Michael Buffer is American sports and entertainment royalty and the in-ring boxing announcer’s signature “Let’s Get Ready to Rumble” catchphrase has earned him in excess of $400 million with the license for that trademark.
The phrase which was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame in 2019 has transcended into other venues including wrestling, football, hockey, basketball and race car driving.
In fact, it also transcended into hip hop. 20 years ago, Buffer announced Jay-Z before his sold-out concert at Madison Square Garden. The moment which was actually filmed during Jay-Z’s Black Album era and later used in the Brooklyn, New York native’s Fade To Black documentary film included a Mitchell & Ness themed Roc A Fella Records jersey being raised into the MSG rafters while Buffer intro’d the hip hop emcee.
Jay-Z Called Michael Buffer Prior To The Show
Prior to the event, Buffer tells Scoop B Radio that Jay-Z called him to go over the whole script and he was actually starstruck. “What was exciting for me was two weeks before we did it just talking on the phone with Jay Z,” recalled Buffer.
“I’m saying to my wife: ‘This is Jay Z on the phone.’”
Buffer insists that Jay-Z couldn’t have been more accommodating and he says the two worked together to maximize the opportunity.
”It was great,” he said.
“I had written out a whole script and he loved it.”
Buffer did say that while chatting with Jay-Z on the phone, Hov was a stickler on only one topic.
“I had written out a thing and he loved everything and we added one little thing,” recounts Buffer.
“He wanted me to put it in there, ‘from the Marcy Projects.”
Marcy Projects is the public housing that Jay-Z grew up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, New York that the rapper is from.
Everything else stayed the same in Buffer’s set while introducing Jay-Z.
“He liked the way I set it up,” said Buffer.
Buffer also admitted that the way he was supposed to introduce Jay-Z during that concert in Madison Square Garden was accidentally altered due to a minor malfunction.
“They put the spotlight on me 5 minutes before they were supposed to,” he said.
“So I just stood there and let it play out but it was great.”
Buffer also says Beyonce’ presence at the concert made it a treat. “Nobody knew Beyonce was gonna be there,” he recounted to Scoop B Radio.
“It was a surprise. Just everything that happened that night; it was one of my favorite nights of working.”
Michael Buffer Recounts The Lox & Dipset Verzuz Battle At Madison Square Garden Theater
In addition to discussing Jay-Z’s concert, Buffer also recounted announcing another hip hop venue: the Verzuz battle between The Lox and Dipset. at the Madison Square Garden Theater.
Harlem vs. Yonkers, the Verzuz event was a clash of rap titans. While The Lox ultimately won, the matchup dually displayed The Lox’s wide-ranging catalogue of the 90s and 2000s, while also showcasing Jadakiss and his lyrical genius.
While Buffer was not as versed on The Lox and Dipset as he was Jay-Z, he said that he did stay at the concert for a little while and soaked in the vibe. “Once I found a secure place I stuck around,” he said.
“There were a lot of other things going on, I couldn’t really get into it.”
It’s likely that those things included the concert starting late and the excess of people who were part of neither rap group congregating on the stage during the concert. “About 8 million people got in that had no business being there,” said Buffer.
“We were on the ring apron with the ropes down. You can just fall down, it took a while to get down that one set of stairs because the crowd and the security had a big breakdown there.”
When asked what was memorable about the event, Buffer was candid. “I’m gonna really draw a blank on that,” he said.
“Because you know when you’re working and you know there is a security problem and you’re working and making sure, so I was probably concentrating on how the hell I’m gonna get out of there safely so it got kinda scary.”
Michael Buffer Wants To Announce Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans
Buffer has had his share of hip hop functions over the last 20 years, but he has one venus wish he’d like to be a part of in 2025. “Super Bowl, haven’t done the Super Bowl,” he said.
“I’ve done the playoffs but too many geniuses are in charge of running the Super Bowl.”
When asked who he’d like to see go to the Super Bowl, Buffer jokingly asked: “The Chiefs vs who?”
Michael Buffer discussed business, venues and culture while chatting with Scoop B Radio. Make sure to watch Buffer’ full interview on Scoop B Radio by clicking here.
