DJ T. Gray at Toyota Center in Houston.
DJ T. Gray, a veteran DJ/producer from Texas, has been the official DJ for the Houston Rockets for the past four seasons. The team is set to take on the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Semifinals of the NBA Playoffs on Monday.
T. Gray began working with the Rockets as their public address announcer in the 2000s. He also serves as the official DJ for the Houston Dynamo soccer team and as the music director at Country Rap Tunes Radio. As a producer, he has done remixes for Texas artists like Beyoncé, Pimp C, Chamillionaire, and Slim Thug.
With game one of the Western Conference Semifinals upon us, we asked T. Gray to share his playlist of tracks for this year’s postseason. His list includes song requests from players as well as his own picks. We also asked him a couple questions about what it’s like DJing for the Rockets.
Player Picks
James Harden: Nipsey Hussle ft. Kendrick Lamar – Dedication
Gerald Green: Fat Pat – Tops Drop
Trevor Ariza: Drake ft. PartyNextDoor – Wednesday Night Interlude
Rockets Mascot: BlocBoy JB – Shoot
T. Gray’s Picks
Huncho Jack, Travis Scott, & Quavo ft. Takeoff – Eye 2 Eye
Nipsey Hussle – Grindin All My Life
Meek Mill – Monster
Prince – Let’s Go Crazy
DJ Snake & Lil Jon – Turn Down For What
UGK – Choppin’ Blades
Gary Glitter – Rock and Roll, Pt. 2
Yung Martez ft. DJ Xo – Never Forget
Lil’ Flip ft. Young Buck & Bun B – Game Over (Flip) – Remix
KC & The Sunshine Band – That’s The Way (I Like It)
J. Cole – Motiv8
J Balvin & Willy William – Mi Gente – Deville Remix
Krajno – Saxoton
Drake – Nice For What
Migos – Stir Fry – Mr. Collipark Remix
Usher ft. Lil Jon & Ludacris – Yeah!
G-Eazy ft. A$AP Rocky & Cardi B – No Limit – DJ O Remix
Missy Elliott ft. Ciara & Fatman Scoop – Lose Control
Steve Aoki, Chris Lake & Tujamo – Boneless
The Black Eyed Peas – I Gotta Feeling – Kees Sjansen Moombahton Remix
Smash Mouth – All Star
Travis Scott ft. Kanye West & Lil Uzi Vert – Watch
The Jacksons – Can You Feel It
Which player has the best taste in music?
James Harden is really the DJ as far as what the players want to hear. Being from L.A., he’s got a lot of love for their local hip-hop scene. Whether it’s the latest release from Nipsey Hussle, a mixtape cut from Bino Rideux or a DJ Mustard banger, we’ve created this bridge from Houston to L.A., and I love it. Most of the songs he wants to hear are not clean, so I spend a great deal of time making my own clean edits. Team player over here!
What song gets the players most hype?
BlocBoy JB’s “Shoot” is king right now. Viral videos of Harden dancing to it during warm-ups have helped the song grow with fans, and when it’s played, the energy in the Toyota Center rises to playoff level.
Follow DJ T. Gray on Instagram, Mixcloud, Twitter.
Related: The Toronto Raptors’ Official DJ Shares His Playlist for the NBA Playoffs