super bowl halftime show

Usher’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Performance Got The Crowd ‘Caught Up’ On 25 Years Of Excellence

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It feels a bit ridiculous to even type these words, but going into Usher’s Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show performance, there was a certain amount of skepticism about whether he was a “Super Bowl caliber” artist from some fans (you can probably guess which ones). Of course, once the veteran hitmaker hit the stage, he obliterated all doubts about his worthiness for the moment, reminding those fans that he’s got 25+ years of pop-R&B excellence under his belt.

The results of Usher’s preparations were on full display as he performed pop culture mainstays like “Caught Up,” “U Don’t Have To Call,” and “Superstar” over the course of the 15-minute set. After coming out to “Caught Up” flanked by dancers dressed in Roaring ’20s regalia, he ran through a progression of 2000s hits before bringing out Alicia Keys for a rendition of their duet “My Boo.” Usher then launched into a retrospective of his slow-burners like “Nice & Slow” and “U Got It Bad.” Naturally, he came out of his shirt during the latter. H.E.R. joined him onstage to play the guitar solo, he broke out the roller skates for a breakdown, and Lil Jon played part of “Shots” before they went into everybody’s favorite Usher song, “Yeah,” joined (of course) by Ludacris.

And just in case the performance itself wasn’t enough to turn those fans‘ expectations around, the inevitable streaming bump that’s sure to follow certainly should. After last year’s performance, Rihanna topped the streaming charts. The year before, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg’s 1999 hit “Still D.R.E.” reached over a billion views on YouTube, and in 2019, even the meme-baiting stunt performance of Spongebob Squarepants‘ “Sweet Victory” prompted a 500% increase in streams for the cartoon’s soundtrack.

Which Song Will Usher Open His Super Bowl Halftime Show With?

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Which song will Usher open his Super Bowl Halftime Show with? That’s the question on the lips of many fans as the countdown to tonight’s game in Las Vegas begins. For many fans, including Dolphins star Jalen Ramsey, there is a strong belief that Usher will start things off with “Yeah!”, which he has already confirmed will feature Lil Jon, Ludacris, and T-Pain. Meanwhile, another camp led by the Seahawks D.K. Metcalf, believes that Usher will open with some like “U Don’t Have To Call”. Furthermore, there are those, like the Ravens’ Kyle Hamilton, who think “Burn” will be the first song on the setlist. However, some believe that he might start with “Confessions”.

Usher’s performance will be unique as it is set to be 15 minutes long, as opposed to the traditional 13-minute sets seen at the Super Bowl. “I can’t explain why, but it’s a funny thing that I was able to do and craft. That was a huge strategic thing that happened between me and my agency,” Usher said of the extended runtime. Which song do you think Usher will open his show with? Let us know in the comments.

Read More: Usher Announces Super Bowl Capsule Collab With NFL

Post Malone & Others Prepare To Kick Off Super Bowl In Style

However, Usher is not the only big-name musician set to perform in Vegas. Reba McEntire will perform “The Star Spangled Banner”, Post Malone will sing “America the Beautiful”, and Andra Day will close out with “Lift Every Voice And Sing” at tonight’s game. Last year’s game featured performances from Chris Stapleton, Babyface, and Sheryl Lee Ralph. Usher’s halftime show will look to outdo an electric (and pregnant) performance from Rihanna.

McEntire is a country legend, with three Grammy wins and 25 Billboard No. 1 singles. Malone is a 10-time Grammy nominee whose albums are 14 times platinum certified. Meanwhile, Day is a Golden Globe-winning, Oscar-nominated, Grammy-winning singer and actress. The trio should provide an electric start to the proceedings. Furthermore, Kaskade will serve as the first “live in-house DJ” for the Super Bowl.

Read More: Usher Will Release New Album On Super Bowl Sunday

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Lil Wayne Reiterates Desire To Headline 2025 Super Bowl Halftime Show

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Lil Wayne has once again stated that he wants to headline the 2025 Super Bowl Halftime Show in New Orleans. However, Wayne revealed that he is yet to be contacted about the opportunity. “I will not lie to you, I have not got a call or nothing. But we are praying. We praying. We keeping our fingers crossed. I’m working hard. I’mma make sure this next album and everything I do is killer. I wanna just make it hard for them not to holler at the boy,” Wayne told the 4HUNNID podcast.

