Today marks the last time Kobe Bryant will step onto the court, and after 20 seasons with the Lakers and five championship rings, he’s solidified his place as one of the greatest to ever ball.
What’s remarkable is Bryant’s impact on not only sport, but also pop culture. There have been countless rap songs referencing the longstanding Lakers favourite over the years, and it’s much bigger than a Los Angeles thing. Lil Wayne, Jay Z, Beanie Siegel and Juicy J have all referenced Bryant to highlight their own successes, while fellow West Coaster Kendrick Lamar also paid tribute to the star earlier this week. Chief Keef had a song called ‘Kobe‘ on his polarising debut Finally Rich. And who could forget one of Drake’s most controversial quotables about Bryant on one of his strongest verses – the famed Rick Ross & French Montana collaboration, ‘Stay Schemin‘?
However, Bryant also had a rap career of his own. He could reportedly memorise an entire Jay Z album in one day, and tried his hand at rapping at the turn of the century – collaborating with everybody from Tyra Banks to 50 Cent. While his rap career never reached the heights of other ballers turned rappers like Shaquille O’Neal – who went platinum and spat alongside Method Man, Big Pun and Phife Dawg – he did remix Destiny’s Child!
Check out his verse on the ‘Say My Name’ remix here, putting some bars onto the R&B classic – and farewell Bryant in fashion:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qJuriOxe4U
