This weekend, the NFL, Apple Music, and Roc Nation revealed that rapper Kendrick Lamar would be the 2025 Tremendous Bowl Halftime performer. Making historical past as the primary rapper to headline the halftime present alone, Lamar says he seems to be ahead to bringing hip-hop to the forefront of the NFL championship.
“Rap music continues to be essentially the most impactful style to this point,” Lamar mentioned in a press release, as beforehand reported by theGrio. “And I’ll be there to remind the world why. They acquired the suitable one.”
“Kendrick Lamar is actually a once-in-a-generation artist and performer. His deep love for hip-hop and tradition informs his inventive imaginative and prescient. He has an unparalleled potential to outline and affect tradition globally. Kendrick’s work transcends music, and his influence will probably be felt for years to come back,” Jay-Z, proprietor of Roc Nation which co-produces the halftime present, added, per Rolling Stone.
As Lamar joins the unique membership of Tremendous Bowl Halftime headliners, social media customers famous the consecutive showcase of Black artists on the NFL championship sport in recent times. Since 2021, the Tremendous Bowl halftime present has been Blackity Black, with performances from headlining performances from The Weeknd, Dr. Dre, Rihanna, Usher, and now Kendrick.
2024 has been an explosive 12 months for the Compton rapper. After present process a public rap beef with Drake, Lamar was topped victorious with the discharge of his track ”Not Like Us,” which rapidly topped the charts. Resting on the primary spot on the Billboard “Scorching 100s” listing for weeks, the diss observe and music video arguably turned the track of the summer season. A lot so, that in his Juneteenth live performance “The Pop Out,” the rapper carried out the track back-to-back 5 instances — a stunt some followers predict he’ll reprise on the Tremendous Bowl stage.
“Bros bout to carry out Not Like Us 1,000,000 instances on the present,” one person wrote on X.
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“Drake followers when their group is down 14 at halftime and Kendrick performs not like us 6 instances,” one other person joked on X.
Whereas some followers are inserting bets on what number of instances the rapper will carry out his hit track, others are outraged by the NFL’s headliner selection. With the 2025 Tremendous Bowl scheduled to happen in New Orleans, many on social media anticipated New Orleans native Lil Wayne to be appointed Tremendous Bowl headliner. Following the Compton rapper’s announcement, fellow rappers like Cam’ron and Grasp P shared their ideas on the Tremendous Bowl LIX halftime resolution.
“Pay attention, I like Kendrick Lamar… I hate the choice,” Cam’ron mentioned on a brand new episode of his podcast. “It’s in New Orleans and also you don’t get Lil Wayne? That’s what we doing? You don’t get Lil Wayne in New Orleans for the Tremendous Bowl? … There’s no motive why Lil Wayne shouldn’t be performing within the Tremendous Bowl.”
After saluting Kendrick Lamar for performing on the halftime present, Grasp P echoed Cam’ron’s sentiments on Instagram: “As Ambassador of Leisure within the Metropolis of New Orleans, I’ve to agree with the followers that @liltunechi #LilWayne ought to be part of this celebration as nicely. He’s one of many biggest [Hip] Hop artists alive, nonetheless related and he’s a New Orleans native. Let’s not miss this cultural second within the South…Now we have to offer our legends their flowers whereas they’re right here.”
Whereas there may be nonetheless an opportunity Lamar brings out Lil Wayne as a particular visitor onstage, it’s clear that Lamar’s disdain for Drake lives on. Within the video asserting his plans to carry out on the Tremendous Bowl, Lamar shadily claps again at Drake, who reportedly teased a “spherical two” of their feud.
My identify is Kendrick Lamar, and I will probably be acting at Tremendous Bowl 59. Will you be pulling up? I hope so,” the Compton rapper mentioned. “You already know it’s just one alternative to win a championship — no spherical twos.”
