Jay-Z Remembers His Final Conversation With Kobe Bryant, Says NBA Legend Looked Up to Him

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Jay-Z says it’s still tough to try and cope with the death of Kobe Bryant.

Earlier this week (Feb. 4), Hov spoke with Columbia’s Ira A. Lipman Professor of Journalism Jelani Cobb during the Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter Lecture Series at Columbia University in New York City. During their discussion, Jay-Z opened up about how he felt about Kobe’s tragic passing.

“So Kobe was a guy that looked up to me,” Jay-Z said. “We’ve hung out multiple times, and he was last at my house on New Year’s [Eve] and he was just in the greatest space that I’ve seen him in. And 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, and the look on his face… I looked at him and said ‘Oh, she’s going to be one of the best female basketball players in the world.’ So that’s really a tough one and my wife and I took that, and are taking that, really tough.”

The Black Mamba passed away after the helicopter he was flying in crashed in Calabasas on Jan. 26. His 13-year-old daughter, Gianna Bryant, was riding with him on the helicopter at the time of the crash.

Elsewhere in the lecture, the Roc Nation founder cleared the air about his intention after he and his wife Beyonce were filmed sitting down during the National Anthem at the 2020 Super Bowl. Hov said he was simply distracted by work and was not holding a silent protest. He also apologized if it looked that way.

Watch Jay-Z speak on Kobe Bryant’s passing below.

— XXL MAG