Nelly

I am not a big fan of Rap, Hip-hop, or whatever they call that stuff that's labelled 'music' nowadays, but I have been sold on one particular song that, at first listen, I didn't like. I lean toward Christian and Country so I rarely have occassion to hear a singer called Nelly.

I was looking for a good, heart-pumping, song to play on our new softball website; something that also included a message relevant to playing club-level softball. I was at a loss because my music is just not geared toward your average 10-12 year old softball player. Kenzie came to the rescue. She made me listen to one of her favorite songs; one that was part of a compilation that she received from a team we played (Oaklawn Ice) at the NSA World Series. As I said, at first I cringed, but I managed to sit through the entire four and a half minutes. What caught my ear was the chorus. It described McKenzie, and all her teammates, and almost every girl I've met in travel softball. the rest of the song isn't bad, either; it even mentions the Baltimore Ravens and Ray Lewis.

Here's the chorus from "Heart of a Champion", by Nelly:

Ain't no way they can stop me now Nelly
Cause I'm on my way, I can feel my ring coming
It's the blood of a champion, pumping
Deep inside my veins, too much pride to be running
I'ma get what I can and more, even if
My blood, my sweat, and my tears don't mean nothing
It's the heart of a champion (it's the heart of me)
(It's the heart of a..) in me
 
This really describes McKenzie's approach to her sport. It's why I'm so proud of her.