New York Giants star Darren Waller reveals new career move outside the NFL and shows off impressive skills
NEW York Giants star Darren Waller has launched his music career inspired by his great-grandfather.
The 31-year-old NFL tight end also gave fans a taste of his upcoming album in a “Thursday Night Football” segment about his musical talents.
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Waller’s great-grandfather Fats is a legendary jazz pianist and a Grammy Hall of Famer.
The composer was the first black man to compose a non-black musical on Broadway when he wrote the music for Early to Bed in the 1940s.
And Waller said his relative’s legacy inspired him to try music.
“I played the piano as a toddler,” he told Amazon Prime Video Taylor Rooks before the Giants’ 30-12 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
“When I was very young I was in a band and played percussion instruments, xylophone and so on.
“I learned about my great-grandfather’s history in jazz class and it kind of inspired me to just say, ‘You know what, let me just try it. Let me see what’s in the music for me.’
“And it just went from there.”
Waller said his new album is different from the music he’s made in the past because of all the different new chapters in his life he’s just begun.
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Earlier this year, the former Georgia Tech star married WNBA star Kelsey Plum before leaving the Las Vegas Raiders in a trade to the Giants after five years with the team.
The NFL tight end also revealed that he is considering “The Ripple Effect” as the title of his new album.
“I want the ripple effect – the energy of the music I make, everything I do – to be something that inspires other people and influences other people in a way that pushes them to reach a higher level,” Waller said.
“It makes them want to take their livelihood to a new level.”