Basketball fans worldwide know him as Shaquille O’Neal, but it’s his alter ego DJ Diesel that will rev up the crowd with electronic dance music prior to the June 11 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.
The four-time NBA champion and platinum-selling recording artist will drop the beat on the pre-race stage to headline race festivities for the 34th annual NASCAR Cup Series race.
DJ Diesel isn’t new to the sport. In 2010 O’Neal had the opportunity to race Dale Earnhardt Jr. for his reality TV show "Shaq Vs." but this will be O’Neal’s first appearance ever at Sonoma Raceway before the annual NASCAR Cup Series race and his last raceway stop before the summer music festival season.
“We can’t wait to entertain our race fans with DJ Diesel throwing the party,” said Sonoma Raceway Executive Vice President and General Manager Jill Gregory. “This is always a high energy crowd that loves our pre-race show. We’re looking forward to dialing up that energy higher than ever with Shaq leading the way at the Toyota/Save Mart 350.”
Known for hits such as Welcome to the Playhouse and his latest single, Dawn Of The Dead, O’Neal’s interest for the turntables started in his teenage days. He loved listening to hip-hop DJs and wanted to give it a go himself. He was able to purchase a turntable setup after earning $200 doing chores around his neighborhood. When his 2013 rap album, Shaq Diesel sold over a million copies, it cemented him as the only athlete ever with a platinum-selling album.
SHAQ aka DJ Diesel's dance music debut at TomorrowWorld 2015 was the Hall of Famer’s first time taking the stage in front of tens of thousands of fans, mixing the best of Trap, EDM and Hip-Hop, earning him the title of 'the biggest DJ in the world.' From there he launched his own festival series -- Shaq's Fun House in 2018, followed by Shaq's Super Bowl Fun House featuring performances and appearances from Migos, Diplo, Tiesto, Lil Jon, T-Pain, Adam Levine, Jamie Foxx, Akon, Patrick Mahomes, Reggie Bush, Adrian Peterson, Evander Holyfield and many more cementing it as one of the most legendary events of all time.
Sonoma Raceway’s annual NASCAR weekend packs in three full days of on-track action, beginning with the General Tire 200 ARCA Menards Series West race on Friday June 9 and the DoorDash 250 NASCAR Xfinity Series race on Saturday evening, June 10. The weekend concludes with the Toyota/Save Mart 350 on Sunday, June 11. Tickets for the Toyota/Save Mart 350 are available now at SonomaRaceway.com or by calling 800-870-RACE. Stage-front passes for DJ Diesel’s pre-race concert can be found HERE.
