“Kobe Bryant” by Lil Wayne

There was a time when it was safe to say that Kobe Bryant was the most-successful player in the NBA. For instance, he led the Los Angeles Lakers to two consecutive NBA Championship victories in 2009 and 2010, i.e. the era in which this song was dropped. And for the record according to the Black Mamba himself, it was his performance in the 2009 Western Conference Finals, shortly before winning the first of those two championships, which inspired Lil Wayne to write this song. And as the title implies, it is very much dedicated to bigging up Kobe Bryant.

Narrative of “Kobe Bryant”

It begins with a snippet of Bryant himself speaking about his legendary hard-work ethic. 

Then comes a statement about him from prominent sports’ commentator Stephen A. Smith. Amidst his showering of praise onto Kobe he states that Bryant is “the most-complete basketball player”. Then he goes on to proclaims, as Bryant implied earlier, that “what separates Kobe from the pack” is the fact that “this guy is highly-motivated”.

First Verse

Then comes Lil Wayne’s first verse. And it serves the dual purpose of not only celebrating Kobe but also the rapper himself.  In other words, this is like a braggadocio rap, but instead of only bragging about himself Weezy is also touting Bryant’s basketball skills and drive. For instance, the 2009 Championship was actually Kobe’s fourth, but as Tunechi points out the Black Mamba went after the trophy “like it was his first”. Moreover Wayne states that he likes to wear apparel associated with the athlete, such as “Kobe Bryant Nikes” with “purple-gold strings”. These are the colors of the Los Angeles Lakers, the only professional team Bryant ever played for.

Interlude by Lebron James

The interlude features Lebron James, whom around that time would have been the only player in the NBA who you could logically debate was better than Kobe. And Lebron himself calls Kobe “amazing”.

Second Verse

In the second verse, Lil Wayne gets more factual, alluding to the time when Kobe amazingly scored 81 points in a game against the Raptors. But for the most part in this passage Weezy is taking on the role of the Black Mamba himself. That is to say he is imagining himself on the court during a tight game, facing double and even triple teams which ultimately prove ineffective against his talents. And verily there were high-pressure moments during Kobe Bryant’s career where he appeared unstoppable. This idea is buttressed by yet another Lebron James interlude, when in this case he refers to Kobe as “the best scorer in our league”.

Third Verse

In the third verse, Wayne is once again taking on the role of Bryant. Though this time around he is touting his work ethic. For example, not only does he practice when his competitors are asleep, but even when he himself is sleeping it’s like he’s dreaming about basketball. That’s another way of saying that he is always on the grind, putting in work to become better at his craft.  Indeed those who are truly familiar with the legend of Kobe Bryant know that there was a point in his career, after a really-serious injury, when he probably should have retired. But still he still kept for a couple more seasons.

Interlude by Elie Seckbach and Mickaël Piétrus

The third interlude features a conversation between a sports’ commentator named Elie Seckbach and a former NBA player named Mickaël Piétrus. In fact at the time Piétrus was a member of the Orlando Magic, the team that faced Kobe and the Lakers in the 2009 NBA Finals. And when Seckbach asks him “who’s the best player in the NBA”, Mickaël response is “Kobe Bryant”.

4th Verse

In the fourth verse Lil Wayne, once again taking on the role of the Black Mamba, recollects when Kobe won an Olympic gold medal as part of Team USA in 2008. In this verse he also namedrops other NBA players – such as Lamar “Odom”, Robert “Horry”, Pau “Gasol”, Trevor “Ariza”, Derek “D-Fish” Fisher and Shaquille “Shaq” O’Neal – who played alongside Bryant throughout the years. And basically what all the metaphors and references used throughout are intended to point is Kobe indeed being the best player in the game.

Conclusion

So despite its lengthiness, the idea this song is based on is very easy-to-follow. Lil Wayne, a basketball fan himself, was in love with Kobe Bryant as a player. In fact he fantasizes about being just as potent and successful on the court as the Black Mamba. And all things considered, he thinks Kobe is the best in the game. Moreover to support that belief, he enlists the words of people who are highly-respected in the professional sports’ world who also believe the exact same thing.

Facts about “Kobe Bryant”

“Kobe Bryant” was written exclusively by Lil Wayne, and it was produced by an artist known as Infamous.

This song was released as a standalone single on 11 December 2009.

Kobe Bryant (1978-2020) won NBA Finals MVP in both 2009 and 2010.

Lil Wayne’s Tribute to Kobe Bryant

Lil Wayne recognized the untimely passing of Kobe Bryant on 26 January 2020 by posting a pic on Instagram. In the pic he and Kobe are giving each other dap, and the caption reads “824”. And FYI, during Kobe’s tenure with the Lakers, he wore both numbers 8 and 24.