NASCAR looking to expand into the hip-hop lifestyle (cont'd)

During the recent race weekend in Chicago, rapper and Chi-Town native Twista rolled to the club in a Red Bull painted NASCAR street ride to promote his new album Adrenaline Rush Oh-Seven which touts a NASCAR tie-in.

Top: Kelly Rowland sings at Indy. Bottom: Ludacris and Dale Jr.

"The car was crazy because it was an actual NASCAR [car] and it had no doors. I didn't know if I was going to be able to get in and out of that little window," said Twista on his latest fan blog. "They had a driver who drove the car down Ashland a block to Bassment [Records] and he did a few donuts in front ..."

Team Red Bull driver Brian Vickers, who has made appearances on MTV's TRL, tried to do his thang with Bow Wow and throw up a paint scheme to promote the rapper's music, however, nothing panned out but the two are said to be buds and Bow Wow has since been to a few NASCAR races.

Over the years, the sport's crossover into the urban demographic has been hit and miss, but today one could say it's "On and Poppin'."

But in order to land hip-hop fans in the stands, NASCAR will have to do more than put Earnhardt Jr. in a Chevy commercial with T.I. or a video with Jay-Z.

The sport is on the right track though, actively seeking reputable talent to appear at races. Sources say Rihanna could be the next hip-hop standout to make an appearance in the pits.

Known for keeping his finger on the sport's pop culture pulse, NASCAR's Andrew Giangola said it helps that drivers are transcending the sport to become celebrities in their own right. They are increasingly recognizable outside of their racecars, he added.

"Drivers don't have to be in fire suits spraying Coca-Cola in Victory Lane to be recognized by Joe Six-pack [who in 2007 probably needs to be renamed Jenny iPod]," he said. "For younger drivers, there's certainly an opportunity to cross-over into brands that have hip-hop and other youthful connections."

Those brands -- Sprint, adidas, Sony, DirecTV, etc. -- are a key element helping to fuel NASCAR's mainstream appeal and in turn, those brands cash in on the sport's brand-loyal fan base.

"The fan base continues to grow, and increasingly includes youth, people of color, and women," Giangola said. "If Sprint can sell millions of phones in NASCAR, naturally a brand like adidas will want to market shoes and apparel to the most brand-loyal fans in sports."

Like P. Diddy said, "It's all about the Benjamin's baby."