State Champ Radio Serena Williams
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Tennis greats Serena and Venus Williams are embarking on a new venture – a video podcast, which will be hosted on X, formerly Twitter. In a statement announcing the news, the podcast is described as being for “visionaries, creators and rulebreakers passionate about shattering the status quo” and to give the public “a front-row seat into their playful banter and undeniable bond.” The as-yet-unnamed show will be hosted by both sisters, and will premiere in August. Other audio platforms are expected to also air the show after its debut.“We’re so excited to be launching our new podcast, a place where we will share our personal stories, have authentic conversations, spotlight important topics, and laugh a lot,” the Williams sisters said in their joint statement. “This platform gives us the chance to engage directly with our fans who have supported us throughout our careers, and we’re excited to connect with audiences, old and new, in a way we’ve never done before.”
The sisters are among the legendary elite of tennis, with Serena Williams having won 23 Grand Slam titles, the most in the open era of the sport. Venus has won seven Grand Slam titles, which include five victories at Wimbeldon. The sisters have also been dominant playing together, winning three Olympic gold medals and 14 Grand Slam titles. Venus and Serena Williams are among the most popular sports personalities on the X platform – Venus has 1.2 million followers, while her younger sister Serena has 10.6 million.
“Venus and Serena are among the most recognizable and revered athletes in the world, and their decision to team up with X places them at the center of our rapidly evolving original content strategy,” said the Head of Original Content at X, Mitchell Smith. According to metrics provided by the company, 92% of all social mentions of the Williams sisters take place on X, and Serena Williams is mentioned more than 5,000 times on the platform daily. The podcast will be produced by X in collaboration with Serena’s production company, Nine Two Six. It adds to the sports-themed programming that has been aired on the social media platform. The WNBA and X had a partnership to stream games through the platform last season, having an estimated reach of 5 million viewers.
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Serena Williams has been away from the game of tennis for just three years, but she’s now making new moves in the world of sports. The WNBA’s latest team, the Toronto Tempo, shared in a press release that Serena Williams has joined an ownership group for the organization.
On Monday (March 3), the WNBA’s website Team News section shared the official press release of the Toronto Tempo.
From the press release:
I am thrilled to announce my ownership role in the first Canadian WNBA team, the Toronto Tempo,” said Serena Williams. ‘This moment is not just about basketball; it is about showcasing the true value and potential of female athletes – I have always said that women’s sports are an incredible investment opportunity. I am excited to partner with Larry and all of Canada in creating this new WNBA franchise and legacy.
Williams joins an ownership group along with Larry Tanenbaum, Chairman of Kilmer Sports Ventures. The press release also noted that Williams made her professional debut in Canada and her inclusion the ownership group was met with glowing marks from Tempo team president, Teresa Resch.
“Serena is a champion,” Resch shared. “She’s the greatest athlete of all time, and her impact on this team and this country is going to be incredible.”
Resch added, She’s set the bar for women in sport, business and the world – and her commitment to using that success to create opportunities for other women is inspiring – we’re thrilled to be marking the lead-up to International Women’s Day with this announcement.”
Williams will also have some input into jersey designs and will also help the club’s visibility in other ways during her tenure in the ownership group.
Tanenbaum echoed Resch’s statement and made mention of Williams’ image and influence and how it lines up with the mission of the Tempo.
“Serena Williams is an icon, a role model and a force for change in the world” Tanenbaum said. “She’s earned every bit of her incredible success with hard work, tenacity and determination in the face of countless challenges. She exemplifies the very best of what the Tempo stand for – we couldn’t be more honoured to have Serena in our court.”
The league still needs to approve Williams as an owner. The Toronto Tempo will have its first tip-off in 2025 at the Coca-Cola Coliseum
Learn more here.
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Serena Williams finally addressed all the chatter surrounding her appearance at the Super Bowl Halftime show during Kendrick Lamar’s performance, and people were definitely talking. Kendrick and Drake’s rap beef is well-known, and Serena’s been linked to Drake as “the one that got away.” So, having Serena show up during Kendrick’s set?
