Kobe Bryant Surprised Taylor Swift With A Banner At Staples Center To Celebrate Her 16 Sold-Out Shows

by Olivia Truffaut-WongAugust 22, 2015, 4:05 pmNews, News Feed >

Kobe Bryant surprised Taylor Swift during her sold out show at the Staples Center on Friday night to congratulate her on her record-breaking sold-out shows.

Kobe Bryant Surprises Taylor Swift

Swift, who is currently on a massive stadium tour for 1989, performed her first of five sold-out shows at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on Friday night. The singer, wearing a sparkling minidress, was onstage when she got a surprise visit from Kobe Bryant, who welcomed her to the Staples Center, where he plays with the LA Lakers, and congratulated her on her record breaking sold-out shows. With these five shows, Swift will have performed a grand total of 16 sold-out shows at the Staples Center — a first for the stadium.

Bryant surprised Swift with a large banner in honor of her achievement, and gave the pop star a big hug. “16 is the same amount of championships we have… To celebrate those championships, we do something very special. We hang banners. It is my honor to reveal, for the first time, your own championship banner that will hang here forever,” Bryant told Swift. Swift was completely taken by surprise, and immediately thanked Bryant and her fans, saying, “This unbelievable. This is what you did — you have done this for me, thank you so much.”

Swift and Bryant later exchanged sweet messages on Twitter, with Bryant telling Swift to “Keep breaking records and changing lives.”

Taylor Swift 1989 World Tour at the Staples Center

Of course, it wouldn’t be a T-Swift concert without more surprise guests. Fans were treated to a surprise performance by One Republic’s Ryan Tedder, who sang their hit “Counting Stars.”

Article by Olivia Truffaut-Wong

Olivia Truffaut-Wong was born and raised in Berkeley, California, where she developed her love of all things entertainment. After moving to New York City to earn her degree in Film Studies, she stayed on the East Coast to follow her passion and become an entertainment writer. She lives on a diet of television, movies and food.