The impact of the NBA finals on music

The victory of the New York Knicks in the NBA finals was an epochal event, not only for basketball, not only for the city. The team hadn’t won a title for 53 years, and the victory turned into a giant party in the streets, and on social media, which ended up driving the (re)discovery of different music.

The viewing data released in the United States, summarized by Billboard, shows how the Knicks’ triumph had an immediate impact on streaming platforms. In the lead there is – obviously – “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys, for years considered a sort of unofficial anthem of New York. In the 48 hours following the victory, the song collected approximately 1.4 million on-demand streams in the United States, an increase of 30% compared to the previous two days.

The effect extended to the entire musical repertoire associated with the city. Frank Sinatra’s “Theme from New York, New York” was up 62%, while Ja Rule’s “New York” featuring Fat Joe and Jadakiss was up 68%. The increase was even more marked for “New York State of Mind” by Billy Joel (+71%), “Welcome to New York City” by Cam’ron with Jay-Z and Juelz Santana (+62%) and “Go NY Go” by Jesse Itzler (+70%).

It’s not a new phenomenon, as Billboard always notes. Sport continues to be one of the most powerful engines of musical rediscovery, thanks to major events, as is happening in recent days with the start of the football World Cup, which has brought songs like “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)” by Shakira back to the charts and playlists, but also “I’m gonna be (500 hundred miles)” by the Proclaimers, an anthem of the Scottish fans which has gone viral on social media.

In the case of the Knicks, the victory – awaited for more than half a century – brought not only basketball back to the center, but the entire musical imagination of the city, a celebration made of music.