You already know that got the rumors flying. Some thought Serena was low-key throwing shade at Drake, making the whole situation sweeter for Kendrick.
The LA native wasn’t here for any of that. She hopped on social media to shut it down, saying, “Gosh I’m so late to the game (I’ve been sick) & busy investing in billion-dollar companies and running @WYNbeauty … def not dancing to be petty lol.” She made it clear that her presence wasn’t about stirring the pot. Serena was just enjoying the show while focusing on her own business moves and life.
With that, Serena ended all the speculation. No petty drama, just a queen doing her thing. She reminded us that she’s focused on winning in life, whether it’s on the court, in business, or just vibing at the Super Bowl. Serena’s clapback was a reminder that she’s too busy winning to get caught up in petty drama. She’s on a whole different level—focused on building her empire, whether it’s on the court, in business, or with WYN Beauty.
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Drake, he of bullet-ridden hoodies and manufactured smoke, is currently on tour in Australia and New Zealand but is still taking notice of all the chatter around his name. In the wake of Kendrick Lamar‘s Super Bowl LIX appearance and Serena Williams showing up to C-walk, Drake took what appears to be a cheap shot at his ex via an alleged Instagram burner account.
The streets are still abuzz with discussion focused on Kendrick Lamar performing his scathing Grammy Award-winning diss track “Not Like Us” amid all the legal moves made by the Compton native’s Canadian rival. Further, K.Dot invited his fellow Compton native Serena Williams onstage to dance which some felt added extra insult.
As some know, Drake and Serena Williams dated a decade ago and he allegedly reached into his images folder and shared a photo of himself and Williams’ former agent, Jill Smoller. The message is unclear, much like many of the moves the OVO honcho has made after explosively underestimating his opponent and losing perhaps the largest battle of his career. No matter Drizzy’s aim or reason for the photo, some online are seeing through the antics and are wondering why he hasn’t moved on from the stack of Ls he’s taken so far.
We’re sharing the burner account post below for the sheer purposes of visibility and clarity. Keep scrolling to see reactions from fans on X to the perceived jab.
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One of the biggest moments of Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl LIX Halftime performance on Sunday night (Feb. 9) was when he called on his fellow Compton, Calif., native Serena Williams to crip walk onstage during “Not Like Us.”
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While many fans online loved the surprise cameo, Stephen A. Smith weighed in with his own take, taking aim at Williams’ husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. “If I’m your husband, I’m thinking, ‘Why are you up there trolling him, trolling your ex?’” the sports analyst began during his First Take podcast on Feb. 10. “If I’m married, and my wife is going to troll her ex, go back to his a–. Because clearly you don’t belong with me. What you worried about him for, and you with me? Bye!”
For context, Drake and Williams reportedly dated in 2015, and the rapper revealed that he wrote his 2016 hit “Too Good” about the athlete. The tennis champion’s appearance during the performance was widely speculated to be a dig at Drake — the famous subject of Lamar’s “Not Like Us” diss track. In 2022, Drake fired shots at Ohanian, rapping on “Middle of the Ocean”: “Sidebar, Serena, your husband a groupie/ He claim we don’t got a problem but no, boo, it’s like you comin’ for sushi/ We might pop up on ’em at will like Suzuki.”
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Co-host Ryan Clark then chimed in, adding, “If you with Serena Williams, you’re going to be a kept man anyway — don’t start that, you ain’t gonna run the house.”
Shannon Sharpe also added in defense of Ohanian, “I think he is doing pretty well. He founded Reddit and then he sold Reddit for a big chunk of change. I think he OK.”
Ohanian ended up responding to Smith’s thoughts on X. The entrepreneur, who was in attendance at the Super Bowl in New Orleans, replied to a tweet from the New York Post about Smith’s comments. “I got you @stephenasmith,” he wrote, linking to the inspiration behind Williams’ crip walk, which was the backlash she received for the dance at Wimbleton more than a decade ago and how the decision is “bigger than the music.”
