Vanessa Bryant’s daughter Bianka was hugged by Taylor Swift as the US superstar performed on stage in Los Angeles.
Bryant, Bianka and her sister Natalia were among the fans who watched Swift’s latest leg of her Eras tour at the SoFi Stadium On Thursday.
Bryant, the 41-year-old widow of Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, shared an image of Swift giving her six-year-old daughter Bianka a big hug on stage.
‘We love you @taylorswift,’ Bryant wrote.
She also shared an image of a denim jacket with “Swiftie” written on the back alongside an image of the singer and her late husband.
The picture, from 2015, was taken when Bryant gave Swift a banner for setting a new record for the most sold-out shows at the then Staples Center in Los Angeles. It is now known as the Crypto.com Arena.
Another image from the family’s night out was of another denim jacket with the words: “Say you’ll remember me” written on the back. The words are lyrics from Swift’s 2015 song Wildest Dreams.
Earlier on Thursday Swift also announced further North America dates for The Eras Tour in 2024, in Florida, Louisiana, Indiana, and Toronto, in Canada.
“Turns out it’s NOT the end of an era. Miami, New Orleans, Indy and Toronto: The Eras Tour is coming to you in 2024,” she wrote, adding that she would be joined by support act Gracie Abrams for the shows.
It comes as the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s department said it was providing similar levels of security for Taylor Swift’s six-show run as it did for the 2022 Super Bowl.
Thursday was the first of six shows the star will play in LA. She is the only artist to have sold out six consecutive shows at the arena, which has a capacity of up to 100,000.
Turns out it’s NOT the end of an era 😝 Miami, New Orleans, Indy and Toronto: The Eras Tour is coming to you in 2024 with @gracieabrams! Verified fan registration for all shows is open now - visit https://t.co/xw6YMN3GMc for more information pic.twitter.com/DCgFQb2U22
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) August 3, 2023
Last year the stadium hosted the Super Bowl – considered to be the biggest night in the US sporting calendar – in which the Los Angeles Rams triumphed over the Cincinnati Bengals.
Rappers Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem and Kendrick Lamar and R&B singer Mary J. Blige all performed at the major event.
In a statement on Thursday the force said: “The department, in coordination with LA Metro and the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), will be providing additional law enforcement staffing throughout the Metro system to support the Taylor Swift concert series at SoFi Stadium.
“The department is providing a similar level of visibility as the 2022 Super Bowl in order to ensure the safety of the public throughout the Metro System.”
Meanwhile, US media reported that earlier this week, Swift gave members of her tour truck driving crew bonuses in refion of $100,000 (£79,000).
Michael Scherkenbach, founder and chief executive of Shomotion trucking company, told CNN that the payments were “unbelievable”.
