With 130 million viewers, the superbowl halftime show consistently brings in fans and critics alike. It’s nearly impossible to satisfy crowds of such magnitude, but Kendrick Lamar’s performance was not intended to satisfy, its purpose was to send a message.
Lamar’s feud with his rap rival, Drake, prompted the release of his hit song “Not Like Us”, in which Lamar calls Drake a pedophile. Senior Jimmy Averill, a Drake fan, was surprised by the show. “‘Not Like Us’ is a really controversial track and it was anticipated that Kendrick Lamar would avoid the song,” said Averill. “The Super Bowl halftime show is a performance for millions so singing that song and starting more drama with Drake was not expected.” Not only did Lamar sing the most controversial lyrics of his song, but he directly called out the lawsuit that Drake filed against Universal Sound Group for allowing the song to be published.
Throughout the performance, Lamar left easter eggs to the meaning behind the Drake diss track. He hinted at singing “Not Like Us” earlier in the show, making the comment, “I want to perform their favorite song, but you know they love to sue,” referring to the song being a fan favorite and to Drake’s lawsuit. When he finally performed the song, Drake’s ex-girlfriend, Serena Williams, was dancing on the field as another dig at Drake.
Not only did the show roast Drake, but it also had political undertones. The first was in the performance of “Humble”, where background dancers were in the formation of the American flag and Lamar stood in the middle, dividing it.
The flag wasn’t the only patriotic reference. The role of Uncle Sam, played by Samuel L. Jackson, commentated throughout the show, saying the performance was “too reckless, too loud, too ghetto”. The character of Uncle Sam and his relationship with Lamar is meant to demonstrate typical American ideals and the notion that the genre of rap doesn’t fit into this set of values.
The role of Uncle Sam tied into another theme of the performance. At the beginning of the show, Samuel L. Jackson says “This is the great American game,” with each performance location shaped like buttons on a PlayStation controller. Uncle Sam also keeps score throughout Lamar’s performance, deducting a “life” from Lamar mid-performance.
Junior Karthik Ganesh, an avid Kendrick Lamar fan, explained his perspective on the show. “Uncle Sam is intended to represent an oppressive American government as well as discrimination against the Black community as a whole,” Ganesh explained. “He is judgemental of Kendrick Lamar throughout the performance and kept referring to the game in which he was capable of taking lives as he saw fit.”
Lamar’s halftime show was a statement on culture, politics and the ongoing tensions in the rap industry. Lamar used the massive Super Bowl stage to spark conversation and challenge the status quo. Fans and critics alike can agree on one thing for certain: His message was impossible to ignore.
