'Most Global' and 'Most Diverse' Yet (Exclusive)

'NBA 2K24' is celebrating two big milestones with the new soundtrack.

By Brian Jones

NBA 2K24 is now available on all video game platforms, which means the soundtrack is also ready for fans to enjoy. This soundtrack stands out since it's the 25th anniversary of the video game series as well as the 50th anniversary of hip-hop. PopCulture.com exclusively spoke to David Kelly who is 2K's director of partnerships and licensing who oversees the NBA 2K soundtrack, and he explained what fans can expect from this year's soundtrack.

"This year they can definitely expect more incredible new artists that we'll be introducing to them, as well as all the prestige and legacy artists that we typically work with," Kelley exclusively told PopCulture. "We have some big surprises coming this year with our dynamic soundtrack updates within each season. And then also we're very, very excited to have not only the most global soundtrack we've ever had where you'll be hearing music from some unexpected regions, but also the most diverse soundtrack we've ever had too, as well with the amount of representation we have from different communities in the soundtrack."

The NBA 2K24 soundtrack pays homage to the hip-hop generation by featuring icons and the next generation of artists. The game includes songs such as "Just Wanna Rock" by Lil Uzi Vert, "Walk" by Kodak Black, "In Ha Mood" by Ice Spice, "Kobe Bryant" by Lil Wayne, "Bad Habit" by Steve Lacy, "hooligan" by Baby Keem, "90 Proof" by Smino & J. Cole, "Breakfast In Monaco" by Larry June & The Alchemist and "Black" by YoungBoy Never Broke Again.

"We definitely see NBA 2K as a platform for music discovery and the way we're positioned within the music industry," Kelly explained. "So we're really excited to activate in those spaces. And then additionally, we'll be debuting new music within the game, so exclusive debuts that you'll only be able to hear within NBA 2K24 first before they go wide to streaming platforms.

Landing on NBA 2K is big for an artist as over 100,000 copies of NBA 2K24 were sold in its first few days. And because of this, Kelley said the selection process of adding songs to the game is not easy. "We spend a lot of time taking submissions from label partners, from artist partners, and just generally people we're excited about," Kelly said. "And whether they're big names or whether they're names that may not be super familiar to our community, we're really just putting our curation ears on first and listening through what we think the community will want to hear within the game. But beyond that, I think the things we look for in artists partners or label partners is they need to have a genuine enthusiasm for NBA 2K. And when we say genuine, these are a lot of times people that play the game in and out of their day. This is what they're doing when they're taking a studio break, when they're recording, they're playing NBA 2K or they've just grown up with that as a part of their identity."

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NBA 2K has always stood out because of its music in 2012, Jay-Z was a curator and executive producer for NBA 2K13. In NBA 2K19, Travis Scott made the cover of the game as did J. Cole for NBA 2K23. Those artists have a love for the NBA, which has led to NBA2K being the go-to for music in video games. 

"I think NBA 2K sets itself apart again by is how much music we want to touch and how much music we want to interface with throughout a game cycle," Kelley stated. "But also, I think it's just become a space where we hear a lot of artists who say, 'I have two goals for my career. One is to win a Grammy and the other is to be on the NBA 2K soundtrack.' And that's a privilege and an honor we don't take lightly at all. We're always very aware that that moment could be a very big moment for an artist and it's a special moment for an artist. So I think being on the soundtrack definitely is a blue sky, a bucket list thing for a lot of artists."

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