Pavel Datsyuk makes cameo in Detroit rap video, fails to spit hot fire
If I had to choose one member of the Detroit Red Wings to be a member of my hip hop crew, I'd choose Todd Bertuzzi, for obvious reasons that I think are best alluded to in this song by the great Busta Rhymes.
But Mike Posner, known mostly for his 2010 hit, Cooler Than Me, clearly knows the value of a good two-way center. So he recruited Pavel Datsyuk instead.
Posner's latest single, "Top of the world", features a return to the rapper's Detroit roots. The video is a tribute to the city, of sorts, filmed in Detroit's streets, schools, and fields, and featuring brief appearances by local athletes like Datsyuk. Look for the Red Wing forward early in the video, doing that hip hop video thing where you stand next to the rapper as though you have his back.
Not a bad song, although this strikes me as yet another instance of rappers taking the wrong lessons from gangster movies. Much like Scarface, the man that gave us "top of the world" uttered the phrase not after he achieved global success, but just moments before dying a fiery and hubristic death. But to each his own.
Anyway, speaking of takeaways, it's great to see hockey's top pickpocket in this video, but I'll admit to being disappointed that he didn't get a verse. It's not like there wasn't room. Shortly after we see him, Big Sean gets some airtime. But who cares about Big Sean? Has he ever won the Selke? No he has not. Let Dats rhyme and rip.
It's not like there isn't precedent among Russian superstars. Alex Ovechkin rapped in a music video once.
Congratulations on getting Datsyuk to appear in your video, Mike Posner, but the next time, you give the man a microphone so he can spit hot fire.
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is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!