Arcade Fire's Win Butler led Team Canada, coached by Drake, to victory at the NBA Celebrity All-Star Game this past Friday night at Toronto's Ricoh Coliseum. After scoring 15 points and 14 rebounds, Butler was named MVP.
Following the game, the artist also known as DJ Windows 98 accepted the award with a center-court interview with ESPN during which he spoke about living in Canada, and started to talk about the ways Americans can take a cue from their neighbors in the north during the 2016 presidential election.
The musician, who also participated in 2015's all-star celebrity game, said: "I've lived in the great city of Montreal for 15 years. I represented Montreal. If you guys want to fast track my Canadian citizenship, hopefully, this'll help my permanent residence," The Guardian reports.
He added: "I just want to say that I'm retiring as a celebrity right now, so I will not be eligible for the celebrity game next year. I'm retiring as a celebrity, so I brought this home for Canada. Respect to Drake, respect to Team Canada."
When he started to talk about universal healthcare, ESPN's Sage Steele cut him off, saying, "So we're talking about celebrities and not politics. Congratulations on your MVP!"
The MVP's brother and Arcade Fire bandmate Will Butler tweeted about his brother's speech being interrupted, stating that "when Team Canada beats Team USA they should be able to taunt the losers about universal health care."
I feel like when Team Canada beats Team USA they should be able to taunt the losers about universal health care
— Will Butler (@butlerwills) February 13, 2016
According to Rolling Stone, a reporter asked DJ Windows 98 in a post-game press conference to explain to viewers who might be unfamiliar with Arcade Fire what exactly he does that makes him a celebrity, to which the singer joked, "Mostly basketball. I do a little bit of music on the side."
Later in the press conference, Butler asked the reporters, "Have you guys ever heard of my band before? We're a pretty good band," Rolling Stone reports.
