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Sophie Cunningham appears to be playing to her new fanbase
Due to her comments about transgender athletes in an ESPN profile earlier this summer, Sophie Cunningham has a whole new group of fans that likely share similar political and cultural leanings. Her recent post on TikTok appears to be pandering to those people.
On Monday, August 24, Sophie Cunningham posted a TikTok with the caption “What rap songs do you listen to before games?” alongside a video of her dancing in a hotel room to Brooks & Dunn’s “Boot Scootin’ Boogie.”
People are claiming that Sophie Cunningham does not listen to rap music before games despite her saying she did just last year
Given that Cunningham is one of the main characters in the sports world right now (football season can’t come back soon enough), her post went viral as many on social media took it as an explicit statement that she does not listen to rap music before games.
Sophie Cunningham makes it known she doesn’t listen to rap songs before games pic.twitter.com/ziqa8b01mt
— FearBuck (@FearedBuck) August 24, 2026
Cunningham’s new fans who are giddy over her comments about transgender athletes were quick to seize on the narrative.
“MAGA Patriot Sophie Cunningham said throw that rap s— in the TRASH we playing COUNTRY 😤🇺🇸,” wrote a content creator at Old Row.
“Sophie Cunningham just dropped more nightmare fuel for the Left. She prefers patriotic country music over rap. The Left might never recover from this,” another viral post read.
“Y’all saw the video. They asked Sophie Cunningham what rap she bumps before games… and she hit ’em with pure country energy instead. No apologies. No filter. Just a real one from the Indiana Fever living her truth. That’s not ‘problematic.’ That’s Patriette energy. While half the league tries to force the same playlist, Sophie’s out here choosing the music that actually feels like America. Country hits different when you’re grinding in the WNBA and still keeping it authentic. Respect. The rest of the league can keep pretending everyone has the same taste. We’ll keep rooting for the ones who don’t,” a third boasted.
Despite the celebrations, Cunningham’s comments conflict with reality, as she said just last year that she listens to rappers such as Lil Wayne, Drake, and Future.
“I just do what I feel that day, and so it could be anything from country. Morgan Wallen, Kodi Johnson, Riley Green, all the way to Lil Wayne, Drake, Future — like it’s anything in between. So I’m kind of a squirrel brain, so I don’t know,” she told ClutchPoints.
Old videos from her time with the Indiana Fever also show her enjoying rap music in her pregame and/or practice gear.
— rwnba real women nba (@Sophaller8C) August 2, 2026
Hmmm these videos are from the past year before Sophie Cunningham started getting all this attention from MAGA, anyone know what kind of music this is?
Must be a recent phenomenon. https://t.co/54D5ZOp9ki pic.twitter.com/aYcWlbnfhb
— Matt Royer (@royermattw) August 25, 2026
Cunningham knew exactly what she was doing when she made her headline-grabbing comments about transgender athletes in youth sports, so she likely knows exactly what she’s doing with this latest TikTok video, too.