Beyoncé performed a beautiful tribute during Kobe Bryant’s memorial on Monday that was streamed live across several television channels and online via countless media outlets.
Still photos, however, were reportedly banned during her performance — according to several photo agencies.
via Page Six:
Editors at the Associated Press and Getty Images told The Post that organizers of the live-streamed Staples Center event prohibited them from taking photos of the Grammy-winning singer or Bryant’s children.
The pop superstar kicked off the memorial to the Lakers legend and his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, by performing her hit songs “XO” and “Halo.”
One insider at the event said, “It is so offensive to Kobe’s family and the fans, Beyonce is so controlling of her image — she usually only allows approved selected images of her to be released — so no photographers at the Kobe memorial were allowed to take her picture. Really, at a memorial? Not even the family of Michael Jackson did that.
“A Staples Center staffer was dispatched to make sure not a single camera was focused on the stage. The photographers couldn’t believe it. This doesn’t help Beyonce’s image at all, it hurts her. It makes her look like a diva. The memorial wasn’t about her. The only shots of Bey that did emerge were screen grabs from TV. None of the other artists at the memorial asked for this, not Christina Aguilera, not Alicia Keys.”
Representatives for Beyoncé did not immediately return a request for comment.
Beyonce’s publicist has previously targeted media outlets demanding “unflattering” pictures of the singer be removed online.
After her Super Bowl halftime show in 2013, her spokeswoman Yvette Noel-Schure emailed Buzzfeed asking them to remove shots from a post titled “The 33 Fiercest Moments from Beyonce’s Halftime Show.”
We completely understand The Bryant family requesting that no photos of the children be taken. Considering that no other performers’ photos were off-limits, we’re left to assume that the no photos request came from specifically from Bey’s team.
In case you missed the performance, check it out again below.
https://twitter.com/NBATV/status/1232013672395857922
