The death of Kobe Bryant left a lasting impact on the hearts of many people across the world. However, many people had the privilege to know the Lakers legend on a personal level. Rap superstar Jay-Z is among the few who share a close friendship with Bryant. Aside from their mainstream success in their respective fields, they were both fathers to girls. As a result, the Brooklyn-born artist recalls the last heartbreaking conversation he had with Bryant.
Jay-Z revealed the details of the conversation as a part of his Shawn “JAY-Z” Carter Lecture Series at Columbia University. The heart-to-heart talk came at his house on New Year’s in 2020. Jay-Z made clear he will never forget the last conversation he had with the five-time NBA champion. He said,
“He was last in my house on New Year’s and he was just in the greatest space that I’ve seen him in. One of the last things he said to me was, ‘You gotta see Gianna play basketball.’ And that was one of the most hurtful things because he was so proud. ‘Oh, she’s going to be the best female basketball player in the world.’ He was just so proud of what he said.””
At the time, Bryant was approaching his fourth year since retiring from basketball. Despite the difficult transition to life away from competitive basketball, he found his new purpose through his daughter, Gianna’s, basketball journey. He wore his pride in her skills on his sleeves according to Jay-Z.
Not only did Bryant believe Gianna would be a great basketball player, but he was confident she would become the greatest female player ever. While On Jimmy Kimmel’s show in 2018, he revealed how Gianna was so determined to make it to the WNBA that she’d scoff at fans wanting Kobe to have a boy, saying, “Oi, I got this.”
Less than a month after Jay’s NYE conversation, Kobe and Gianna unfortunately passed away in a helicopter accident. The nature of the conversation and the actions that soon took place, make the last memory Jay-Z has with Kobe significantly more painful.
The news of Bryant’s passing left quite the impression on Jay-Z and his wife Beyonce. It took some time before they were able to come to terms with the situation.
Jay-Z needed time to grieve Bryant’s passing
Many know Kobe the basketball player, but Jay-Z knew Kobe Bryant the person. He noted that Kobe was an amazing person and just a great human being in general. Therefore, the award-winning artist took the news to heart once he heard of the Hall-of-Famer’s death.
Jay-Z and Beyonce developed a great relationship with Kobe and his wife Vanessa Bryant. He found it difficult to open up further regarding his emotions but said, “That’s really a tough one and my wife and I took that, are taking that, really tough.”
Jay-Z along with others continue to mourn the loss of Kobe but aspire to carry out his legacy in different ways. A course of action, the NBA legend would’ve wanted everyone to do.