Who Would Have Thought Kobe Bryant Was A Fan Of The Spice Girls?

Zachary Draves | Oct 30, 2024

May 8, 1997; Los Angeles' Kobe Bryant before the start of game 3 of the NBA Western Conference semi-finals against the Utah Jazz. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA Today-USA TODAY NETWORK / USA Today-USA TODAY NETWORK

Kobe Bryant was eclectic when it came to his tastes in music.

His worldly upbringing from Italy to Philadelphia exposed him to a vast array of culture. He embraced the sensibilities of the Philly streets and the sophistication of Europe without contradiction.

He was comfortable in his own skin to where he could declare himself a fan of both hip hop legend Jay Z and the 90s bubblegum pop group The Spice Girls.

New York Times sports columnist Mike Wise knew this first hand when he asked a 19-year-old Bryant to give him a ride to his hotel in 1998.

"I was kind of one of those annoying guys who stuck around till all the reporters left," Wise said to Back In The Day NBA on SI. "I'm trying to bulls--- with the guy. I wasn't trying to be Mr. reporter I was like "hey could you give me a ride around town?' and he goes "man I'm going to my agent's office in Santa Monica." It was at the old Forum and I said "well I''m staying at the Marina Del Ray, if you just take me there I can just get a cab. He says "no I'll take you to your hotel."

Wise eventually found himself in the car with Bryant.

"We were walking in the parking lot and he had some nice black BMW," Wise said. "Jay Z is just pumping through the speaker and the N bombs are coming. This isn't an (Barack) Obama approved Jay Z mainstream culture, I married Beyoncé, now an employee of the NFL making millions, I'm a recording impresario. This was gangster! You're like oh my god '98 you can't listen to Jay Z. But I didn't think anything of it, it wasn't like I was a big Jay Z fan, I was like alright he's cool. Kobe was 19 years old. He was almost 20. He's like "oh this is a little harsh" and he takes it out the CD and he goes "I'm gonna put this in and he puts the Spice Girls in and he's like the Spice Girls they're doing their thing."

Then, Bryant spoke of his admiration of then tennis star Martina Hingis. It was a moment Wise brought up to Bryant when he retired.

"He starts talking about these young players doing their thing," he said. "I asked him when he retired "were you trying to affect an image there or was that just you?" I think he said a little of both. He was just a different cat."

Zachary Draves is a contributor to Back In the Day Hoops On SI. He can be reached at zdraves1013@gmail.com and on Instagram @zdraves0633.

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