Rap has become the most popular genre, time to introduce the general public to it
Headliners: Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem
Special Guests: 50 Cent, Anderson .Paak (drumming)
Set list:
Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg - “The Next Episode”
Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg - “California Love” (originally by Tupac)
50 Cent - “In Da Club”
Mary J. Blige - “Family Affair”
Mary J. Blige - “No More Drama”
Kendrick Lamar - “m.A.A.d City”
Kendrick Lamar - “Alright”
Dr. Dre, Eminem - “Forgot About Dre”
Eminem - “Lose Yourself” (Anderson .Paak on the drums)
Dr. Dre - “I Ain’t Mad At Cha” (instrumental only, originally by Tupac)
Everyone - “Still D.R.E” (Originally by Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg)
Every February there’s a new Super Bowl and with it comes a new halftime show. With a fun game of the young Cincinnati Bengals facing the veteran Los Angeles Rams playing home at the SoFi stadium, came the first half time show headlined by rappers.
Because of that there were some high expectations, and they met them. Let’s start with the Headliners. Dr.Dre and Snoop Dogg were correct choices as they did a lot for the genre in the 90s and are from LA. Mary J. Blige is recognized as the queen of hip-hop and soul so she’s a no brainer. Eminem is one of if not the most recognizable and one of the best selling rappers worldwide, having his peak years in the 2000s. Kendrick Lamar is very popular and has already made a name for himself with the albums “good kid”, “m.A.A.d city” and “To Pimp A Butterfly” which makes many people think he’s the greatest of all time or at least one of them. He is also from LA. The Special Guests also did not disappoint. 50 Cent doing “In Da Club” while hanging upside down at the beginning like he does in the music video was all he needed to do, and Anderson .Paak drumming with energy made lose yourself stand out. Mary J, Eminem and 50 are not from LA but they were chosen because of what they mean to the genre.
The set list is full of classics by all the artists, for the genre and the area. The Tupac tributes don’t feel phoned in and sound great. Dre and Snoop showed off their chemistry and how they can still rap despite having aged quite a bit since 1999. 50 cent performing the beginning of “In Da Club” upside down was a nice callback to its music video. Mary J. Blige hit everyone with nostalgia performing “Family Affair”. Kendrick appealed to all his fans performing his most iconic song, m.A.A.d city for its storytelling and alright for its message (wish he didn’t censor the and we hate po-po line). Eminem had an amazing entrance and him kneeling after lose yourself despite the NFL telling him not to was the most Slim Shady thing he could do. The final leg with a Tupac - “I ain’t mad at cha” instrumental to “still D.R.E” and everyone joining in on “Still D.R.E” was the best way to end this memorable show. I loved the stage design too. It felt like a love letter to Compton as the stages are places in Compton and the map they stand on is Compton.
Definitely an unforgettable performance and one of the best, but it will take a generation before Prince’s halftime show gets overtaken for number 1, you know the one where he performed purple rain while it was pouring. Hopefully the NFL keeps providing more memorable experiences.