Watch Beyoncé Pay Tribute to Kobe Bryant at His Los Angeles Memorial Service
Today, tens of thousands of fans in Los Angeles are gathered to celebrate the life of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna with a memorial service at the Staples Center. Reportedly, 20,000 people are there, selected from the 80,000 fans who entered a lottery to attend today's services. This morning, Beyoncé opened the event by performing her songs “XO” and “Halo,” backed by a choir and orchestra.
Shortly after she started to sing, Beyoncé paused to address the crowd. “I’m here because I love Kobe, and this was one of his favorite songs,” she said, before inviting the audience to sing along with “XO.”
Beyoncé and Bryant had a friendship extending back over two decades. Bryant had a short cameo in the 1999 music video for the Destiny’s Child song “Bug a Boo,” and the two appeared together in public often in subsequent years.
Beyoncé's performance this morning is one of many recent moving musical tributes to the late basketball star. On the day of Bryant’s death, Boyz II Men performed a last-minute rendition of their 1991 hit “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday” with Alicia Keys at the Grammys. That performance came together in mere hours, after the news broke of Bryant’s passing.
Kobe Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash on January 26, along with his daughter Gianna and seven others. He is survived by his wife, Vanessa, and his three other daughters, Natalia, Bianka, and Capri. It was announced today that Vanessa Bryant is suing the helicopter company responsible for Bryant’s crash, Island Express Helicopters, for negligence on the day of the flight.
Originally Appeared on GQ
