Natalia Bryant added some special details to her graduation sash to pay tribute to her parents, Vanessa Bryant and the late Kobe Bryant.
Last week, the 22-year-old model officially became a member of the University of Southern California’s class of 2025 and her mom could not have been more proud. Vanessa Bryant shared a video on Instagram from her oldest daughter’s graduation ceremony, which was held on May 16 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, from the university’s School of Cinematic Arts.
The clip began with Vanessa Bryant planting a kiss on her daughter’s cheek as she smiled. Natalia Bryant wore pink and white leis over a white long-sleeved dress, her USC sash and gown.
“I’m so proud of you,” her mom sweetly said as the two hugged and posed for a photo. “I love you so much.”
Next, the video, which was uploaded May 18, showed a close-up of Natalia Bryant’s sash, revealing that she had the message “Thank You Mom & Dad” stitched into the fabric in gold letters.
Vanessa Bryant also included footage of the moment her daughter walked across the stage and received her diploma. “The recipient of the Bachelor of Fine Arts in Cinematic Arts, Film and Television Production, Natalia Diamanté Bryant,” the presenter said before the model waved to the cheering crowd.
Jeanie Buss, the president and the controlling owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, then appeared on stage to hand Natalia Bryant her diploma. Buss is also an honorary trustee at USC.
Buss and Natalia Bryant embraced before taking a picture with Elizabeth M. Daley, the dean of USC’s School of Cinematic Arts.
“Go Nani!” Vanessa Bryant shouted from the audience. As her daughter passed her, she again cheered, “Let’s go, Nani!”
The end of the video revealed more additions to Natalia Bryant’s sash that honored her father, who tragically died in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26, 2020 with her younger sister Gigi and seven other passengers. Natalia Bryant, who graduated cum laude, also had the Laker legend’s custom Nike logo on the top left side of her sash.
In the caption, Vanessa Bryant wrote, “Legacy,” and added a red heart.
She continued, “@nataliabryant ~thank you @jeaniebuss for making this milestone even more special. #LakersFamily #USCGRAD #CumLaude.”
Natalia Bryant reacted to the post by leaving multiple red hearts in the comments and thanking Buss, too.
On her Instagram page, the recent college graduate shared an adorable photo of her proudly wearing her graduation sash.
She simply captioned the snap, “25” along with a red heart and graduation cap emoji.
In the comments, famous friends celebrated her accomplishment. Michael B. Jordan wrote, “Congratulations!! World is yours!!” with a praying-hand and sparkle emoji.
Ciara said, “Gooo Nani Boo! So incredibly proud of you!!” with three red hearts.
Tina Knowles wrote, “Congratulations you make us all proud” with a red heart.
Since Kobe Bryant’s untimely death, Natalia Bryant has continued to pay homage to her father’s life and legacy in both big and small ways. In 2023, she attended a ceremony with her mom and sisters, Bianka and Capri, unveiling Kobe Bryant’s handprints and footprints being permanently displayed at Hollywood’s historic TCL Chinese Theatre.
Natalia Bryant gave a speech where she spoke about how she and her father bonded over their love for movies.
“One may wonder why I developed such a fondness for movies like ‘Star Wars,’ ‘Harry Potter,’ the complete Marvel universe and ‘Goonies,’ amongst many others,” she said, NBC’s Los Angeles affiliate reported at the time. “Well, the reason behind it is that I watched all of these movies with my dad. And each of those memories I will never forget.”
She added, “He is the reason I am pursuing film in college. And he is the reason film has inspired me to create memories like ours for other people to even bring more fathers and daughters together like us. This all brings me to this moment now, which makes honoring my dad here 10 times more special and personal to me in so many ways.”
