Kendrick Lamar made history last night as the first rapper to take center stage as the Super Bowl halftime show’s headliner. Delivering a career-spanning set of his biggest hits, the Compton native seized the opportunity to send a pointed message to his rival, Drake. Weaving references to their ongoing feud throughout his performance, K.Dot made his stance unmistakable with a charged rendition of “Not Like Us” on one of the world’s biggest stages.
As the set came about halfway, Kendrick mocked Drake by exchanging a few words with his female backup dancers: “I want to perform their favorite song… but you know they love to sue,” clearly citing Drizzy’s defamation lawsuit towards UMG over “Not Like Us.” During his live performance of the track—the second-to-last in his set—Kendrick deliberately skipped the “certified pedophile” lyric, flashing a smirk at the camera instead, rapping, “Say Drake, I hear you like ’em young / You better not ever go to cell block one / To any [bitch] that talk to him and they in love / Just make sure you hide your lil’ sister from him.” Additionally, he shouted the lyrics, “Tryna strike a chord and it’s probably A minor,” while the audience sang along with him.
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The halftime performance featured an unexpected appearance by Serena Williams, Drake’s former partner and Compton native, who was spotted Crip Walking on a raised platform as “Not Like Us” smoothly gave way to the finale, “TV Off.” At the close of the performance, the crowd erupted with a display flashing the words “Game Over,” seamlessly tying back to the video game motif. Furthermore, some fans theorized that Kendrick’s chain, featuring a lowercase “a” pendant, referenced his “A minor” lyric from “Not Like Us.” However, it also doubles as the logo for his creative company, pgLang.
More than 120 million viewers are estimated to have watched the game, as the Philadelphia Eagles stunned the Kansas City Chiefs with a commanding 40-22 victory.
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