Sean Paul doesn’t actually say 'Sean de Paul' in his songs, it's a tribute to cricket legend

Sean Paul isn't as narcissistic as his songs always made him sound, and he's actually been paying tribute to a legendary West Indian cricket player.

Throughout his music career, Paul has seemed like the godfather to the likes of Jason Derulo and Pitbull, who often shout their own names during their songs.

Paul has often sounded like he's said 'Sean Paul' during his music, often at the beginning of songs as if to pump himself up before the rest of the lyrics.

It's fair to say that not too many people had been thinking about the Jamaican artist too much in recent years, in this country anyway, with 2012 album Tomahawk Technique the most recent of his to make it into the top 50.

That didn't stop Twitter user @Santokie89 mentioning the singer five years ago, saying in a post that he couldn't help but think that every time the artist sang 'Sean de Paul,' it was actually West Indian cricketer Shivnarine Chanderpaul.

And half a decade later, it seems that the fan theory wasn't just in his head, but actually exactly what Paul was doing during his songs.

The singer himself revealed the truth in a breakdown of his song 'Get Busy,' explaining to Vice that he was saying the name of Guyana born former batsman Chanderpaul.

At the very end of the interview, right as the credits start to roll, he's asked how he went from Sean Paul to Sean de Paul - only to reveal that that's not what he's been saying at all.

"There was a famous cricketer in Trinidad, Shivnarine Chanderpaul," he explained.

"Everybody was like 'Chanderpaul' and yo, that name stuck. And then I just started to say it at shows and met the dude Chanderpaul years later, and he's like 'Yo!'

"But yeah, big up to Shivnarine Chanderpaul."

Yep, consider our minds blown too!

One fan explained the feelings of many, saying, "I've been living a lie for 20 years."

Another backed up what the initial tweeter had said, adding, "I used to make this joke at Uni, but it was facts all this time!"

"My ex, cricket obsessed and from the west Indies, used to swear Sean Paul was saying Chanderpaul. I can't believe he was right. I feel sick!" added a third.

"Might be the biggest revelation of 2022," a third opined, giving us a nomination for the award late on in the year.

Chanderpaul is one of the most iconic and brilliant batters of his generation, playing for the West Indies from 1994 to 2015, playing in 164 Tests.

He was famous for his crab-like stance and ability to bat for long periods of time whilst making runs, scoring nearly 12,000 of them in his Test career, including 30 centuries.

He captained the side as well and is the second highest scorer in his sides history in the longest format of the sport, behind only Brian Lara.

His son Tagenarine Chanderpaul has now played two Tests for West Indies too.

Featured Image Credit: Francis Specker / Alamy Stock Photo / Sean Paul

Topics: Cricket

Ryan Sidle

Ryan is a journalist for SPORTbible with over eight years of experience. Passionate about all sports, he mainly covers football and F1 - Daniel Ricciardo once spent an entire interview referring to him as 'Ryan Gosling,' still his proudest moment.

@Sidler28