Kendrick Lamar Pays Tribute to Kobe Bryant Infront of LeBron James, James Harden, and More at “Pop Out” Concert

Los Angeles was one spirit in a single concert by Kendrick Lamar on Wednesday. NBA stars showed up at the Pop Out and Show concert where the Drake beef took on a whole new turn. But it wasn’t the scene-stealer. Kendrick made it an unforgettable night for Angelites and his entire vibe from the opening song itself. With LA’s representative NBA players like LeBron James, James Harden, and Russell Westbrook, in the house the rap star gave LA the ultimate nod with a shout-out to Kobe Bryant.

“This s**t making me emotional,” he told the crowd at Kia Forum, “We been f**ked up since Nipsey [Hussle] died. We been f**ked up since Kobe [Bryant] died.” And it just made Angelites emotionally charged more than Russ joining Kendrick on stage.

Kendrick Lamar opened the concert with the viral Drake diss track, “Euphoria” that had an additional new verse. A month ago, NBA’s online denizens dissected the song to uncover a Kobe Bryant Easter egg when the song dropped at exactly 8:24 PM, both of Black Mamba’s jersey numbers. The LA-born rapper idolized Bryant for most of his life. It spoke volumes when Bryant himself said in 2017 that Kendrick Lamar as a rapper resonates with himself the most.

“It’s the same hunger – you step out there on the court, we’re taking heads off,” Bryant said shortly after his retirement. It was a prelude to the “Euphoria” music video where Lamar used a Bryant deep fake imposed on his face at the line, “Euphoria is glorified and made this.”

This is only the surface of Lamar’s Juneteenth festivities that were livestreamed on Amazon Music. The Drake diss aside, it was all about celebrating Los Angeles and its icons.

NBA stars pick a side?

Not necessarily. But with LA’s own rap icon leading the charge, the NBA stars couldn’t skip out. LeBron, Harden, Westbrook, DeMar DeRozan, and Coby White were among the celebrity attendees of the concert though they didn’t show if they’re picking Lamar over Drake. Bron remained mostly in his section but Westbrook and DeRozan joined Lamar on stage for “Not Like Us.”

Deebo is an LA native too and it’s not that surprising if he’s spending his offseason at the hottest night of his hometown away from Chicago. But the rumor mill is rife that the Lakers are making a move for the Bulls star in his upcoming free agency. So fans speculate his presence among some star Lakers could mean he’s having some discussions with Lakers execs. It’s said it’s been DeRozan’s dream franchise since he’s idolized Kobe.

Kendrick might be the linchpin that reshapes Kobe’s team to once again tie with that other team with the most championship titles. When that happens, we won’t be thanking Drake.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud, Caitlin Clark’s Olympic snub, and more, watch this video.