Kendrick Lamar played a diverse and sweeping set for his Super Bowl halftime show performance, with digs at Drake interspersed with duets with SZA. The Compton rapper (his hometown getting a shoutout and potential further nod with his outfit) showed off his slick lyrical flow in the opening part of the 13-minute set, with deeper cuts and songs from his 2024 album GNX. But around ad-libs from Samuel L Jackson, with the actor dressed up as Uncle Sam, Lamar began to weave in some of his hits and did not shy away from his spat with Drake.
On Not Like Us, Lamar called him a “paedophile” at the height of their feud last summer. On the field, the Philadelphia Eagles took a resounding 40-22 win to stop the Kansas City Chiefs winning their third Super Bowl on the bounce. Headlines were also taken with Donald Trump becoming the first US president to attend the climax of the NFL season. The Eagles-heavy crowd inside New Orleans’ Caesars Superdome also booed the watching Taylor Swift, girlfriend of Chiefs tight-end Travis Kelce.
Here is how the performance took shape. All of the tracks were shortened to allow Lamar to squeeze them into his 13-minute set. Up first, Lamar rapped an unreleased and unknown song acapella. The track has been heard in forms before and has been called Bodies on Lamar fan forums. A hit from GNX, Lamar delivered this bop after climbing down from the roof of the rare car which gave the album its name. A big hit from his album Damn, Lamar hit his stride with Humble – performed alongside dancers who formed the American flag in his wake.
The full expanse of Lamar’s set design was shown off as he quickly rapped through this fan favourite. One of the Drake diss tracks released last summer was preparation for what was to come. A newer track that was given its live debut at the Super Bowl and performed in favour of Lamar classics such as King Kunta and Bitch, Don’t Kill Me Vibe. Another cut from GNX getting its live debut, Lamar teased a few chords from Not Like Us before launching into this one.
