In 1999, Jeanne Gokcen — a self-proclaimed basketball know-nothing — filled out her first bracket armed with nothing but a USA Today NCAA Tournament special edition and beginner's luck. She won. Then she won again. And again. Three years in a row.
What started as a dare from me became a 27-year family tradition. Every year since, Jeanne has rallied friends, family, kids, and even pets into the Gokcen Bracketball Pool. She writes the emails, runs the show, picks a theme song each year, and rewrites the lyrics to match the Bracketball energy.
This year, Jeanne penned "The Ballad of Bracketball Jeanne" — her own origin story. Despite her objections, my dear friend Claude and I turned her lyrics into 17 songs across 17 wildly different music genres. You'll be randomly assigned 10 of the 17 — each player gets a different set! Your job? Listen and guess the genre. But first, enjoy the Ballad...
— Sedat
THE BALLAD OF BRACKETBALL JEANNE
(To the tune of "The Ballad of Jed Clampett," theme from The Beverly Hillbillies, with apologies to Paul Henning)
Let me tell you all a story 'bout a gal named Jeanne
Whose husband was a basketball and bracketball fiend
Every March he'd go plumb crazy, glued up to the screen
Jeanne just rolled her eyes and thought, "This ain't my scene"
Annoyed, she was. Real annoyed.
Then one day Sedat said "Give it a try"
Jeanne cried "I don't know basketball from a french fry!"
He said "No one really knows, it's anybody's guess"
She filled out every bracket and hoped for the best
Didn't know a team. Not a clue.
Well, the next thing you know, Jeanne went and won that year
That was unbelievable to people far and near
From that point on Jeanne was hooked like a geek
Also won the next two but there ended her streak
Three and done. But what a run!
Their own Gokcen Bracketball began in '99
Thanks to Sedat's hard work each year — he sure is mighty fine!
The greatest joy is sharing it with friends and family
Come join us for the Madness, so we can Dance merrily
Come on in. Fill your bracket. Let's Dance!
Now listen to the Ballad to unlock the game:
Listen to the full song to unlock the game
JUKEBOX - Name That Genre!
Listen to each song and guess the music genre. One guess per song — choose wisely!
