Texas Rangers’ Embrace of Creed Has Band’s Streams on Rise

The Texas Rangers have discovered their rhythm, accompanied by their own unique soundtrack. The enthusiastic tunes of the band Creed have been fueling their success this postseason, and their recent listening habits are starting to catch on with fans.

The Rangers, who recently secured their spot in the American League Championship Series for the first time since 2011, have made the band Creed an integral part of their most successful season in years. The team has been playing Creed’s 1999 hit song “Higher” (which happens to be one of their favorites) during games at Globe Life Field, and Creed themselves have shown their approval of the Rangers’ success by catapulting their old catalog back into relevance.

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In the Houston and Dallas/Fort Worth area, album consumption of Creed’s music has increased by 16% over the past four weeks (Sept. 8-Oct. 5), according to Luminate, an insights company that tracks music and entertainment data. While there hasn’t been a significant nationwide streaming boost, locally, the song “Higher” has seen a 7% increase in on-demand streams.

Rangers pitcher Andrew Heaney reveals that the team started incorporating Creed’s music into their routines and fans have been echoing the lyrics during the second half of the season. This more relaxed approach has helped the team enter the postseason with newfound momentum.

“When things are going well, you tend to stick with what works,” says Adam Harrison, artist manager at Full Stop Management, who represents various artists including Big Boi. “People are superstitious. If a song brings success, you’re going to stick with it. Sports and music are closely tied to each other.”

Two years ago, Atlanta-based rapper and producer Big Boi’s song “All Night” became the unofficial theme song for the Tampa Bay Lightning’s championship run. Not only did Big Boi experience a boost in streams at the time, but he was also invited to headline a pregame party at Amalie Arena this week.

“It benefits the artist when a sports team adopts their music as an anthem,” Harrison explains. “We feel the love when we come to that city and when we align ourselves with a certain team. There are opportunities to build upon those moments.”

The Rangers are just the latest example of how the power of moments in sports can revive mediocre or once-popular songs and ignite passion for them. The New York Mets, another MLB team, experienced this firsthand with Timmy Trumpet’s “Narco” song, which their closer Edwin Diaz uses as his entrance music. Thanks to social media, “Narco” became a viral hit and saw a surge in streams last summer.

It remains to be seen how long the Rangers can continue their upward climb, as they are about to face the defending champions, the Houston Astros, who are making their seventh consecutive appearance in the ALCS. However, with a strong pitching rotation and star players like Marcus Semien, the Rangers are hopeful to reach their first World Series since 2011.

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