The Reason Beyonce Didn’t Want Anyone to Take Photos of Her at Kobe Bryant’s Memorial
On Feb 24. celebrities and fans of Kobe Bryant came together to celebrate the basketball star’s life and legacy, as well as his daughter Gianna Bryant after the two lost their lives in a helicopter accident last month.
A number of celebrities participated in the tribute to Kobe, giving speeches and performing. One of the most notable was Beyonce. But before she performed, she requested that no one take photos of her.
What happened to Kobe Bryant?
On Jan 26, Bryant was traveling to the Mamba Academy with his daughter and seven others when their helicopter crashed, killing everyone on board. News of the crash spread almost immediately and the world went into mourning at the loss of the basketball giant.
Vanessa Bryant’s speech
Among the many speeches made during Bryant’s memorial, his wife Vanessa Bryant’s was the most powerful. She spoke first about what an amazing daughter and person Gianna was before moving on to speak about her husband and his legacy.
“I want my daughters to know and remember the amazing person, husband, and father he was,” she said. “The kind of man that wanted to teach future generations to be better and keep them from making his own mistakes. He always liked working and doing projects to improve kids’ lives. He taught us all valuable lessons about life and sports through his NBA career, his books, his show, “Detail,” and his “Punies” podcast series.”
“They were so easy to love,” she said of Kobe and Giana. “Everybody naturally gravitated towards them. They were funny, happy, silly, and they loved life. They were so full of joy and adventure. God knew they couldn’t be on this Earth without each other. He had to bring them home to have them together. Babe, you take care of our Gigi. I got Nati, BiBi, and KoKo, and we’re still the best team. We love and miss you, Boo-Boo and Gigi. May you both rest in peace and have fun in heaven until we meet again one day. We love you both and miss you forever and always, Mommy.”
Why Beyonce didn’t want to be pictured
Beyonce and JAY-Z were close, personal friends of Kobe and Vanessa’s. Throughout the ceremony, Beyonce was even seen comforting Vanessa.
Beyonce performed renditions of “Halo” and “XO” for the crowd at the memorial but asked that no pictures be taken of her so that the focus would remain on Kobe and Gianna.
“Beyonce asked that no pictures of her were taken at Kobe’s memorial,” a source told HollywoodLife. “She didn’t want to take the attention away from Vanessa and the family. She only performed because she loved Kobe and wanted to do something special for Vanessa.”
Other moving speeches
Other celebrities spoke at the event, including Kobe’s former teammate Shaquille O’ Neal and late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel.
“I’ve been trying to come up with something positive to take away from this, and it was hard because there isn’t much,” Kimmel said during his speech. “But the best thing I was able to come up with is this: Gratitude,” Kimmel said. “It seems to me that all we can do is to be grateful for the time we had with them and for the time we have left with each other.”
