By Asha Varma ‘20, Arts and Entertainment Editor

The 62^nd annual Grammy Awards were held on January 26, 2020. Though it was a night that celebrated the accomplishments of some of the biggest names in the music industry, it was impossible for everyone in the audience, as well as the rest of the world watching, to think about anything other than the tragic passing of basketball legend Kobe Bryant. Bryant, his thirteen-year-old daughter Gianna, and seven other people were killed earlier on the morning of the Grammys in a devastating helicopter crash in Calabasas, California. In response to the news of his passing, which shocked the world, this year’s Grammys broke tradition and paid tribute to the legendary basketball star.

Throughout the show, and even on the red carpet before it began, celebrities paid tribute to Bryant in many ways. DJ Khaled brought a Kobe Bryant t-shirt to the red carpet and held it up in pictures. Actress Priyanka Chopra walked the carpet and one of her nails was painted with the number twenty-four: Bryant’s jersey number for the Los Angeles Lakers. Her husband, Nick Jonas, along with his brothers Joe Jonas and Kevin Jonas, wore purple ribbons on their jackets to honor Bryant. The Jonas Brothers also cancelled all of their red carpet interviews in response to their shock over his passing. As stars gathered inside of the Staples Center, where the Grammys were being held, there was an entirely different crowd gathered outside of the arena.

The crowd wasn’t there to catch a glimpse of the celebrities walking the red carpet, but they were devoted Lakers fans in mourning who gathered outside to honor their beloved Kobe Bryant by leaving flowers, letters, photos, candles, basketballs, and jerseys. Singer Alicia Keys, host of this year’s Grammy Awards, pointed out to the audience: “We’re literally standing here heartbroken in the house that Kobe Bryant built.” The Staples Center is home to the Los Angeles Lakers, the team that Bryant played on for twenty years for his entire NBA career. Keys sang “It’s So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday” with Boyz II Men before a spotlight was placed on Bryant’s two jerseys, which were hung up in the Staples Center when he retired from the NBA in 2016.

Almost every performance of the evening included a nod to Kobe Bryant. During his performance of “Old Town Road,” Lil Nas X paid tribute to Bryant by placing his jersey on the set of his performance. Bryant’s jersey was also held up during a performance by Aerosmith and RUN-D.M.C. Before opening the show singing her hit song “Cuz I Love You,” Lizzo began by saying, “Tonight is for Kobe.” DJ Khaled, John Legend, and Meek Mill were scheduled to sing a tribute to rapper Nipsey Hussle, who was shot and killed in March of 2019. However, following Kobe Bryant’s unexpected passing, the performance was altered to also include a tribute to him, and photos of Bryant and Nipsey Hussle were projected side by side in the background of the performance.

While the world was mourning Bryant and the eight other victims of the fatal helicopter crash, the Grammy Awards chose to celebrate his legacy in times of sadness. One thing was evident from the tributes throughout this year’s Grammy Awards: Kobe Bryant, one of the best basketball players of all time, was and will forever be a legend.