Rapper Busta Rhymes, hip-hop duo Clipse, rapper and singer Tobe Nwigwe and basketball player-turned-rapper LiAngelo Ball — who raps under the stage name GELO — are set to perform at the 2025 ESPY Awards. The show will be held Wednesday (July 16) at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
Nwigwe, joined by David Michael Wyatt, is set to perform the In Memoriam tribute. The spot is expected to include such notables as soccer player Diogo Jota, boxer-turned-pitchman George Foreman and baseball great Bob Uecker. Comedian, actor and podcaster Shane Gillis is set to host the show.
Clipse, which consists of brothers Pusha T and Malice, released their fourth studio album, Let God Sort Em Out, on Friday. It’s the duo’s first studio album in nearly 16 years.
GELO released his debut single “Tweaker” on Jan. 3. The song debuted and peaked at No. 29 on the Billboard Hot 100 later that month. A remix featuring Lil Wayne was released on Feb. 7. “Tweaker” will be featured on GELO’s debut album, League of My Own, which is due July 18 on Def Jam.
Ball played college basketball at UCLA in 2017 and then went pro for the Los Angeles Ballers, Queensboro Swarm and Astros de Jalisco in Mexico. His older brother, Lonzo, is a point guard for the Chicago Bulls, while his younger brother, LaMelo, is a point guard for the Charlotte Hornets.
Busta Rhymes, Clipse and Nwigwe are all past Grammy nominees.
ABC has aired the ESPYs every year since 2015 (except for the pandemic year of 2020, when the show aired on ESPN).
Serena Williams hosted last year’s ESPYs. Ciara was the opening music act.
The 2025 ESPYs will be broadcast on Wednesday (July 16) and air live on ABC at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT. The show will also stream on ESPN+ in pattern with ABC airings across time zones. The ESPYS will also be available to stream on-demand the next day on Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+.