Wayne first broached his desire to do the show during an interview with Taylor Rooks and Bleacher Report last year. “Going to the Super Bowl and watching the Halftime Show and wishing, when you see the artist, you be like, ‘They could’ve sung the song that I was featured on!”. I’m featured on everybody’s song — you could’ve brought me out! Please do not feel disrespected if you’re an artist from New Orleans. Or an artist tied to me any kind of way in the music [industry], but know that’s my moment and I earned that moment. So no, I’m not bringing no one!” Wayne said. However, he later amended his statement to note that he would bring out Beyonce if she wanted to join him.

Read More: 50 Cent Already Trash-Talking Lil Wayne Ahead Of NBA All-Star Celebrity Game

Lil Wayne Walks Back Anthony Davis Trade Talk

However, the 2025 Super Bowl is not the only thing that Wayne has been rehashing as of late. Wayne also reversed course on one of his bolder basketball takes, arguing that Anthony Davis is now irreplaceable for the Lakers. “You can’t get nobody for him that’s gon’ replace what he can do. There’s nobody out there like that. If you could get Jokic, but you can’t do that,” Wayne said on UNDISPUTED this week.

As mentioned, the sentiment is a major departure from something that Wayne had previously advocated for. “If the Lakers want to be a championship team, they have to get rid of AD,” the rapper said on the show last November. It was a bold take at the time, despite Davis’ injury struggles. He was still the No. 2 scoring option behind LeBron and his trade value was considered prohibitively high, at least in terms of immediate impact players.

Read More: Lil Wayne Taps Ja Morant To Be The Next “Face Of The NBA”

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Alicia Keys Is Reportedly Joining Usher, Her ‘My Boo’ Collaborator, For The 2024 Super Bowl Halftime Show

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Will Ludacris perform with Usher at the 2024 Super Bowl Halftime Show this weekend? What about Justin Bieber? We don’t know for sure about either of them yet, but speculation has been flying. Now, we have our first report that claims to confirm a guest is joining in on the fun.

According to a report from TMZ, Alicia Keys is set to join Usher during his big performance this weekend, on February 11. The publication notes, “Sources close to the production confirm eyewitness accounts that AK rehearsed with Usher inside Allegiant Stadium on Thursday.”

This follows a February 8 tweet from Las Vegas Locally, a popular X (formerly Twitter) account that covers Vegas-related news, that said, “Lil Jon, Alicia Keys, and Usher are at Allegiant Stadium practicing their Super Bowl performances.” So, if that tweet is accurate, Lil Jon is involved, too, not just Keys.

Keys and Usher, of course, collaborated on “My Boo,” which was a No. 1 hit in 2004. So, presumably, the song made Usher’s Super Bowl setlist. Usher and Jon, meanwhile, linked up (along with Ludacris) on “Yeah!,” another No. 1 single from 2004, so it appears we can expect to hear that classic song in Las Vegas, too.

Learn more about how to watch Usher’s (and Keys’, it looks like) performance here.

How Long Is Usher’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Performance?

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Usher Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show Press Conference 2024
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This weekend will feature one of the biggest days of Usher’s career, when he takes the field at Super Bowl LVIII for the halftime show. Usher has a number of hits spread throughout his storied career, but he’ll likely have to pass over some of them given the time restraints of the performance. Just how much time will Usher have, though?

How Long Is Usher’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Performance?

Usually, performers are given 13 minutes for their halftime shows. Usher, however, said in a recent Entertainment Tonight interview that he managed to get 15 minutes. He said, “I can’t explain why, but it’s a funny thing that I was able to do and craft. That was a huge strategic thing that happened between me and my agency.”

