How Common and longtime collaborators composed the NBA's new theme song

When Common steps into a studio, he thinks beyond verses: he’s focused on movement, rhythm and emotion. 

The Chicago native and multi-hyphenate artist has spent years merging his love of basketball and music. Now, that lifelong rhythm echoes across the court through “Victory,” the new theme for NBA on Prime Video composed by Common alongside his creative circle, Karriem Riggins and James Poyser.

The track serves as more than background sound. It’s a statement.

A cinematic blend of hip-hop pulse and orchestral force, "Victory" marks a defining shift in who creates the sound of the game. For decades, sports themes centered on brass and rock anthems; this one carries swing, groove, and soul.

Inside how Common, Riggins, and Poyser turned athletic energy into musical movement.

The trio recorded with a 70-piece orchestra in Nashville, layering live horns and strings over rhythmic drums and rich jazz textures. The result feels like a highlight reel scored by heritage — soulful, modern, and proudly Black.

For Riggins and Poyser, both seasoned producers and musicians with roots in jazz and hip-hop, Victory channels athletic energy through music — the quick cuts, the teamwork, the build before the dunk.

“It’s about motion,” Riggins said. “We wanted people to feel the game before they even saw the first play.”

Three Black composers rewrite who gets to define the sound of the game—and how long their voices will echo.

Three Black composers leading the sound of a billion-dollar sports league represents more than access — it symbolizes progress. Their collaboration for Amazon’s first exclusive NBA season reflects a larger movement in creative control: musicians of color shaping global sports narratives from the inside.

The Victory team approached the project as legacy work. The composition was designed for endurance — an anthem crafted to live in arenas, playlists, and cultural memory.

From verses to vision, Common evolves from artist to architect of sound.

“Victory” also continues Common’s evolution from artist to architect. Long before this project, he scored films like “Selma” and “A Kid from Coney Island,” threading purpose into entertainment. This moment extends that lineage — blending storytelling, sport, and sound design.

At its core, “Victory” champions ownership — creating culture and standing fully within it. Each note reflects the power of authorship and collaboration. Black creativity doesn’t just enhance sports culture; it defines it.

When culture scores the game, history gets a new sound.

The NBA has always carried unforgettable soundtracks. “Victory” elevates that tradition with a new intention — hip-hop meeting symphony, legacy meeting innovation. It’s Chicago, Detroit, and Philly working in perfect time.

For the league, it’s a new sound.

For the culture, it’s a new precedent.

And for Common, Riggins, and Poyser — it’s history composed in real time.