Kanye West Remembers Kobe Bryant at Sunday Service With Touching Freestyle Rap: ‘I Just Broke Down’

Kanye West dedicated a special segment of his Sunday Service to Kobe Bryant just hours after the NBA legend and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were among nine people killed in a helicopter crash outside of Los Angeles. The artist paid tribute to the Bryants with Chance the Rapper and gospel singer Kirk Franklin during his service, where they performed moving arrangements to West’s “Ultralight Beam” and Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” in addition to West’s freestyle about the late athlete.

“I was driving home / They was leaving your jersey on the freeway,” West rapped, as per a video circulating of the service. “And I just broke down, broke down, broke down.”

West previously paid tribute to Bryant on Twitter, writing alongside a photo of the two, along with Swizz Beatz and Mos Def, “Kobe, We love you brother. We’re praying for your family and appreciate the life you’ve lived and all the inspiration you gave.”

The rapper’s wife, Kim Kardashian, also paid tribute to the Bryant family’s loss, writing on Instagram, “My heart is so heavy.”

“No one should ever experience what the families involved are going through,” she continued. “This has affected us all so much but I cannot begin to imagine what Vanessa is feeling losing her husband and her baby girl. I cry just thinking about it. I am praying for the Bryant family, the Altobelli family and the families of all who perished in this unthinkable tragedy. Rest In Peace Legend.”

Sister Kourtney Kardashian also commented on the tragedy, writing on her Instagam Story, “My heart is with Vanessa and her babies.”

Khloé Kardashian also took to social media with a tribute, writing simply, “My heart hurts,” before urging her followers to live their lives to the fullest.

“Tomorrow isn’t promised to us. So live as if today is your last day on earth,” she wrote. “Love like you’ve never loved before. Dream deeper than you’ve ever imagined you could dream. Experience all that your heart desires. If tomorrow you wake and everything still remains, REPEAT.”

“May our Heavenly Father cover everyone who’s hurting with his healing hands!” she added. “My heart breaks for everyone who is in pain. What a tragedy.”

Photo credit: Getty / Gilbert Carrasquillo