Kendrick Lamar Brings Compton To Super Bowl Halftime Show

Did Kendrick Lamar’s show live up to the hype? There was already plenty of will he or won’t he when it came to performing his Grammy Award-winning, Drake demoralizing “Not Like Us” diss song. Well of course he did, but more on that later. The Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show (that’s the official name) opened with an intro from actor Samuel L. Jackson dressed like a no-joke and woke patriot, and Kendrick Lamar rapping on the hood of a vintage whip auto—a famed 1987 Buick Regal GNX, then kicking off with a rousing rendition of “squabble up” with a lot of dancers. “Mr. Lamar do you really know how to play the game?” asked Jackson. K. Dot then proceeded to roll through a bunch of his newer-ish hits like “HUMBLE,” with the dancers creating great, US flag-like visuals, along with “DNA” and “Peekaboo.”

“I want to perform their favorite song, but you know they love to sue” – Kendrick Lamar pic.twitter.com/x1Ke3W3NLr

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) February 10, 2025

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Lamar then teased “Not Like Us,” with Jackson saying to exercise caution, but first, he brought out special guest SZA to perform “Luther” from GNX and “All The Stars.”

KENDRICK DID IT AND BROUGHT SERENA OUT TOOOOOOOOO LMAO #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/RBxAvXcesc

— Qondi (@QondiNtini) February 10, 2025

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js With a final warning from Jackson, K. Dot kicked off the DJ Mustard portion of the show, performing “Not Like Us,” with an entire stadium roaring “A Minor…” in unison before shifting into “tv off.” Oh yeah, that was Serena Williams on stage crip walking. And yes, he looked right into the camera when he uttered, “Say, Drake…”

“Say Drake, I hear you like ‘em young”

Why Kendrick look at the camera like 😭 pic.twitter.com/IDCt6sY5LZ — Ms. Andry Noir, PhD (@keatingssixth) February 10, 2025

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js There were a lot of joints Lamar left in the tuck such as “Alright,” “Swimming Pools,” and “Backstreet Freestyle” to name a few. But hey, time was limited. Speaking of, sort of, how many people just tuned in for the K. Dot concert with no care at all for the game? Asking for a friend. Check out some of the more powerful reactions to Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show in the gallery. — Photo: Getty

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