Rapper G-Eazy recently sat down with Carmelo Anthony for the recent episode of the 7 PM in Brooklyn podcast. The 34-year-old talked about his love for music, his heroes from sports and music, and lastly, an important piece of advice he received from the late, great Kobe Bryant. G-Eazy explained that Kobe was like Batman to him; a superhero who looked like a regular person but did extraordinary things.
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The popular rapper recounted an elaborate story of meeting the Mamba at the Staples after watching a Lakers game sitting courtside. This was after Kobe’s infamous Achilles injury. G-Eazy said that his meeting with Kobe (courtesy of G. Robertson) was so inspiring that he felt like he could move mountains after that.
The 34-year-old rapper told Carmelo Anthony, “When he [Kobe] tore that Achilles, a part of me felt so crushed because I knew, my favorite player of all time, my hero, my Batman, would probably never be the same again after this.”
Nevertheless, after Kobe’s comeback, the Oakland rapper met Kobe postgame at the Staples Center.
G-Eazy was already a star at the time with multiple hit songs and albums on his resume. However, being acknowledged by Kobe after a Lakers game was the greatest thing that ever happened to him.
After the game, a security person came and whispered something to G. Robertson, who had brought the rapper to the game. G-Eazy knew that his dreams were about to come true at that moment, but didn’t want to get ahead of himself.
Eventually he came face to face with Kobe. The rapper said, “Finally Kobe walks out and he daps me and he goes,’Yo young Elvis.’ He was like, ‘Yo man, I love what you’re doing. Chase the Beatles, like, never stop.”
Kobe just told me to shake up the world and aim for the beatles pic.twitter.com/cyRSHUiCdS
— G-Eazy (@G_Eazy) December 11, 2013
As someone who grew up idolizing Kobe, getting to know him on a personal level was a surreal experience for G-Eazy. To his credit, the Mamba knew how to win people over, especially those who looked at him like a god.
The 34-year-old also revealed that Kobe sent him a signed jersey for his birthday with the message, “To G-Eazy, do the phenomenal. Kobe.” He said that the jersey has a special spot in his studio, and he still feels motivated by Kobe’s message.
How the Achilles injury impacted Kobe Bryant’s career
Achilles injuries are looked at as potentially career ending injuries. But the Mamba was built different. Following his injury on April 12th, 2013, he shared a long, heartfelt post on Facebook.
Kobe wrote, “One day, the beginning of a new career journey will commence. Today is NOT that day. “If you see me in a fight with a bear, pray for the bear”. Ive always loved that quote. Thats “mamba mentality” we don’t quit, we don’t cower, we don’t run. We endure and conquer.”
As a result of that resilience, he came back to wear the purple and gold again. Before the injury, Kobe played 78 games in a season, averaging 27.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, six, assists, and 1.4 steals per game, while shooting 46.3% from the field and 32.4% from the three-point line. When he came back, Kobe only played six games in the entire 2014 season, and we also saw significant drops in every aspect of his game.
His stats did go up the following year with 22.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.6 assists, and 1.3 steals per game. But he only played 35 games that season. The next year, 2016, was the last time Kobe stepped foot on a basketball court. But he did give his fans the greatest retirement game of all time.