In the same conversation, he explained that Rihanna’s Super Bowl performance from 2023 was a big inspiration for his, saying, “Rihanna’s was fire because of the choreography and the way they did something that felt like a concert. It actually was a great deal of inspiration [for] how I began to think of my show. If you ever came to my residency, it was all about being immersed — being immersed in an experience that is all of these things that wouldn’t necessarily go together.”

Usher Cites Rihanna’s Beloved Super Bowl Halftime Show As An ‘Inspiration’ For His Own (Minus The Pregnancy Reveal, Probably)

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Usher Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show Press Conference 2024
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One thing we won’t know about Usher’s Super Bowl Halftime Show performance this weekend until it actually happens is what it will look like. Before then, though, Usher at least offered a bit of insight into the thought process behind his show.

In a recent Entertainment Weekly interview, Usher said:

“Rihanna’s was fire because of the choreography and the way they did something that felt like a concert. It actually was a great deal of inspiration [for] how I began to think of my show. If you ever came to my residency, it was all about being immersed — being immersed in an experience that is all of these things that wouldn’t necessarily go together.”

This presumably doesn’t mean Usher will reveal he’s pregnant, like Rihanna did during her 2023 performance.

He also noted that his performance will be 15 minutes long instead of the usual 13, saying, “I can’t explain why, but it’s a funny thing that I was able to do and craft. That was a huge strategic thing that happened between me and my agency.”

Usher also noted, “I would hope that people would feel excited — whether they knew my music or they just got to meet me for the first time — and that I’m all passion, man. And that this 8-year-old, who now is a 45-year-old, feels just as free as the first time that I thought any of this could be possible.”

Learn more about how to watch Usher’s performance here.

Usher Super Bowl Halftime Show Will Be Two Minutes Longer Than Previous Shows, Gets “Hangover” Parody Promo

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Usher has revealed that his Super Bowl Halftime Show this Sunday will be 15 minutes long, as opposed to the standard 13 minutes usually allotted for the halftime show. “I can’t explain why, but it’s a funny thing that I was able to do and craft. That was a huge strategic thing that happened between me and my agency,” Usher said of the extended runtime.

Furthermore, Usher told Entertainment Weekly that he sees the Super Bowl Halftime show as the finale of his Vegas residency, which ended its two-year run last year. “I went to Las Vegas with only the belief that people would come because nobody was going anywhere. You have to understand how much of an unwavering belief a person had to have to put together a show after a year of nobody going anywhere and everybody being afraid to be outside for fear of catching COVID or endangering themselves and their families. So the fact that I did that was just truly a matter of belief, and that belief was all positive,” Usher said.

Read More: Usher Announces Super Bowl Capsule Collab With NFL

Usher & Others Parody Hangover To Promote Halftime Show

Meanwhile, Usher also joined a stacked cast in Where’s Usher?, a short film from Apple Music to promote his halftime performance. In the 7-minute feature, Ludacris, Lil Jon, and Taraji P. Henson have to track down Usher in Vegas after losing him, a la The Hangover.

Along the way, the trio runs into Anderson.Paak, the Blue Man Group, Wesley Snipes, J. Balvin, Andre 3000’s voice, and “Blanche”. As the short is pretty much a 1:1 parody of The Hangover, it of course ends with the trio finding Usher on the roof of their hotel and they are able to tell Apple CEO Tim Cook that the halftime show can go ahead as planned. It’s a fairly amusing, if crushingly corporate, way to promote the halftime show. However, at the end of the day, “fairly amusing but crushingly corporate” is a pretty fitting description for existence in 2024 so maybe the Super Bowl is simply playing 4D Chess.

Read More: Usher Invites Las Vegas Aces To Residency Show After Missing Championship Parade

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How To Watch Usher’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Performance

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At the moment, Usher is missing. At least, that’s the case in a fictional new teaser for his Super Bowl Halftime Show performance this weekend. Presumably, he’ll turn up between now and when it comes time for the big day. When Usher does take the field, here’s how to watch.

How To Watch Usher’s Super Bowl Halftime Show

The Super Bowl, and therefore Usher’s halftime performance, goes down on Sunday, February 11 at 6:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. PT. The most immediately obvious way to watch is on TV, as CBS will be broadcasting the game. Nickelodeon will have its own special broadcast of the game, too.

