Canadian rapper Drake pays tribute to Kobe Bryant, pauses concert as fan presents jersey

Canadian hip-hop musician Drake, who has had strong ties to the NBA, paused his performance at a recent event. A passionate fan threw a Kobe Bryant jersey onto the stage, causing the rapper to briefly pause his performance in honor of the basketball great.
Drake paused briefly during this week's sold-out performance of his "It's All a Blur" tour at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles to remember the beloved late Kobe Bryant.
Drake raised the jersey high and said, "What's this? I gotta hold this up because we gotta show love to Kobe one time. Y'all make some noise."
Pertinently,  Kobe Bryant once graced the basketball floor at the Crypto.com Arena, formerly known as the STAPLES Centre. Nearly four years after his terrible loss, the recent moment served as a sad reminder of the ongoing influence Kobe has had on the world. . The building is frequently referred to as the "House That Kobe Built."
Drake has a history of incorporating basketball culture into his concerts. LeBron and Bronny James were featured in Los Angeles, while Kevin Durant thrilled the Washington, DC, crowd. Even Stephen Curry joined him on stage earlier this summer.
Drake also took the time to share a touching story with his followers about his first experience with the NBA star during his two-day trip to the City of Angels. 
The 36-year-old singer recalled the bizarre incident that occurred while he was just starting to build his own fame and had just moved to Los Angeles.
He said when he was first coming up, he came from a place called Toronto, Canada, and the first place he moved in my life. He said he had to move away from home, away from his mother, his friends. The first place to ever take him in was Los Angeles, California.
He was on Lil Wayne's tour bus, and he said he'll never forget it. Drake said he told him, 'I've got an album coming out, it's called 'The Carter III', I wanna play it for you, but we gotta wait for somebody to get her first'.
"So I waited on the bus, I'm waiting on the bus, you know, half an hour, hour, hour and a half, finally, this tall figure walks on the bus, right through the doorway of the bus, and it's Kobe Bryant. That day, I got to sit there and I got to listen to 'Tha Carter III with Kobe and Lil Wayne.”