Eminem and Calvin Johnson of the Lions are on one of three alternate covers for a Super Bowl preview issue of ESPN The Magazine that goes on sale Friday.
The publication's second annual music issue has a gallery of seven athlete-musician pairs -- cast as "a too-good-to-be-true super Bowl halftime show."
Three of the duos get cover treatments, including what the text calls "a match made in Motor City heaven." (The partial image above is from the magazine's Facebook page.)
The others cover pairings are Nicki Minaj and Kobe Bryant of the Lakers, and Kendrick Lamar and Chris Paul of the LA Clippers.
Em, 41, and the Lions' 28-year-old wide receiver -- nicknamed Megatron -- were photographed at St. Andrew's Hall downtown by Matthias Clamer, a New York City celebrity portraitist. The setting is a touchstone for the rapper, who performed downstairs at the Shelter club early in his career.
The magazine posts images from the shoot that show the two men chilling during setup, looking at images on a monitor, sitting atop speakers and mock-performing with mics.
-- Alan Stamm
