The Game is the latest hip hop celebrity to honor Kobe Bryant with fresh ink. The Los Angeles-bred rapper showed off his new face tattoo, which remembers the late NBA legend, in an Instagram post on Wednesday (Feb. 12).
“FOREVER,” he captioned two photos, one of him being tattooed and a second of the finished product.
The Game’s new ink blends Bryant’s signature and his first jersey number, No. 8. The number lays on its side, so that the shape resembles an infinity symbol.
The rap veteran recently paid tribute to both Bryant and Nipsey Hussle in an Instagram post.
“My heart is broken for Kobe’s wife & his daughters. Losing her husband & a daughter & them losing their sister & father,” he wrote. “The term ‘Life Is Short’ has a whole new meaning after witnessing the energy in this city surrounding the news of losing not only one of our basketball greats, but also an amazing human being.”
“In the picture above, I see two LEGENDS, two BROTHERS, two SONS, two FATHERS & two men I had the honor of calling FRIEND,” his post continued. “Thank you both for your continuous efforts & all the contributions to not only Los Angeles but the entire world. Two names people are for sure to remember forever. Not even a full year after losing Nip… Kobe’s gone. You couldn’t tell me this was going to be the story we’d have to write when this picture was taken. I have endless love for you both & I will always honor your memories.”
Earlier this week, 2 Chainz got his own tribute ink, tattooing “24,” Bryant’s famed jersey number, on his knees.
Bryant and his daughter Gianna passed away in a tragic helicopter crash on Jan. 26. The basketball icon will be honored throughout NBA All-Star Weekend, which kicks off this Friday (Feb. 14) in Chicago.