Kendrick Lamar performed at the Super Bowl on February 9, 2025.
Kendrick’s performance lasted about 13 minutes. The show consisted of 1o of his songs, some of those being “Not Like Us,” “Humble” and “Squabble Up.” He also performed two songs with his guest singer SZA; those songs were “Luther” and “All The Stars.” The show also included Samuel L. Jackson as “Uncle Sam” doing talking skits in between songs and Serena Williams dancing near the end.
A major part of the halftime show was the meaning behind it. The show was a statement on racial inequality and black empowerment as well as the splitting of America and overthrowing the government. An example of this was in “Not Like Us” when Kendrick says “40 acres and a mule, this is bigger than the music” which is a phrase referring to the promise of land and resources to the formerly enslaved African Americans who never ended up getting those things. The background dancers are also dressed in the colors of the American flag; they form the flag then split down the middle, a pretty clear meaning. Considering Kendrick was an activist before anything, this makes sense and it is portrayed well.
Another thing that is apparent in Kendrick’s halftime performance is the video game symbolism. He uses this to portray his life as a video game. The show starts with a bar filling up as if a game is loading. On the field are a triangle, circle, square and an X like the buttons on a Playstation controller. During one of the songs, the lights in the crowd spell out “Warning Wrong Way” and at the end they spell out “Game Over.” This aspect of the show was nicely executed and fit well.
This halftime show deserves a 8/10 rating. It was a good show but didn’t compare well to past shows.
