“Kobe Bryant was the basketball version of me, I am the rap version of him!”: When Kanye West talked about how the Mamba’s death impacted him

Kanye West shared how close he was with Kobe Bryant, talks about the impact the Lakers’ legend had on him and his career

Kobe Bryant was drafted into the NBA in 1996. Even though he was drafted in ’96, Kobe didn’t come into his own till 1999/2000. After a quiet first two seasons, Kobe started showing us what he can do, and what his ceiling could be.

The story is somewhat similar for Kanye West. Kanye dropped out of college in 1997, and started working on his musical career. He got his first big break in 2000, where he produced a show for Roc-A-Fella. West is often credited for revitalizing Jay-Z’s career with his contributions to Jay-Z’s album The Blueprint.

The two boys from humble beginnings, making their mark on the world in the new Millenia. Kobe and Kanye became friends along the way, and according to the rapper, were pretty close.

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Kanye had immense respect for Bean and talked about the outlook Kobe gave him about life.

“The way that Kobe would say that we all have to come together and win this championship is the way I look at life now. To an infinite, other level. This is a game-changer for me.”

Kanye often passed the helicopter crash site on his way to work from home. Reflecting on that, Ye said he doesn’t get sad anymore, but got motivated.

“There’s no way for me not to be as determined as Kobe every time I drive down that street,” Ye said. “It’s game time. There’s no move that we can’t make, or that we’ll wait to make.”

Kanye West shares the impact Kobe Bryant had on him

Kobe Bryant’s untimely demise in 2020 shook us all. It was hard on all the basketball fans across the world. However, it was especially painful for Kanye West. West was in his Wyoming ranch when the crash happened. Three days after the incident, when reporters got to Kanye, he said he’s not doing good, and explained, “Kobe was one of my best friends.”

Talking to GQ, Kanye said,

“He was the basketball version of me, and I was the rap version of him, and that’s facts! We got the commercials that prove it. No one else can say this. We came up at the same time, together. And now it’s like, yeah, I might have had a reputation for screaming about things—but I’m not taking any mess for an answer now. We’re about to build a paradigm shift for humanity. We ain’t playing with ’em. We bringing home the trophies.”

Kobe and Kanye have shot commercials together for Nike.

Kanye paid a tribute to Kobe on his 2021 album DONDA, with a track named 24.

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Despite Kobe’s passing, his Mamba Mentality stays with Kanye. We should all take the same lesson, and keep the Mamba within us alive, at all times.