LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥� Shaquille O鈥橬eal threw one big party, but with two different experiences.
O鈥橬eal hosted his carnival-themed event 鈥淪haq鈥檚 Fun House鈥� on Friday night in downtown Los Angeles ahead of the Super Bowl this weekend. The self-proclaimed 鈥渂est party thrower鈥� lived up to the hype with an outside area featuring several attractions including an 80-foot slide, a human claw machine, a premium open bar, free food, bumper cars and Ferris wheel.
Inside, O鈥橬eal 鈥� who moonlights as a DJ Diesel 鈥� was one of the featured performers including Lil Wayne, Zedd, Diplo and even the NBA legend鈥檚 son, Myles, who spun several records in front of an energetic crowd. The event was filled with several popular entertainers and athletes including Floyd Mayweather, Torey Lanez and Brandon Marshall.
The event was held at the spacious Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall in a city where O鈥橬eal helped the Los Angeles Lakers win three straight championships.
鈥淚 love you L.A. Let鈥檚 (expletive) go,鈥� shouted O鈥橬eal, who stood behind a soundboard then played a rendition of Queen鈥檚 鈥淲e Are the Champions鈥� to represent the championships he helped delivered to the city. He played electronic dance music then weaved in several big records such as Future鈥檚 鈥淲ay 2 Sexy,鈥� DMX鈥檚 鈥淩uff Ryders鈥� Anthem鈥� along with Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow鈥檚 鈥淚ndustry Baby.鈥�
Lil Wayne closed out the multihour event performing some of his biggest hits. His hour-long set 鈥� which ended after 2 a.m. PT 鈥� included classics such as 鈥淎 Milli,鈥� 鈥淕o DJ,鈥� 鈥�6 foot 7鈥� and 鈥淟ollipop.鈥�
Wayne thanked O鈥橬eal for wanting him to perform at 鈥淔un House.鈥� The rapper then asked the crowd their Super Bowl favorites between the Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Rams, which drew the most applause.
Before the set, O鈥橬eal said he wanted to make more of a splash with 鈥淔un House鈥� than the other parties in the city 鈥� especially with his event held in person after it was held virtually last year due to COVID-19 concerns.
The tickets for the sold-out event started at $400 a piece, which included unlimited food and drinks from Los Angeles staples like Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles and Pink's Hot Dogs.
鈥淎ll the other parties, you just come, you stand around and shake hands,鈥� he said on the red carpet. 鈥淵ou go, 鈥楬ey Tom, hey Bob, hey Jamal.鈥� This party is a carnival with rides, favorite restaurants, top restaurants in L.A... Ferris wheel. I paid a lot of money to get this stuff here.鈥�
The investment was certainly well worth it.
Jonathan Landrum Jr., The Associated Press
