Sports and music have always gone hand in hand. With so many musicians being athletes in their younger years and many athletes harboring dreams in the field of music themselves, it’s not uncommon to see athletes and musicians as good friends.
One of the strongest sports/music bonds is between basketball and hip-hop. Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, and Lil Wayne are regulars at basketball games, and many rappers consistently shout out their favorite ballplayers in their songs.
Well, bdon.org has compiled a list of all the times NBA players have been referenced in a rap song, and Kobe checks in with an impressive 162-lifetime mentions. These lines cover a wide range of topics including Kobe’s slam-dunking prowess:
Tryin to scrape me for the style that slam harder than Kobe Bryant (The Alkaholiks-Hip Hop Drunkies)
His 81 point game:
Off the couch and go raise your son / Kobe just broke another record, today’s game he hit 81 (Chamillionaire-Evening News)
His penchant for raising his game in the fourth quarter:
Kobe in the 4th, that’s when the game begins / Game begins, games begin (Common-Next Time)
His recent Achilles injury:
I feel like Kobe doin’ work, I might just tear my Achilles (Freddie Gibbs-Freddie Soprano)
Of course, no list would be complete without the Kobe Bryant of rap mentioning his favorite ballplayer:
It’s my time to shine, so I’m checking my Rollie / A bet with the Lakers, I bought a necklace off Kobe (2Chainz-Money Machine)
This just shows Kobe’s immense popularity and the respect people have for him. The only player mentioned more than Kobe is Michael Jordan with 447-lifetime mentions. Kobe may be able to pass MJ in scoring, but surpassing MJ on this list won’t be happening anytime soon.
