That inexplicably shirtless gentleman above is TJ Hamilton, a former OU football walk-on and current country music singer. The reason he looks so forlorn is probably that he's facing lawsuits from three different people claiming he ripped them off to the tune of nearly a million bucks.
Here's Tulsa's News on 6:
A former OU football player is accused of scamming people out of nearly a million dollars.He's facing three lawsuits that claim he lied to investors about athletic apparel, then blew the money on his music career and lavish lifestyle.
Two Tulsa lawsuits and a third in Oklahoma City say TJ Hamilton used his football status to dupe people into investing in a bogus invention.
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According to the lawsuits, Hamilton had an idea for nutritional products and innovative sports apparel, like antibacterial chin straps.
Hamilton was on the OU roster at the same time as star players Sam Bradford and Ryan Broyles. The lawsuits say Hamilton sold his ideas, by claiming he had the endorsement of his big-name teammates.
Once he had $840,000 from investors, the lawsuits say Hamilton and his parents spent the money on lavish trips to Las Vegas, airline tickets, hotels, clothing, meals, shoes and electronics.
Anti-bacterial chinstraps? Can't believe that one didn't pay off immediately.
The great thing about this story is not that TJ is a former OU football player who never sniffed the field. That's just a sub-plot. What makes this story really awesome is that he's also an aspiring country music star. We found this amazing video for the track "I Hate That Song" on YouTube. Everything about it screams artistic masterpiece void of any clichés.
Thoughts...
- Sure, he allegedly stole a bunch of money from people, but I gotta give this guy credit for being really good at naming songs. "I Hate That Song" is exactly what I was thinking the whole time! He may be a mind-reader. If he doesn't end up in jail, he should become a psychic.
- The video is basically a 3-minute Brett Favre Wranglers commercial, only with hot girls. I really get the sense that this guy stole all that money just so that he could pay a bunch of women to gang tackle him on camera. Which, quite frankly, is not the worst way to spend stolen money. Respect.
- As Patrick said to me, it would be hard to come up with a better parody version of a country song. It's got everything. Girl problems, boozing, depression, and singing in an empty high school football stadium. If only he could have somehow managed to include his dog running away.
- The wildly exaggerated emoting and histrionics throughout the video is comic gold. I guess football players aren't typically known for their subtlety.
- This guy has people like Dari Nowkah and Ryan Broyles (and many other OU football players) pimping out his terrible music. I always knew I shoulda been an athlete.Big day for my guy @TjHamiltonMusic -- new album is OUT! Incredible talent, and he reps #Oklahoma well! https://t.co/fDGTXEI9xl Get it!— Dari Nowkhah (@ESPNDari) July 9, 2013Check my guy out @TjHamiltonMusic he's doin big things! Go support! She's Like Summer - EP by Tj Hamiltonhttps://t.co/7Kl59M0TPU— Ryan Broyles (@RyanBroyles) July 9, 2013
- He is also a legal expert.Aaron Hernandez is innocent.— TJ Hamilton (@TjHamiltonMusic) June 26, 2013
- If this screenshot is to be believed, his new album was actually #86 on the iTunes country charts this week, one spot ahead of The Avett Brothers, probably my favorite band going right now. Part of me just died.
The good news for TJ Hamilton is that many of the greatest country music songs have been written by people going through adversity. He should have plenty of opportunity for inspiration in the near future.
