If controversy begets conversation, then on Sunday, the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La. hosted a performance primed for discussion. The Super Bowl halftime show is meant to appeal to the masses, which is why, for many viewers, Kendrick Lamar’s performance fell short — its dense, politically-charged messaging went against the mainstream audience’s expectations. However, I think the 13-minute set undoubtedly stood as a testament to a storyteller’s showmanship.
In lieu of the pyrotechnical, singalong-stacked show characteristic of past Super Bowl performances — think Usher, Bruno Mars and Katy Perry — Lamar offered a “revolution.” His performance honored his West Coast hip-hop and Compton roots through its choreography and celebrity cameos, while also alluding to American politics and pop culture with overt costuming and stage design.
Renowned actor Samuel L. Jackson surprised viewers with his appearance as a caricature of Uncle Sam. In a wildly verbose manner, Jackson introduced the audience to “the great American game” before the television camera panned to one of the four stages arranged to resemble the square PlayStation controller button. This set represented how Americans are simple pawns in the game of ‘surviving America.’ Lamar, perched on the hood of a black 1987 Buick GNX, began his performance with a teaser of an unreleased song, currently dubbed “Bodies” by fans. A notably all-Black group of background dancers donning American flag-colored jumpsuits — red, white and blue — emerged from the car before Lamar announced that “the revolution is about to be televised, you picked the right time but the wrong guy,” a reference to the 1970 protest poem.
Lamar then transitioned to “Squabble Up” — the second song off his newest album, “GNX” — before being abruptly interrupted by Jackson, who claimed that the music is “too loud, too reckless, too ghetto.” The dancers arranged themselves into the shape of an American flag with Lamar — dressed in a custom “Gloria” motorsport-inspired jacket and flare jeans — in its center, dividing the flag into two halves as a reflection of the country’s post-election polarization. Lamar then began his performances of “HUMBLE,” “DNA,” “Euphoria” and “Peekaboo.” The dancers and Lamar migrated to a longer stage — flanked by light posts in a manner meant to mimic the appearance of a prison yard — situated at the center of the field. All the while, Lamar teased the crowd with snippets of “Not Like Us,” his Song of the Year Grammy-winning diss track to rival rapper, Drake.
“I wanna perform their favorite song, but you know they love to sue,” Lamar declared — a reference to a pending lawsuit against Lamar’s record label, Universal Music Group, accusing it of putting Drake’s reputation at risk by releasing the diss track. After teasing “Not Like Us,” Lamar invited R&B singer-songwriter SZA to join him onstage for “Luther” and “All the Stars.” Jackson’s Uncle Sam character commended Lamar for finally delivering “what America wants,” before the hook of “Not Like Us” broke a dystopian monologue about injustice under the American “cultural divide.” Lamar sported a Chesire-like grin — all as he stared directly into the camera for the lyric “hey Drake” — before finally performing the diss track. Serena Williams, a fellow Compton native and rumored ex-girlfriend of Drake, crip-walked onstage alongside the background dancers — a reference to both Lamar’s culture and the rivalry between the two rappers.
“Forty acres and a mule, this is bigger than the music,” Lamar rapped, referencing the promise made to formerly enslaved Black individuals as a form of reparations following the Civil War.
Lamar brought record producer and frequent collaborator Mustard onstage for his final song, “TV Off.” Closing the performance with a powerful statement, Lamar urged the audience to “turn the TV off,” a call to unplug from the corporate media.
Perhaps the record-breaking viewership of this year’s Super Bowl halftime show —133.5 million viewers — is attributed to its uncertainty. Questions surrounding Lamar’s setlist and the long-standing feud between Drake and Lamar seemed to dominate Google searches leading up to Sunday night’s show. The world wanted to know whether Lamar would publicly humiliate Drake.
However, the show’s political references seemed to be the focus of the media’s post-halftime show analyses. The performance as a whole garnered criticism across social media, with many labeling his songs as “unintelligible” and considering his jabs at Drake to be juvenile. Despite numerous negative reviews, Lamar undoubtedly prioritized the preservation of his culture over its commercialization. Although, ironically, Lamar accomplished this by partaking in the commercial phenomenon that is the Super Bowl, criticizing the entertainment industry’s shortcomings on the world’s largest stage is a commendable act.
The double-entendre of Jackson’s Black portrayal of Uncle Sam, the stadium representing a PlayStation controller, the divide of the dancers’ American flag and the introduction to “Not Like Us” containing historical references to slavery are all deliberate motifs. They act as storytelling aids to tell a narrative meant only for a select audience to understand. For the performance to garner as much backlash as it has received simply emphasizes the deep racial and societal divides within the United States – Lamar’s ultimate goal.
Hip-hop was not invented for the masses, and neither was Lamar’s performance on Sunday night. Although I am an avid listener of hip-hop, Lamar’s halftime show was, ultimately, not made for me. Rather, it was made by a Black performer for Black audiences — individuals with shared experiences that others cannot fully understand unless they’ve lived them.
To have a Pulitzer Prize-winning, 20-time Grammy-winning rapper headline the most-watched halftime show to date comes with the expectation that his show would contain rich and complex symbolism. There existed a level of authenticity in this year’s halftime show that has been absent in others, including Lamar’s own 2022 Super Bowl halftime appearance alongside Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige and Eminem. Lamar speaks through his music, and his halftime performance spoke to those who were willing to listen.
Rating: ★★★★★
