“My mother knew that was the only thing that could keep me glued down to the seat rather than running amuck around the house,” Lockett said with a laugh, noting he even had the famous Michael Jackson hat.
He’s always been passionate about music and the industry, and he turned last year’s season-ending injury into an opportunity to pursue one of his dreams. Lockett founded Inception Entertainment and will release a mixtape, “The Campaign,” in August or September. His music video, “Let’s Go,” hit the Internet on Wednesday.
Lockett and his friends used to record music for fun during his junior and senior years of high school, but he didn’t have the time to take it seriously because he was always playing sports. Lockett tore his pectoral muscle last year during the first two-a-days session of training camp, and after surgery, he spent some of his downtime at a friend’s recording studio in Providence.
The “Let’s Go” video, which was shot during a weekend in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, marked the first big milestone on his way toward releasing, “The Campaign.” Lockett wants the music to come across as positive and motivational — “a gentleman’s mixtape,” he called it — that doesn’t disrespect people or exploit women.
So far, Lockett has gotten some very favorable responses from his Patriots teammates, friends, family members and total strangers through Twitter, Facebook, emails and texts.
“It’s a beautiful thing to see a product that I put my heart, soul, sweat and tears into, and to see it come out like this and to see everybody like it, and love it and be so accepting to it,” Lockett said. “It’s a great feeling. I can’t explain it.”
Lockett has fully recovered from his injury and has been working out with some teammates. He said they have already started joking with him about his video and knows he’ll hear more of it when the season starts. Hey, if they’ll rag on Tom Brady for an Earth Day ad, everyone is fair game at Gillette Stadium.
“I am prepared. I know everybody wants to joke around, and we’re all big boys,” Lockett said. “I am definitely ready for whatever these guys are going to say in the locker room. It will be funny, and I’m sure I’ll have some good laughs.”
Lockett remained a presence in the locker room last season while he was rehabbing, and he spoke with Bill Belichick and the coaching staff about his music venture. Lockett hinted the coaches might not have been fully on board with his decision to pursue music on the side, but he knew they definitely understood his passion for it. Lockett also stressed that music will “never conflict” with football.
“It was almost like I can take a negative [with the injury] and just wait for the upcoming year and do it all over again,” Lockett said. “Or I can turn a negative into a positive.”
Lockett said he’ll have some more updates in the near future, and he’s got some surprises up his sleeve for “The Campaign” that he wasn’t ready to reveal just yet. One thing that was evident, though, was Lockett’s pride for his musical endeavor, which has been a lifetime in the making.
“The thing is with music, it motivates everyone around the world. It’s the hidden language. It gives me an opportunity to motivate myself,” Lockett said. “The things I talk about are what motivate me in life, and what in turn I believe will motivate some other people. It’s a passion.”
You can see the video for “Let’s Go” below.
Screenshot from YouTube
