Few basketball players have left behind a legacy as enormous as Kobe Bryant’s. Regarded as one of the greatest Lakers — and arguably one of the greatest basketball players ever — to touch the court, his influence outgrew the game itself.
After all, his career gave us five NBA championships, the Mamba Mentality entering the cultural lexicon, an unforgettable 81-point performance, and, if nothing else, generations of rappers invoking his name as a symbol of greatness. Drake alone has referenced Bryant in a plethora of songs, including but not limited to “Rich Flex,” “Views,” “National Treasures,” and “Stories About My Brother." Other artists, including Lil Wayne, Chief Keef, Lil Uzi Vert, Tyga, and countless more, have gone a step further by naming entire songs after Bryant.
As the world continues to celebrate the legacy he left behind, REVOLT is taking a long look back at — as you can probably guess — 24 of the best, most clever, and otherwise widely remembered Kobe Bryant name-drops in Hip Hop. Listen along below, then let us know your favorites.
1. JAY-Z’s “Venus vs. Mars”
The lyrics: “We were co-MVPs like Kobe and Shaq / Left me for the Heat, we were winning back-to-back.”
2. Kendrick Lamar’s “peekaboo”
The lyrics: “Peekaboo, I just put them boogers in my chain / Peekaboo, 80-pointers like a Kobe game.”
3. J. Cole’s “Cole World”
The lyrics: “Money was an issue, but now that that's solved / I ball, I ball, like Kobe in the fall / Put trophies on my wall, rather trophies on my mantle / Dog my shows be off the handle.”
4. Wale’s “Simple Man”
The lyrics: “I’m in a game, even with a deep bench / I'ma ball like small fro Kobe / Without the 8, but all the hate though.”
5. Drake and 21 Savage’s “Rich Flex”
The lyrics: “Ayy, I'm livin' every 24 like Kobe did / Shoutout to the 6, R.I.P. to 8 / Swear this s**t is gettin' ate, I'm on 10 for the cake.”
6. Lil Uzi Vert and Chief Keef’s “Bean (Kobe)”
The lyrics: “You know I'm ballin', usual like Kobe / Ooh, worried 'bout a hater that don't know me.”
7. The Game and Kendrick Lamar’s “The City”
The lyrics: “What the f**k y'all take me for? I love you 'cause you hate me more / I'm Kobe on the Lakers floor, except I give you 84 / Shake you like Haiti's floor.”
8. A Boogie wit da Hoodie’s “Still Think About You”
The lyrics: “I look back and I laugh when I noticed it / I shoot up and lean back on some Kobe s**t / They don't know how to pass on some Kobe s**t.”
9. Nicki Minaj’s “Ganja Burn”
The lyrics: “Still every team's No. 1 pick in the draft / You could bring anybody, weatherman, pick a day / I’m Kobe, KD, Kyrie, pick a K.”
10. Common and Maya Angelou’s “The Dreamer”
The lyrics: “Told my n**ga Ye, I'm 'bout to win the Grammys now / Getting Johnny Cash, old white folks know me now / Stand close to the mic like I'm Kobe now.”
11. Big Sean's “Friday Night Cypher”
The lyrics: “S**t be impossible 'til it happens / I never thought I'd see Kobe go before Magic / That taught me first, no seconds to waste.”
12. Twista and Kanye West’s “Overnight Celebrity”
The lyrics: “Give you ice like Kobe wife / We sorta like Goldie, right? / The way we mold 'em right.”
13. Baby Keem’s “Circus Circus Free$tyle”
The lyrics: “She called my phone sayin', 'I was just lonely’ / I was hoopin' yesterday, thinkin' 'bout Kobe / 'Member them days livin' off of bologna.”
14. T.I., JAY-Z, Kanye West, and Lil Wayne’s “Swagga Like Us”
The lyrics: “How it feel to wake up and be the s**t and the urine? / Naaaaa-na-naaaaa / Tryin' get that Kobe number, one over Jordan.”
15. Lil Wayne’s “Kobe Bryant”
The lyrics: “Kobe doin' work, 2-4 on my shirt / He the greatest on the court, and I'm the greatest on the verse / Going for the fourth ring like it was his first."
16. Drake’s “National Treasures”
The lyrics: “R.I.P. Kobe, but y'all n**gas brokie / That's probably why y'all be shackin' together.”
17. DDG and PlaqueBoyMax’s “Pink Dreads”
The lyrics: “When I'm out of town, I drop 50 like I'm Kobe / I don't walk through metal detectors 'cause I'm always rockin' Chrome.”
18. DJ ESCO and Future’s “Maison Margiela"
The lyrics: “I'm Kareem, JAY, and Dash / Put them altogether / I’m Larry Bird, Kobe, and MJ / I’ma ball forever.”
19. Rick Ross, Drake, and French Montana’s “Stay Schemin'”
The lyrics: “Kobe ’bout to lose a 150 M's / Kobe, my n**ga, I hate it had to be him / B**ch, you wasn't with me shootin' in the gym.”
20. Quando Rondo’s “Imperfect Flower”
The lyrics: “Sunshine gon' come with rainy days, codeine take the pain away / Kobe at the three, while down by two, Dwyane gon' fade away.”
21. Chief Keef’s “Kobe”
The lyrics: “I been ballin' so damn hard, I swear I think that I'm Kobe / Young bull of this rap s**t, but I think that I'm Kobe / I swear I'm dunkin’ on these h**s, on these n**gas, I'm free throwin'.”
22. Playboi Carti’s “2024”
The lyrics: “The racks in my pocket and I link with Oji / Ooh, two fours in the Sprite, got me feelin' like Kobe, R.I.P., uh.”
23. NAV’s “Habits”
The lyrics: “Smoking so much blunts in the room, look like a smoke screen / Star player like Kobe, I'm ballin' with the whole team.”
24. Lil Baby and Lil Uzi Vert’s “Commercial”
The lyrics: “I turned 8 million right until I'm a quarterback / Spent a million like I'm tryna bring Kobe back.”