In Pictures: Kobe Bryant's wife Vanessa Bryant posts adorable montage to celebrate 23 years of marriage with late Lakers legend
Vanessa Bryant shared a montage of photos with her late husband Kobe Bryant on social media in celebration of their 23rd wedding anniversary. The couple was married on Apr. 18, 2001 in a private ceremony in Dana Point, California. They had four daughters together – Natalia, Gianna, Bianka and Capri.
In a post on Instagram, Vanessa posted candid photos of herself with Kobe at an unknown event. The couple was very sweet with each other in the images below.
Kobe Bryant met his future wife Vanessa Laine when she was just 17 during the filming of a music video. Bryant was 21 at the time and already a star for the LA Lakers. He was also trying to become a rapper back then, which didn't pan out.
"For those that don't know, yes, I had a budding music career as a rapper," Kobe said on the documentary 'Kobe Bryant's Muse' back in 2015. "It didn't last long, but I did make a video. On the video set is where I first met Vanessa." [H/T People Magazine]
He added:
"It was a two-day video shoot, and I was always looking for her, like I wanted to know where she was. I would finish a take and go to my trailer, but I would wonder where she was the entire time.
"Then I would come out of the trailer and just wanted to talk to her some more, in between takes and stuff like that."
Here's the music video and you can find Vanessa at the 1:31 mark:
Vanessa Bryant lost Kobe Bryant and their daughter Gigi on January 26, 2020
Kobe Bryant died on Jan. 26, 2020, following a helicopter crash that also killed his daughter Gigi, as well as seven others. Bryant was 41 and was just starting the next chapter of his life following basketball.
Vanessa Bryant received a lot of love and support from the NBA family and fans as she mourned the loss of her husband and daughter. She even faced the possibility of Kobe's burnt corpse getting exposed on the internet and went to battle against the Los Angeles County police department to get photos from the site deleted.
She continued to celebrate Kobe and Gigi's life throughout the past three years. From posting throwback pictures to managing his estate, it has been a roller coaster ride of emotions for the 41-year-old widow.
The family recently celebrated Mamba Day with Sabrina Ionescu and JuJu Watkins at the 2024 Mamba League Tournament in California. Nike also rereleased three Kobe signature shoes – Kobe 4 "Philly", Kobe 6 "Italian Camo" and Kobe 8 "Venice Beach."