Shaquille O’Neal Explains How He Maintains All of His Many ‘Superstar’ Friendships (Exclusive)

Celebrities, kids, fans, random people in the toy store — they’ve all got a friend in Shaquille O’Neal.

As O’Neal, 52, gears up for his annual Shaq’s Fun House party during Super Bowl weekend, the retired basketball star — who performs under the name DJ Diesel — tells PEOPLE how he maintains his friendships, particularly his many celebrity friendships.

“The Diesel knows everybody,” says O’Neal, who will perform at his Super Bowl party with by DJ Irie, John Summit and Ludacris, a longtime friend of O’Neal’s, on Friday, Feb. 7 in New Orleans, not far from where O’Neal broke out as a college basketball star at LSU.

The former Laker credits “respect and just being nice” for his extensive social network. “It’s all about honor and respect, so every person I come in contact with, superstar or not, I just try to show as much respect as possible,” says O’Neal.

“I’ve been friends with Ludacris for over 30 years,” he shares of the rap icon. “Ludacris used to come by my house every time he was in LA unannounced, just to get some of my chef’s cake,” O’Neal tells PEOPLE.

“And John Summit is a good friend of mine and said he’d love to be involved.”

O’Neal is longtime friends with this year’s halftime performer, Kendrick Lamar, too. “I know Kendrick personally, so I know he’s going to put on a fabulous show.”

O’Neal says he first met Lamar when they “shot a commercial for soap” that was “really funny.”

“I’m not going to tell you what happened in the commercial, but it was an accident and it was so good that we just kept it,” he says of the spot, which actually was not promoting soap, but a 2016 commercial for American Express. It was shot in a soap store, however, so O’Neal wasn’t far off.

And although Lamar’s selection as the halftime performer has been somewhat controversial amid his ongoing feud with Drake — and fans of Lil Wayne arguing that he should perform at the game as it takes place in his hometown — O’Neal trusts that the right choice was made.

“Whoever the halftime performer is, it’s somebody that’s well respected and well liked,” he remarks.

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But before the “Not Like Us” rapper lights up the stage at Caesar’s Superdome on Sunday, Feb. 9, O’Neal is excited to kick things off in New Orleans with Shaq’s Fun House.

“Man, I was happy when the Super Bowl was headed to the Big Easy. My party — no doubt, no doubt in my mind — will be the No. 1 party,” he says of the all-inclusive event. “Leave your wallet at home!”

“And because I’m the man and I love New Orleans, no matter what kind of tickets you get, all tickets include a six-hour open bar. We want you to drink responsible and have fun.”

Tickets go on sale starting Jan. 17 and start at $199.

O’Neal’s Shaq-A-Licious XL Gummies, which he likes to eat just before taking the stage, will be a partner at the event. Additional partners include Carnival Cruise Line, Pepsi, BeatBox Beverages, Anheuser- Busch and Verizon.