A day after the NBA legend, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, and seven others were killed in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif., Ice Cube reacted to the devastating news. In an interview with ESPN, the L.A. native remembered the Lakers champ.
“Kobe is some of the glue that holds L.A. together,” said a somber Cube.
He also revealed that he texted Kobe upon hearing about his death from a friend. “To see if he would hit me back,” he said. “And when I didn’t get it back, you don’t immediately start to worry ’cause he’s Kobe and he always get back sooner or later.”
Ice Cube says that after he heard the news, he hit up Kobe to see if he would text him back 💔 pic.twitter.com/sQBMyckpcy
While his city and the world is in mourning, he especially grieves for Kobe’s family. “I just toss and turn all night thinking about Vanessa and his daughters, thinking about his mother, and his father, his sisters, thinking about Vanessa’s parents, just everybody in his immediate life that loved him, what they lost. I know what we lost as fans.”
Cube said he looked up to Kobe, despite the fact that he was younger. “Me personally, I don’t have too many heroes that’s younger than me, and that was one of ’em,” he continued. “It’s profound but I think more about his family and I hope the city wraps their arms around the family and embrace them as much as they embraced Kobe ’cause the family’s gonna need it.”
A heartbroken Cube also expressed his sadness on Twitter, writing, “I can’t believe that my hero and friend is gone too soon. I’m numb.”
Other celebrities have reacted to the news including Drake, Lil Wayne, Barack Obama, and Justin Timberlake, who penned a heartfelt tribute to his friend. “You have connected so many of us. The Mamba Mentality will last for all of time,” wrote the pop superstar.