For those who don’t have cable, though, the game will be streaming on Paramount+. The service currently offers a one-week free trial by signing up here, so you can sign up and watch the game before any payments are taken from your account. If you don’t envision yourself wanting to hang onto Paramount+ after this weekend, there’s also the option to just cancel the trial once the game is over, if you’d like. (There are some great shows and movies on there, though.)

As for how to watch after the game, the halftime shows are usually made available online. Rihanna’s 2023 performance, for example, was shared on YouTube not long after it happened. In fact, you can still watch it here.

Usher Refutes Claim That R&B Is Dead, Says The Idea “Sounds Crazy”

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Usher paid tribute to the next generation of R&B artists during a new cover story for Billboard and says that anyone suggesting the genre is dead, “sounds crazy.” The comments come after SZA, Victoria Monét, and Coco Jones, among other artists were recognized at the Grammy Awards, last weekend.

“I’m very happy that there’s a new installation of R&B artists who care to be authentic to what they are creating, inspired by artists of the past,” he told the outlet. “Everybody who has ever said to me that R&B is dead sounds crazy. Especially when I know the origins of R&B are in all other genres of music.”

Read More: Usher Shares Tracklist And Features From His New Album

Usher Performs At The Songwriters Hall Of Fame Induction

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 16: Usher performs onstage at the Songwriters. Hall of Fame 51st Annual Induction and Awards Gala at Marriott Marquis on June 16, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Songwriters Hall of Fame)

The legendary singer continued: “My point is, I never felt like R&B was dying. I think it just needs expansion. We’re moving toward a standard where people are looking at snippets — TikTok, Instagram and other things — and when fans get it, they take it and do something with it. But if we start to think of it that way and create from that place, the standards for R&B will change. You won’t be able to compare it in an old-versus-new way. It’ll just be what it is.” He added that the genre needs more spaces similar to the Lovers & Friends Festival. “It’s about creating commerce in other spaces. Lovers & Friends is a successful R&B festival that gives you a place to go and celebrate the songs that we make,” Usher said. “We need things that you associate with R&B that you can buy into. Like with hip-hop — glasses, clothes, cars, jewelry, sneakers … ancillary things that people can access. R&B needs and has the potential to have those things as well.”

Usher Poses For Billboard

 
 
 
 
 
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Usher will be releasing a new album, Coming Home, on Friday. After that, he’s scheduled to bring his iconic catalog of hits to the Super Bowl Halftime Show on Sunday. Be on the lookout for further updates on Usher on HotNewHipHop.

Read More: Usher Announces “Past Present Future” Tour

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Will Ludacris And Lil Jon Perform With Usher At The Super Bowl Halftime Show?

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Usher is just a few days away from performing the Super Bowl Halftime Show at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium. Given he has had several hits throughout the years, and a ton of collaborators, it has raised the question if he’ll be bringing any surprise guests — or just tackling the show solo.

Will Ludacris And Lil Jon Perform With Usher At The Super Bowl Halftime Show?

Earlier this morning, a teaser for Usher’s performance dropped, and it takes an interesting premise. Ludacris, Lil Jon, and Taraji P. Henson are working on finding Usher, as apparently, he is missing. Considering he is set to have his new album, Coming Home, drop on Friday, maybe that is when they’ll be able to find him.

Yet, it also possibly teases Usher performing “Yeah” at the Super Bowl, with hopefully his original collaborators (Ludacris and Lil Jon) joining him on stage. Considering they appeared in the Apple Music video, and Apple sponsors the Halftime Show, the three playing the hit together feels like a safe bet.

As for some other potential collaborators that could join Usher, anyone from his new album could be fair game, including maybe even Jung Kook from BTS.

Other key options include “My Boo” with Alicia Keys, “Best Thing” with Jay-Z, and “Somebody To Love” with Justin Bieber — although the last one is a reach, as it’s Bieber’s track. Never say never.