A Breakdown of Kendrick Lamar’s Half-Time Performance at the Superbowl LIX

By Amara Miller and Lexi Sam

The Superbowl is always one of the most anticipated musical performances each and every year and Kendrick Lamar’s Halftime Performance at Superbowl LIX is no exception. Breaking all viewing records, his performance was viewed over 133.5 million times and blew up on social media platforms. I’m sure you have all seen it (or at least heard of some of the most iconic parts) but in case you are living under a rock, we thought we would give you a breakdown of why Kendrick’s performance was so significant and controversial within the media.

Kendrick Lamar’s halftime performance brought shockwaves through the media, not only displaying 13 minutes of pure musical mastery but teasing popular culture with numerous hidden gems. A performance not only meant to ‘entertain’ thousands of people in the stands and at home, Kendrick aimed to tell a story that challenged audiences to reflect on America’s troubled past in terms of race and aims to seek social justice. 

The show begins with Samuel L Jackson assuming the role of Uncle Sam. Who is

Uncle Sam you ask? This guy! A common symbol of patriotic America, used heavily for propaganda. Uncle Sam is basically the embodiment of the US government. It’s a pretty political statement, to start America's most loved game. 

Uncle Sam says, “This is the greatest American game” , not only showing how seriously Americans take their NFL but alludes to American citizens being used as pawns in society. This idea of control or lack thereof is also seen in the playstation controller set of the performance. With displaying the classic ‘❌’, ‘⭕’, ‘🟥’ and ‘🔺’. To the untrained eye, it looks like Kendrick just likes games, but these images link to the idea ‘Game of Life’, how life can be so transient depending on how you play the game. (It’s pretty deep for some shapes). Some people online have also theorised for these shapes combined with the red jumpsuits of some of the dancers to refer to ‘Squid Games’ where life and death is dependent on how you play, but this isn’t Kendrick’s confirmed vision.

Kendrick then starts his performance by saying “The revolution is about to be televised, you picked the right time but the wrong guy”, making a direct political statement. To break it down, he is essentially saying that if the American government was looking for an innocent and entertaining performance then they have picked the wrong person. Now is when change has to be made, Kendrick recognises, and he is here to be heard and make change about the treatment of African American people in history and now, directly speaking those in power.

His performance of new song, ‘squabble up’, directly highlights this idea - of a political performance. The term ‘squabble up’ is often colloquially used to mean, ‘get ready to dance’ or ‘get ready to fight’. The intention behind this, draws the attention was Lamar’s role as more than just an entertainer. His origins from Compton, highlight a personal commentary on violence. However, the style of dance used by the dancer is a combination of both dancing and fighting. This combination of the two, dance and fighting coined ‘Krumping’ is a popular African American street dance used as an expression against the ongoing cycle of oppression for African Americans. He used an all African American dance squad linked to Lamar’s strong sense of advocacy, using his platform to give back to his community Compton and also ensuring he gives opportunities to African Americans.  These dancers through their performance and costume symbolised how the US government is essentially forcing society to be controlled players in the game.One Tiktok pointed out that  the dancers in white were marching ‘to the beat of the American drum’ and the dancers in red were fighting back. To summarise, these dancers highlight the oppression inflicted by the US government through their dance to squabble up, with the dancers in red, ready to ‘squabble up’ against the cause. 

Once again, Uncle Sam is back. Acting as a mediator and representation of the American government, Samuel L Jackson says “too loud, too reckless, too ghetto. Mr Lamar, do you really know how to play the game?” This interruption of the performance acts as an attempt to censor Kendrick’s performance given its hoodlike roots and inclusion of African American culture. Kendrick’s brilliance is also seen in this as he anticipates the criticism government officials would make around his performance (specifically aware that the MAGA crowd, with US President Donald Trump watching from the stands, would not be too fond of his political statements). Unsurprisingly, the backlash from MAGA leaders post-performance was as Lamar predicted with MAGA loyalist and congressman Matt Gaetz saying: "The halftime show you just watched is obviously the regime's response to Trump's historic gains with black men." as well as reports of Donald Trump himself leaving “fuming” after Kendrick’s powerful performance.

Then Lamar’s 2017 cult favourite ‘HUMBLE.’ is performed. As the beat drops the performances ensemble in the pattern of the American flag. A clear link to America’s not so humble beginnings. Rather a country built off the continuous enslavement of African peoples through the trans Alantic slave trade. It's kinda crazy how the colours blue, red and white in a particular arrangement comments on so much. Anyways, Kendrick skillfully uses the American Flag to demonstrate how America was built off the backs of African American people, on the stolen land of the Native Americans. Then the American flag splits into two a clear representation of the longstanding social tension and divide in America. Kind of ironic, given its called the ‘United States of America’. Many people also speculate that the divide of the flag may also comment on the current ethical debate of immigration within the US. 