“I know I should know better, but I continue to be surprised by full the spectrum of genius and stupidity in humanity,” Ohanian concluded.
See his responses below.
I know I should know better, but I continue to be surprised by full the spectrum of genius and stupidity in humanity.— Alexis Ohanian 🗽 (@alexisohanian) February 11, 2025
Kendrick Lamar called on his fellow Compton, Calif., native Serena Williams for an instantly viral moment during his Super Bowl LIX Halftime performance on Sunday night (Feb. 9), in which the tennis champion was seen crip walking and staring at the camera during the scathing “Not Like Us.”
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One of the many fans of the onstage moment was Serena’s sister, Venus Williams, who took to her Instagram Stories on Monday morning (Feb. 10) for some sibling love. “Lil sis killing it,” she wrote over a repost of Serena’s Instagram Reel of the moment. See Venus’ Story here.
While other guests during Lamar’s performance included Samuel L. Jackson and SZA, Serena’s appearance stood out as a moment fans online speculated was a dig at Drake — the famous subject of the “Not Like Us” diss track. Drake and Serena reportedly dated in 2015, and the rapper revealed that he wrote his 2016 hit “Too Good” about the athlete.
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In 2022, Drake fired shots at Williams’ husband and co-founder of Reddit, Alexis Ohanian, rapping on “Middle of the Ocean”: “Sidebar, Serena, your husband a groupie/ He claim we don’t got a problem but no, boo, it’s like you comin’ for sushi/ We might pop up on ’em at will like Suzuki.”
Ohanian was in attendance at the Super Bowl in New Orleans, watching his wife take the stage live. “Pretty fantastic halftime show,” he wrote of the event. He also reposted a tweet calling Serena’s cameo the “highlight of the Super Bowl.”
Williams fittingly referred to the Lamar-Drake feud at last year’s ESPY Awards during her hosting monologue. “If I’ve learned anything this year, it’s that none of us, not a single one of us, not even me, should ever pick a fight with Kendrick Lamar,” she noted.
Watch Lamar’s full Halftime Show performance here.
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Serena Williams threw a comical jab at NFL kicker Harrison Butker during the 2024 ESPYS, delighting social media users.
The 2024 ESPY Awards were held live on Thursday (July 11), and Harrison Butker of the Kansas City Chiefs was the subject of one of the biggest laughs of the evening thanks to the host Serena Williams. Standing onstage with her sister, Venus Williams, and Abbott Elementary star Quinta Brunson delivered a raucous monologue all about how fans can enjoy women’s sports. “So, go ahead and enjoy women’s sports like you would any other sports, because they are sports,” Venus Williams said. “Except you, Harrison Butker. We don’t need you,” Serena stated. “At all. Like, ever,” Brunson replied.
https://x.com/awfulannouncing/status/1811585393973956933
The crowd – which included the Chiefs kicker and his coach, Andy Reid – burst into laughter. It was another crack delivered towards Butker in response to his controversial commencement speech given to graduating students at Benedictine College this past May. In his remarks, he criticized those “pushing dangerous gender ideologies onto the youth of America.” He touched on his opposition to the LGBTQIA communities, decrying transgender athletes in sports. The conservative Christian also congratulated the women graduates, but also said:“ I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world.” The comments drew major rebuke of Butker from many in the public, despite quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Coach Reid defending him.
Serena’s stinging barb caught the attention of some who were derisive of the 23-time Grand Slam winner, with a few stating that women’s sports didn’t matter that much anyway. Many more, however, were highly supportive of her joke especially on social media.
We’ve gathered a selection of the best responses to Serena Williams’ slam of Harrison Butker below.
