Watch Dennis Rodman Cradle Eddie Vedder During Chicago Show
Eddie Vedder received a literal lift from Dennis Rodman Monday when the former NBA star joined Pearl Jam onstage at Chicago’s Wrigley Field and cradled the frontman in his arms.
Rodman walked out wearing his old Chicago Bulls jersey as Pearl Jam tore through their 1999 B-side, “Black, Red, Yellow,” written about the basketball player. While the six-foot-seven Rodman towered above Vedder, the singer jumped on a monitor to properly embrace the basketball player — and then swung his legs up into Rodman’s arms and splayed out for a second before landing back on his feet and finishing the song.
An Evanston, Illinois native, Vedder has long been a devoted Chicago Bulls fan, while Rodman remains a dedicated Pearl Jam fan. Prior to his induction into the National Basketball Hall of Fame, Rodman told reporters, “Every time I was at the gym or in the locker room, any time I did anything, I put on Pearl Jam and listened to Eddie Vedder. It wasn’t so much the band, but Eddie, speaking straight through his heart.”
The basketball star has been popping up at the band’s gigs over the years as well, and amazingly Monday’s show wasn’t even the first time Rodman had hoisted Vedder into the air: During a 1998 gig in Dallas, Rodman stormed the stage and gave the frontman a piggyback ride during “Alive.”