Jay Electronica and Jay-Z recorded "A.P.I.D.T.A" the night Kobe died

Jay Electronica has released his very long-awaited album A Written Testimony, which had a lot of Jay-Z‘s presence.

The night before the album released, Jay Electronica went live on Instagram for his album release livestream after his listening parties, hosted by Tidal, were canceled due to Coronavirus concerns. On live he revealed that the album's final track, “A.P.I.D.T.A.” was made the night that Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna Bryant, and seven others died in a very tragic helicopter crash on Jan. 26.

Neither Jay-Z or Jay Electronica mention Kobe or Gianna in the song but Jay-Z starts the song with lyrics morning a lost one rapping, “Uh, I got numbers on my phone that'll never ring again / ‘Cause Allah done sent them home, and they'll never, uh.” On his verse, Jay Electronica mourns the death of his mother rapping, “As I contemplate creation, the salt that heals my wounds / pour out my eyes just like libations / I can't stop my mind from racing, I got numbers on my phone
Pictures on my phone / The day my mama died, I scrolled her texts all day long
The physical returns but the connection still stay strong.”