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Super Bowl halftime performers Dr. Dre, Snoop Dog, Mary J. Blige, Eminem and Kendrick Lamar all took the stage this year to put on a legendary show. Millennials and Gen Xers all joined hands to celebrate this high-profile lineup of hip-hop royalty, with their combined total of 44 Grammy Awards.
The show began with Dr. Dre. The 56-year-old producer, rapper and mogul presided over the festivities like the hip-hop boss that he is. Not only has he proudly repped California from day one — helping to put West Coast rap on the map — but his work with all of the other artists on the stage has propelled them to some of their highest heights.
Snoop Dog came out to rap alongside Dr. Dre showcasing a California family reunion with “California Love” – Snoop filling in for the late Tupac Shakur. You could feel all of the love beaming through the stadium.
Mary J. Blige stood out, being the only female amongst the male rappers. She performed her Dre-produced hit “Family Affair”, followed by “No More Drama”. Picking things back up from her dramatic ballad, Eminem came out in his signature black hoodie to perform is Oscar-winning No. 1 hit “Lose Yourself”. A perfectly song to get the crowd hyped during the midway of the big game.
A more recognizable face to the newer generations was Kendrick Lamar – another California native. He performed his socially charged single “Alright” in a dramatic, theatrical bit, as he does.
With the five performers set in stone, the crowd went wild to see the surprise guest 50 Cent performing his Dre-produced hit “In Da Club”.
This halftime show, which scanned as an oasis of racial comity if not quite progressivism, was the third orchestrated as part of a partnership between the N.F.L. and Jay-Z’s entertainment and sports company, Roc Nation, that was struck in the wake of the kneeling protests spawned by Colin Kaepernick in 2016. And so there was Eminem, rapping “Opportunity comes once in a lifetime” at the end of “Lose Yourself,” putting his right hand to his head, and dropping down on his left knee.
Progressive, powerful and simply legendary.
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