Vanessa Bryant sends a heartfelt tribute and scholarship to Gianna on her 20th birthday, emphasizing everlasting love, loss and legacy.
Vanessa Bryant shut down the internet on Friday to post a shocking birthday tribute to her late daughter Gianna, reminding the world what real love and real loss actually looks like.
May 1 was Gigi’s 20th birthday, and Vanessa didn’t let it go quietly.
She posted a photo of herself and Gianna together on Instagram, captioning it: “Happy birthday to my sweet little angel Gianna. Words can’t express how much I love and miss you, mamacita. Mommy loves you so much! #HappyBirthday #20.”
LeBron James, Sabrina Ionescu, Kim Kardashian, Ciara, Kelly Rowland and Olivia Munn, among others, weighed in with comments. Gigi’s sister, Natalia Bryant, sent a string of heart emojis that meant more than words.
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The tributes didn’t stop at the post office. Through the Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation, Vanessa announced $500,000 in scholarships to 20 student-athletes from Los Angeles and Orange counties, equivalent to one scholarship for each year Gigi plays.
“Congratulations to all the Class of 2026! We are honored to invest in your future,” the foundation wrote. “Happy 20th birthday to our Gigi! Your vision, your spirit and your beautiful heart will continue to light the way.”
This is the part that the internet usually skips over: None of this would exist without hip-hop. Kobe Bryant’s appearance in Tha Eastsidaz’s November 1999 “G’d Up” video was no accident, as he had a record deal with Sony and was actively trying to build a rap career.
Vanessa Laine, 17, a background dancer on the same set, spent months making videos for Krayzie Bone and Snoop Dogg after being discovered at a hip-hop concert in Irvine that summer.
Bryant, then 21, kept looking for her between takes. Their first date was at Disneyland on November 28, 1999, and six months later, he proposed.
In 2013, Bryant wrote in an Instagram post commemorating the anniversary: ”We were 20 and 17 when we met and we literally grew up together. A true honor and blessing. Queen Te Amo Mamba.”
The first rap album that put him in that room, “Visions,” never came out. LL Cool J told Entertainment Tonight that he talked Bryant out of it in the parking lot, recalling with a laugh, “Come on, dog. That’s not what you need to do.”
Kobe kept basketball. He also kept Vanessa.