1. Gerren Petersen
2. Jubal A Early
4. Mona Eltahawy
5. Pammy Dee
6. Rachel Wilkins
7. Skylar Jordan
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. Calling all Serena Williams fans! Get ready to relive her most significant Grand Slam moments with a behind-the-scenes look of her […]
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Serena Williams shared a funny anecdote about trying to deposit a very large check at a drive-thru during her career.
Tennis great Serena Williams was beloved and respected for her drive, but in a recent interview, she shared a story about how her focus led her to have a mishap at a bank’s drive-thru window.
Williams was the guest on a recent episode of the highly popular Hot Ones series from First We Feast. During the interview, as Williams got to dig in on some spicy wings, at the 11-minute mark host Sean Evans asked: “Is it true that you rarely collected your winnings your first year on tour and then once tried unsuccessfully to cash your first million-dollar check in a drive-thru ATM?”
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“Yeah, those are all true,” the 23-time Grand Slam champion confirmed. “I never played for money, I played ’cause I loved the sport. I wanted to be the best. I wanted to win.” She continued, saying: “So my tax guy, he would be like, ‘You didn’t get your money?’ and I’d be like, ‘Oh, I didn’t get that one in Zurich,’ ‘Oh, I forgot that one in Moscow,’…I was just playing to win, and if I didn’t win, I wasn’t thinking. I was just so angry, that I wanted to find a way to get better and win the next time.”
It turned out that her focus led her to collect a very substantial amount of earnings. “I got my check and it was a million dollars,” Williams said. “Like, okay, I’m gonna go deposit it. I’d never really spent a lot of money. I was so serious. I don’t know what happened to me, I used to be serious. So I just went through the drive-thru … and the guy was like, ‘Uh, I think you need to come inside for this.’” Evans and Williams laughed as she said, “lessons to learn.”
The story was one of a few notable anecdotes that Williams shared, including a look at the stylish outfits she wore during her career including a denim suit she said was inspired by one that another tennis champion, Andre Agassi, wore on the court. Her Hot Ones appearance comes as her ESPN+ documentary series, In The Arena: Serena Williams makes its debut on Wednesday (July 10).
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Serena Williams praised Caitlin Clark’s approach to dealing with the pressures of being in the WNBA, including the press attention.
As Caitlin Clark’s rookie season in the WNBA has progressed this summer, she’s gotten a heaping amount of scrutiny from the press and has been the subject of social media squabbles. Tennis great Serena Williams can sympathize, and she expressed that sentiment while at the Tribeca Film Festival last Thursday (June 13). Williams, who was present for the premiere of the ESPN+ documentary series, In The Arena: Serena Williams, praised Clark for her poise so far and referenced her own experiences.
“I just love that she tries to stay grounded. She said that she doesn’t look at her social [media],” Williams said. “I get it. I don’t look at it either. It’s so important to continue to do what she’s doing. No matter what other people do, if people are negative, it’s because they can’t do what you do, basically. Hopefully, she’ll continue to do what she’s doing.” Clark has been the subject of heavy conversation during her rookie season with the Indiana Fever, especially as news broke that she wasn’t named to the senior women’s national basketball team.
“I was bullied. Things that I had to go through, people would be canceled for saying now,” Williams continued, referring to the intense media attention she and her sister Venus Williams received as they began their careers as adolescents. “My position in growing up, as a teenager, I kind of had to be guarded to kind of stay sane. Just [getting] so much press and doing everything I was doing and traveling the globe every year. It was every week. It was a grind.”
The 23-time Grand Slam champion has previously talked about her interest in WNBA ownership. Serena Williams is already part of the ownership group of Angel City FC of the NWSL. “I absolutely would be (interested). With the right market, I would definitely be super interested in that,” Williams said in an interview with CNN. As for Caitlin Clark, she has recently been more adamant about those using her name to demean other WNBA players. “People should not be using my name to push those agendas. It’s disappointing. It’s not acceptable,” she said Thursday to the press. “Treating every single woman in this league with the same amount of respect, I think, it’s just a basic human thing that everybody should do.”
