Aside from the rave that the show garnered online, celebrities and sports people alike hailed it as the “greatest halftime show” after showcasing LA pride with a side of nostalgia all in one set.
For the first time in “Super Bowl” halftime show history, hip-hop was finally featured and all the stars shined brightly at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Los Angeles.
In the major showdown between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals, with the Rams leading and eventually winning the Super Bowl LVI title, the show only got more spectacular.
Dr. Dre presided the supposed to be sideshow turned main event in a dream-team lineup consisting of Dre, Snoop, Mary, Em, Meadow Soprano’s car commercial, Jim Carrey in The Cable Guy, Salt N Pepa, Doja Cat doing Hole’s “Celebrity Skin,” and a Bengals quarterback who looks like he’s Spiral Stairs in a Pavement tribute band.
It was a tribute to the Black History in Los Angeles and the millenials were raving for this fever dream concert with cameos from 50 Cent and Anderson .Paak.
The halftime stars weren't the only musical act who performed on Sunday night as Jhene Aiko opened the game with her rendition of "America the Beautiful," followed by a country star Mickey Guyton's soulful version of "The Star Spangled Banner."
Dre started the show on a sci-fi set with Anderson .Paak on drums with a guitarist rocking a fly Fender Jazzmaster with Dre and Snoop teamed up for “The Next Episode” and “California Love.”
50 Cent—the lone East Coast MC, repping Queens—did “In Da Club” with a big entrance hanging upside down, looking awkward and struggling before getting down to his feet to take over the stage.
Mary J. Blige, the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul, took over to perform her Dre-produced classics “Family Affair” and “No More Drama,” exactly 20 years since Mary J. took her first bow at the Super Bowl halftime, alongside Aerosmith.
Kendrick on the other hand, did “Alright,” the only explicitly political song in the set, getting censored over the line about “and we hate pop-po” and was shown almost exclusively from the waist up as he made taking a knee-like gestures throughout his performance.
The big dramatic moment unfolded when Eminem did take a knee at the end of “Lose Yourself,” a shout out to Colin Kaepernick and the Black Lives Matter movement, which is prohibited by the organizers but he did it anyway.
Eminem took his time on his knee with his head down, while Dre played Tupac’s “I Ain’t Mad at Cha” on piano.
Aside from the rave that the show garnered online, celebrities and sports people alike hailed it as the “greatest halftime show” after showcasing LA pride with a side of nostalgia all in one set.
Tags: #entertainment, #music, #hiphop, #SuperBowl