Final yr, Kendrick Lamar legendarily carried out “Not Like Us” 5 occasions in a row at his Juneteenth Pop Out live performance on the Kia Discussion board in Los Angeles.
And he in all probability might’ve finished it a minimum of thrice in a row for the entire 13 minutes of his Tremendous Bowl halftime-show set — and everyone would’ve been joyful.
That’s the type of hype power that “Not Like Us” delivered to the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans halfway via the Tremendous Bowl LIX showdown between the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday evening.
In spite of everything, attendees have been all Serena Williams — bopping alongside to her fellow Compton-native as a shock backup dancer.
Though there had been some discuss that Lamar may not carry out the controversial Drake diss observe that even had the “God’s Plan” rapper sue Common Music Group — the umbrella document firm that he and Lamar share — actually there was nearly as a lot of an opportunity of him not doing the battle rap traditional as Taylor Swift not displaying as much as cheer on Travis Kelce.
Lamar didn’t shrink back from taking intention at Drake, as he even rocked a blinged out “a” chain for the mic-drop lyric “Try to strike a chord and it’s probably A minor.” However he did keep away from the one most damning phrase the place he calls him a “pedophile.”
On this evening, “Not Like Us” had come to represent greater than the epic Drake beef, with a common attraction — and a sickeningly infectious beat by DJ Mustard — made for Tremendous Bowl-sized consumption.
After all, Lamar is larger than one music. And with Samuel L. Jackson opening the proceedings and presiding over the festivities like a pseudo Uncle Sam, he and his military of dancers have been in pink, white and blue formation as they took the stage from his signature GNX to his current No. 1 hit “Squabble Up.” It was as applicable of a theme as you may have for the Tremendous Bowl.
“The revolution about to be televised,” he stated.
Dressed down in a bomber, baseball cap and denims — this will go down as probably the most informal halftime present match of all time — Lamar went into his 2017 chart-topper “Humble” together with his dancers in lockstep. It made for a stable one-two punch to start the present.
However then there was a little bit of a lull with the “Damn” album observe “DNA” and two numbers from Lamar’s new LP “GNX” — “Man at the Garden” and “Peekaboo” — that solely hardcore Kendrick followers would know surrounding “Euphoria,” one other Drake diss observe.
However then SZA got here to the rescue on their hits “All the Stars” and “Luther,” injecting a welcome dose of feminine feels, though it will’ve been good if she additionally did one among her solo songs, say “Kill Bill.” And it was a little bit of letdown that her look was no shock.
Lamar surprisingly didn’t exit with a bang with “Not Like Us,” as an alternative sending it off with “TV Off,” one other “GNX” observe. It was an anticlimactic ending as a result of the place are you able to go after “Not Like Us”?
There have been absolutely different songs that would’ve made for a greater set checklist, beginning with Lamar’s Black Lives Matter anthem “Alright.” Nevertheless, maybe he didn’t wish to repeat that after performing it on the 2022 Tremendous Bowl through the Dr. Dre-led hip-hop extravaganza additionally that includes Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Snoop Dogg and 50 Cent.
However even “Swimming Pools (Drank),” “Backseat Freestyle,” “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe,” “I” or “King Kunta” would’ve made this set pop extra. And what about “Like That,” the posse reduce with Future and Metro Boomin that obtained the Drake beef cooking final yr?
And this was lacking a few of the manufacturing razzle dazzle we’re accustomed to seeing on the largest stage within the sport.
Nonetheless, as the primary solo rapper to headline the halftime present, it was all about “Not Like Us.”
Final week, the music received Lamar 5 Grammys, together with Document and Track of the 12 months. It was solely the second time {that a} rap observe captured these two prestigious gramophones, after Infantile Gambino’s “This Is America” in 2019.
Taking the Pulitzer Prize winner to a different, career-redefining stage, the ultimate salvo in his battle with Drake became a hip-hop anthem for the ages — and turned Lamar right into a Tremendous Bowl halftime present headliner.