As ‘euphoria’ begins to play, “WARNING WRONG WAY” is projected in stadium lights as shown. We believe this could be a direct statement to society that America is moving backward socially and politically. This could be in reference to the treatment of African American people in the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement or simply just social commentary on the Republican party gaining power once more and enforcing more racist views into American laws.

Kendrick begins to perform ‘man at the garden’ with a group of African American dancers in the back all bopping along and sitting together to the beat of the song. And once again, Uncle Sam returns saying “Ah, I see you brought your homeboys with you. The ol’ culture cheat code. Score keeper, deduct one life”. This concept of ‘deducting lives’ is a reference to the ‘George Floyd’ incident and Black Lives Matter movement in seeing this African-American culture thrive and “threaten” the government and society. Lamar is commentating on this idea of just removing people and identities from society if those in power in the American system feel intimidated by them.

Then in true half-time performance fashion, Kendrick brings out Solana Imani Rowe, Grammy awarding artist SZA. For all you SZA fans, we were dying with excitement, the moment we saw the camera pan onto her red outfit. As SZA walks on, Uncle Sam comes back saying, “Yes, this is what America wants. Nice and calm.” Given that SZA, is 6th in the most monthly listeners in America there is no doubt that to popular culture she is what America wants yet when Uncle Sam says this it has a deeper meaning. If we go back to the overarching idea, this performance offered a glimpse into the ideals of America, All the Stars being a ballad for ambition, and staying authentic while reaching for greatness. Sounds a little like the American dream. This entire performance follows an ongoing struggle of conformity as Kendrick performs a myriad of songs that Uncle Sam ie. America doesn’t agree. Thus, ‘All the Stars’ and ‘Luther’ present a change in pace as they are both beautiful songs highlighting ambition, empowerment and love. 

And probably the song you have all been waiting for, 5-time Grammy winner and our favourite diss track of all time, ‘Not Like Us’!! Social media pretty much blew up overnight as fans fought to pick sides (Team Kendrick all the way). It even caused so much uproar that Drake actually filed a defamation lawsuit against Lamar’s record label Universal Music Group. So in this performance when the melody begins to play, Kendrick says “you know they love to sue”, he is directly challenging and taunting Drake, unafraid to sing “everyone’s favourite song.” I am sure we have all seen that mischievous smile as Kendrick name drops him in front of millions of people. 

He continues the introduction linking back to his political agenda, singing Kendrick starts and says, “it's a cultural divide I’ma get it on the floor” linking to the ongoing cultural divide in America seen in the splitting of the American flag. The continuous repetition of the backup dancers saying “you really bout to do it”, affirm the significance of this moment as Kendrick is about to openly slam Drake to an 133.5 million. This pre-rap continues asserting, “40 acres and a mule this is bigger than the music.” A line going over most of our heads, this is one of the most powerful and direct lines of the entire performance. Alluding to the reparations former slaves received after the Civil War, ‘40 acres and a mule’. However once Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, the orders he had made were reversed and so Lamar highlights this historical injustice that still impacts the racial and economic disparities in America today. 

Some other notable gems in this iconic song was Serena Williams' cameo, another one of Drake’ exes. Serena Williams' cameo in ‘Not Like Us'  held great significance as it was rumored that both her and Drake used to date. In Drake’s song “Worst Behaviour”, Drake refers to Serena’s husband Alexis as a ‘groupie’. Thus, this moment was the ultimate moment of karma as Serena literally danced on her hater. Outside their beef, it was also a reference to Serena’s celebration at Wimbledon during the 2012 Olympics after beating Sharapova. For all you tennis lovers, we know Serena can c-walk for days. She even commented that if she had danced that hard at Wimbledon, she would have been fined. It’s great to see that after all those years she’s still got it. 

To close out what is arguably the most intricate Super Bowl Halftime Show ever,

Kendrick Lamar brings out his friend and LA-based producer, Mustard, adding a final touch of significance to the moment. Mustard, who famously produced the beat for the Grammy-winning hit Not Like Us in just 30 minutes, embodies the rapid evolution of artistry and success. His brief but powerful cameo underscores not only his own journey but also the weight of these 13 minutes in music history. As the performance ends with the repeated phrase, “Turn this TV off,” the message is clear— for the audience to listen to Lamar’s call to action. As well as this, “GAME OVER” projected into the crowd as if to say the game is over now it’s time for the real world. Lamar calls for us to step away from screens and engage with the world, possessing our own autonomy, making the performance not just entertainment, but a rallying cry for action. 

All that in 13 minutes! Kendrick Lamar’s genius is shown through the detailed symbolism and storytelling in the Superbowl LIX Half-time performance. The revolution was televised, interrupting one of the greatest sporting events in the world to promote genuine change for the good of all. But has Lamar done enough?