Detroit — When Marvin Bagley III isn’t on the court perfecting his game, he’s in the studio writing and recording music — his favorite form of expression.
It’s not a hobby. It’s a part of who he is.
Bagley, also known as MB3FIVE, began writing rhymes when he was five years old. As a child, he would rap to himself in the mirror, and when he wanted an audience, he would perform in front of his family.
Some people write in a diary to release their thoughts, or use social media as an outlet, but that’s never been the avenue for Bagley.
“When I come from practice and handle my business on the court, I go and make my music. I get everything I need to get out,” Bagley recently told The Detroit News. “I would say that’s my Twitter. I don’t go on Twitter and tweet and do all of that. I just put what I’m feeling into words and make songs out of them and put them out so people can hear it.”
Bagley has recorded three studio albums and two EPs since 2019. He has collaborated with several notable artists, including Lil Durk, Fabolous and Mozzy. His ‘On the Way,’ album featured a song with Dame D.O.L.L.A., also known as Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard. The two engaged in a popular rap battle in 2019.
Bagley revealed to The News that his forthcoming album, entitled “Comfortable Alone,” is expected to drop in July.
Similar to basketball, the mic has always provided Bagley with a safe space, especially when he’s unable to be on the court.
Bagley’s first full season with the Pistons has been hindered by the injury bug. He suffered a right knee sprain during the preseason that caused him to miss the first 13 games of the regular season. There was the awkward tangle-up with Blazers guard Keon Johnson that resulted in a metacarpal fracture in his right hand, which kept him sidelined for nearly two months. His latest setback is a right ankle sprain that’s kept him out of the Pistons’ last three games.
Before his latest injury, Bagley returned to the court on Feb. 25 after missing 20 games and exploded for 21 points and a career-high 18 rebounds (including a career-best 11 offensive boards) off the bench against the Toronto Raptors. He had an encore performance the next game with 21 points and 12 rebounds against the Charlotte Hornets on Feb. 27, marking the first time that he reached the 20-point, 10-rebound mark in consecutive games. Bagley’s impressive stretch continued with 20 points and 10 rebounds against the Cleveland Cavaliers on March 4, which marked his best rebounding performance of any four-game stretch (52) in his career.
Bagley describes his bad injury luck as “freak incidents” that he couldn’t control. But when he was out, he remained optimistic about his return by watching film, being around the team and staying mentally present.
The best way he could do that was to put pen to pad. The content matter of Bagley’s music consists of his observations from the world around him, which includes his own experiences and of those around him. You won’t hear him complain about the injuries, specifically, but more so how he feels as a result of them.
“I don’t really talk about the injuries much, I just talk about how I feel that day or whatever it is,” Bagley said. “I just jot it down. Whatever direction the beat takes me is what I usually talk about. I definitely got better at it over the years, but it’s something that I do outside of basketball that I consider myself good at, and I take pride in that. Like I said, that’s my story. That’s me. When people hear my music and see what I’m going through, I take pride in that.”
Bagley sometimes wears a diamond encrusted chain with his “3FIVE” pendant to games, most notably, when the Pistons were in France for the 2023 NBA Paris Game in January. His nickname is an ode to his initials and his jersey No. 35, which he started wearing as a freshman at Corona del Sol High School (Arizona).
“People started calling me (3FIVE) everytime they’d see me,” Bagley said. “They don’t even call me by my name sometimes. They’d be like, ‘What’s up, 3-Five?” and that’s kind of how that stuck. I just rolled with it ever since.”
A few of Bagley’s teammates have supported his music since his arrival in Detroit, including rookie Jaden Ivey, Isaiah Livers and Isaiah Stewart.
Stewart is a fan of Bagley’s latest single, “Need Nobody,’ which features a couple of notable artists in Bleu and DaniLeigh. The song is more melodic than previous releases, which Stewart appreciates.
“I think he’s really talented,” Stewart told The News. “The first time I ever heard his music was at a Nike Skills Academy and (record producer) 9th Wonder played his music in front of the whole skills academy. He was like, ‘You know who this is?’ I’m thinking it’s a big artist and he said it was MB. I heard it when I was about 18 years old and I’m like, ‘Damn, dude can rap.’”
The common adage, “Athletes want to be rappers and rappers want to be athletes,” rings true, especially throughout the NBA. There are several players, past and present, that have showcased their rap skills in their spare time. Hall of Fame center Shaquille O’Neal released five albums in the 90s. Lillard has four albums under his belt. Even Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball has managed to record two albums during his brief time in the league.
Oftentimes, NBA players are criticized for picking up a mic by fans, who believe they should be focused only on basketball. Bagley’s discusses the concept on his unreleased track entitled, “March 24th Freestyle,” which was released in 2022.
“They worry about me hoopin’ and rappin’, it’s hard to manage; But it ain’t hard if you staying focused, I’m doing damage.”
“That song is like an example of putting everything that I’m feeling into words and just letting the people hear it,” Bagley said. “Just giving them a look at my life. Everything I talk about in my songs are things that I see daily, whether I’m going through them or my friends are going through them. Whether it’s people I know, people in the world that I’m in contact with. Whatever it is, I just observe and put all of those feelings into songs.”
The Pistons (16-55) were officially eliminated from playoff contention last Thursday after their loss to the Charlotte Hornets, so their offseason will officially begin on April 9 after their road finale against the Chicago Bulls. The offseason is a time for Bagley to rehabilitate his body and work to improve his game, but he also has more time to dedicate to finishing his new album, Comfortable Alone.
“What that means for me is just being comfortable and staying in your journey and embracing your path,” Bagley said.” A lot of times, we can get caught up in what other guys are doing. Even myself, I found myself looking at this guy over here and what they’re doing over there. That takes a toll on you. That takes the fun out of the game and just life in general.
“Me, coming into my own self and being able to be comfortable alone. Even if nobody else rocking with me, even if nobody else see the vision like I see it, I’m comfortable in it and I’m just gonna keep living out my dream and living out my journey and following my path. That’s kind of the concept of the album. It don’t matter what nobody say. It don’t matter if anybody rock with me or not. I know what I’m trying to do on this earth and that’s really all that matters. As long as me and God on the same page, I don’t got nothing else to worry about.”
mcurtis@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @MikeACurtis2