Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
If someone told us back in the day that folks would one day be Crip walking on the field during a Super Bowl halftime show, we would say they were crazy!
Well, that actually happened… and it felt so good! This was the first year ever that a halftime show was built around rap music, and let’s just say it was long overdue.
In what many are already calling the best halftime show of all time (or a close 2nd only to Prince), Hip-Hop and R&B legends Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J. Blige took the field and world by storm during their performance at Super Bowl LVI. 50 Cent even joined them, with an upside-down entrance that took us right back to 2003!
The star-studded affair featured “The Next Episode” and “California Love” (Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre), “In Da Club” (50 Cent), “Family Affair” and “No More Drama” (Mary J. Blige), “Alright” (Kendrick Lamar), “Lose Yourself” (Eminem) and “Still D.R.E.”
Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
From the music to the choreography and the set — the show loudly celebrated L.A. and the West Coast.
Dre even hopped on the piano and gave the legend Tupac a subtle salute, playing a riff of his “I Ain’t Mad Atcha.” Did you catch that?
Anderson .Paak was also spotted, happy as ever, rocking out on drums during Eminem’s 2002 hit. The rapper’s performance was also a big talker last night after he ended the show by taking a knee.
(Photo by VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images)
Reports quickly surfaced that the NFL did not want Eminem to kneel and actually told him not to. But, in true Marshall Mathers fashion, we all watched as he presumably showed public solidarity with former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
However, according to ESPN, the league said it did not attempt to stop Eminem from taking a knee.
Either way — the halftime show was definitely one to remember! Celebrities at SoFi Stadium and social media users went crazy, calling the set nostalgic, iconic and a perfect Black History Month moment.
We love to see moments that are truly for The Culture, and this one is definitely with thanks to Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter. The rap legend and mogul, along with his sports and entertainment firm, Roc Nation, partnered with the NFL in 2019 to “enhance the NFL’s live game experiences and amplify the league’s social justice efforts.”
The league said as part of the agreement, Roc Nation would advise on the selection of artists for major NFL performances like the Super Bowl.
As Snoop said at the press conference for this year’s big show: “We know a lot of people didn’t want hip hop on stage, but we’re here now. And there ain’t nothing you can do about it.”
California sure knows how to party y’all… Congratulations to the world champions and winners of Super Bowl LVI, the Los Angeles Rams!
