Report: Beyoncé Banned Photographs During Kobe Bryant Memorial Performance

LOS ANGELES, CA. (THECOUNT) — Singer Beyoncé reportedly banned photo agencies from covering her “Celebration Of Life” performance during the Kobe Bryant memorial service in Los Angeles on Monday.

According to reports, photographers were reportedly banned at Staples Center on Monday during the crooner’s performance, according to PageSix:

“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.

Beyoncé sang XO and Halo during the roughly 10 minute performance.

DEVELOPING::

Geo quick facts: Los Angeles is a sprawling Southern California city and the center of the nation’s film and television industry. Near its iconic Hollywood sign, studios such as Paramount Pictures, Universal and Warner Brothers offer behind-the-scenes tours. On Hollywood Boulevard, TCL Chinese Theatre displays celebrities’ hand- and footprints, the Walk of Fame honors thousands of luminaries and vendors sell maps to stars’ homes – wikipedia.