A month ago I wrote a piece pondering possible new walk up songs for Dodgers players here in 2021. In the original publishing, I mistakenly attributed Mookie Betts’ new walk up song to the wrong artist. It was a miscommunication on my part.
Many mistakes become happy accidents, and this is no exception. The artists are Tre Houston and They Call Me Solo. After fixing the issue, Dodgers Nation exchanged a few e-mails to bring the story of this song for Mookie to you.
Mookie’s Walk-Up Song
The song is called “Baddest Man Alive” and oh man if that is not such a great moniker or nickname. Give it a listen here:
Interview
How did the track come about? — What is your connection to Mookie?
Tre Houston: I’ll let Solo take this one – I know he knows Mookie from way back. He approached us last year to do this but schedules were tight. This year we were able to make it happen.
TheyCallMeSolo: Mook and I went to the same high school. He got there after I graduated but I got to know him playing basketball on the weekends at our high school.
Any challenges along the way or did it all come together smoothly?
Tre Houston: Like with every song, there are easy moments and hard ones but this came together very well. We wanted to capture a universal appeal while making something specifically for Mookie, for the Dodgers. We went through a number of beats with producer Tyler Norris, then iterations of it, mixes, all the way to the final product with that goal. Cause Mookie *is* the baddest man alive.
TheyCallMeSolo: There was a point where I wanted to scrap the song and start (not at all uncommon for songwriters) over but we got past that and made something I hope people love.
What was the reaction like? Both when Mookie first heard it and when you first heard it blaring at Dodger Stadium?
Tre Houston: When I first heard it, I was over the moon. I still have yet to hear it in the stadium – I hope to fly to town before the end of the season to take in a game. As for Mookie, he actually played a part in the whole process – he sent along some mix notes as we tried to perfect the sound early on. I know he loved this beat in particular off the bat of the ones we had made for this and then again as we put the final mix together.
TheyCallMeSolo: I kept Mook pretty in the loop with the lyrics I was writing and the sound we were going for because he wanted something very specific. He absolutely loved it from start to finish. And we also got the stamp of approval from his soon-to-be wife, Brianna, which may have been more important than his! I‘m flying out to LA in June for the Rangers series so I can hear it for the first time. I’m just honored that he trusted me enough to make him his anthem for this year. It’s a big deal making a song for the best player in baseball.
Where’d you get your start in music?
Tre Houston: I’ve been writing for almost as long as I can remember. I started “releasing” music to friends in middle school and built from there. I went to college for Music Business at Belmont University in Nashville which is where Solo and I met. I am an artist but also started a music licensing company that I run today.
TheyCallMeSolo: I don’t want to brag but I used to SHUT DOWN family functions as a kid singing Michael W. Smith. Ha, but really, I’ve always enjoyed singing since I can remember. But when I met Tre at Belmont in 2006 I started to dabble in rapping. I hadn’t written anything in several years before Mook asked me to do this one for him.
Where can people check out your other work if possible?
Tre Houston: Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, anywhere you listen to music. Just search the name!
TheyCallMeSolo: I think I’ve got some older stuff on sound cloud. Solo-jones-615.
Postscript
I have personally lived in Nashville for 14 years, and in a prior life was a full-time musician. It was a joy to see musicians from Nashville, particularly ones who don’t play country music, showcased on as big a stage having their music played as a walk-up song for the best baseball player the league has seen in a while. Nashville has such a rich history of music even outside of its well-known country scene. Tre and TheyCallMeSolo have truly created a great track for Mookie Betts. Dodger fans get to hear it for as long as Mookie uses it, which could be a glorious 12 more years. Mookie truly is the “Baddest Man Alive.”
As mentioned in the interview you can find their music on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Sound cloud, and your other various music streaming programs. Give them a listen and always remember to support your local musicians!
AJ is a lifelong Dodgers and Lakers fan who grew up in California. His whole family is also lifelong Dodgers fans. He lives in Pennsylvania with his wife, two kids, his guitars, and beagle Kobe.
I don’t think we care about this right now.