Alex Crum may be working his way up the pro pickleball ranks, but he goes by another name when he’s off the court and in the studio making music. 

Crum adopted the moniker “AC Baby” for that venture.

“I’ve done music for a long time, pretty much ever since I can remember,” he said. “Music was always a hobby to me. I performed at my friends’ weddings, pep rallies, and things of that nature, so it’s always been something I’ve done for fun.”

Luckily, his pickleball game has taken off, so Crum can use his platform to simultaneously showcase his tournament exploits and his tunes. 

“I have more of a platform, which is how the industry is now,” mentioned Crum. “If your music can be horrible, but you have 100,000 followers, you’re going to get more listens than someone who’s talented, but doesn’t have the followers.”

Crum is also a talented freestyle rapper who can casually drop a rhyme courtside.

How did he get so good?

“I was 12 years old when I started freestyling, and it was one of those things that I just practiced a ton. I’d do it every weekend,” explained Crum. “I’m a bit more out of practice now, but it’s one of those things that if you do it for a while, the words start circulating in your head and it becomes easier.” 

Crum definitely appreciates having music in his life alongisde pickleball.

“I think the creative and the physical go hand in hand. If you’re too hyper focused on the physical, you can get lost in the sauce a little bit, so it’s great to have a second outlet where I can use my brain a little bit more,” said Crum. “It would probably be better if I used my brain more on the court, but I think it’s the yin and the yang, right? You’ve got to explore different areas.”

Over the summer, he merged his two passions when he released a pickleball hype song called “Anna Bright” in honor of one of the sport's most dominant athletes.

“When I was thinking about doing a pickleball hype song, of course I thought about calling it “Ben Johns” or “Anna Leigh Waters,” but it didn’t feel like the right fit. I talked to my agent, who knows Anna Bright very well, and we reached out to her and got her approval, which was the most important thing to me. If I’m making any type of song where I’m using someone’s name in the title, I want the person to be on board with it,” insisted Crum. “With the other pickleball songs, it was pretty low-hanging fruit as far as the others that are out there, so I knew if it was even moderately decent, it would be well received.” 

So what has Crum been listening to recently? 

“I’ve actually been listening to music on an old Sony Walkman. I’m back into physical media. I like to have it in my hand,” he revealed. “I’ve actually been listening to The  Chronic by Dr. Dre.”

Crum is also working on his second studio album, so there’s more music to come.

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