Listen to Kendrick Lamar’s new album, GNX on Spotify.

Apple Music catapulted us into Kendrick’s set and it starts with a loading game countdown with the floor having playstation buttons and him squatting on the hood of a GNX car rapping. Halfway through, the car door opens and dancers in red, white, and blue outfits start to spill out of the car for what seems like an endless amount of time. At this point I knew we were in for a show.

It was never lost on me that people aren’t familiar with Kendrick’s performances. It was clear to me that many people never saw the Amazon Prime exclusive film Mr. Morale and The Big Steppers Tour: Live in Paris. Or maybe they’ve never seen his Coachella set, BET set, Grammy set or MTV set (my favorite). After this Super Bowl performance, I realized that while many are familiar with his way of performance, a lot of people are not.

Over the years Kendrick has proven himself time and time again that rapping is only half the job. You have to be able to perform and actually be really damn good at it. Kendrick’s Super Bowl performance was a culmination of every performance he’s done in the 20 years he’s been on the scene.

Now, getting into the details of the show, I am not going to break down the 1,000 “meanings” that fans and critics alike have come up with over the last few weeks. It’s honestly exhausting and everything Kendrick does can be interpreted by the viewer. There’s no right or wrong, just what you believe it to be.

Samuel L. Jackson as “Uncle Sam” for Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl LIX Halftime show

Uncle Sam, played by Samuel L. Jackson, starts us with “… and this is the great AMERICAN game!” with ‘START HERE’ crowd lights + arrow pointing to Kendrick squatting on the car. Kendrick once again teases the “Tiramisu” snippet but a bit longer than his clip previewed on pgLang’s Instagram account right before he surprised dropped GNX. “The Revolution bout to be televised you picked the right time but the wrong guy.”

Kendrick goes on with his performance with Squabble Up. Immediate peep: the “a” chain. FWIW, this is the logo for his label, pgLang… this was also shown on the black flags with children holding up the a. Not in relation to the “a-minor” line. :) One thing you can appreciate is this guy’s stamina. I mean he did mention waking up at 6AM and running 3-4 miles a day (on Not Like Us he mentions 6) so I can imagine his stamina is probably the best out of anyone you know.

Let’s talk about this really quick. Rappers giving a top tier performance is a relatively new thing. Back in the day, rappers would walk around the stage with 50 homies and just rap their songs. No theatrics, no choreography, just RAP and even that “simple” of a thing became lost as time went on. In recent years, majority of rappers have become lazy and have decided they are just going to do a little jump here and there and point the mic to US for US to do the work for them! It’s embarrassing for someone who defends rap or hip-hop in general to have to constantly overlook a rap artist’s performance and go back to “but the album was great!” Concert tickets are too costly for you not to do your absolute very best for your fans. Even if that means getting in the gym, eating well or hiring choreographers.

My favorite performers in recent years (last 10 years or so) have been Cole, Tyler the Creator, Doechii, Doja Cat, and obviously Kendrick. Megan Thee Stallion is a great example of a new artist who didn’t have the best stage presence in the beginning of her craft but cared enough to put in the work and develop into a phenomenal live performance act. I often call Megan Thee Stallion and Kendrick Lamar the Beyoncé’s of Rap because their performances are the best of the best every time. These artists understand showmanship and making concert goers’ funds worthwhile to spend.

This is why I didn’t understand the thought behind people saying all Kendrick did was rap and run around. Your favorite rapper (unless listed above) cannot do half of what Kendrick did off of breath control alone. It’s not an easy feat and I wish more people respected the art form they so call love.

“…too loud, too reckless, too… ghetto. Mr. Lamar, do you really know how to play the game? Then tighten up!” Uncle Sam says as we move into HUMBLE which is what America wants Blacks to be. Sit in your corner, be good, and don’t cause any trouble. I thought the set up for HUMBLE was really cool as it’s a callback to the HUMBLE video.

The dancers are also in formation to resemble an American flag, keeping the American façade afloat while we also move into DNA. DNA shifts into Euphoria (best song from the battle aside from 6:16 in LA) with crowd lights saying “WARNING WRONG WAY”. This was a pleasant find when I went back to rewatch because when you think about the beef and the order of events, Euphoria was Kendrick’s warning song to Drake.

An a cappella version of Man at the Garden, which was hinted multiple times that it would be performed, leads us back to Uncle Sam, “…see you brought your homeboys with you. The old culture cheat code. Scorekeeper, deduct one life.” This line still has my brain in a tizzy as far as what is really meant here. “Deduct one life” means a homie died and Uncle Sam is partly responsible for this because Kendrick decided to bring them in when historically there’s always only been room for one. America will allow one or two Blacks out the hood and the cheat code is, if I get on I’m bringing my homies with me. But America thinks there’s nothing worse than putting your hood on (bringing your hood with you). My question is, who do you think the scorekeeper is in this game?

Now we move on to the party. Peekaboo. A fast favorite amongst fans of the GNX album, Kendrick had me tickled when he popped up on the word “Peekaboo”. Shoutout to AzChike too, Kendrick actually performed the first few lines of his verse of this song.

“Ladies.” “Yes Dot?” “I wanna make a move.” “Fo sho.” “I wanna perform they favorite song.” “But you know they love to sue.” “What song?” Not Like Us interlude plays. “Yeah that song.” “That song?” “Oh maybe I’ll think about it.” “Oh no.” “Know what? I’ll slow it down. Say ladies do me this solid.” Pivot to Luther.

SZA and Kendrick share the stage as both first time Super Bowl performers, Super Bowl LIX

SZA is on the triangle stage (remember, this is a game) and Kendrick walks over to her to perform Luther. I am not here to debate on whether or not she was lip syncing but she looked great! Next, we transition to All the Stars on the circle stage before we are met by Uncle Sam one last time.

“Yeahhh! That’s what I’m talking about. That’s what America wants. Nice, calm. You’re almost there. Don’t. Mess. This…” Not Like Us interlude plays again. “Oh no!” “It’s a cultural divide I’mma get it on the flo.” “You really bout to do it?” “40 acres and a mule this is bigger than the music.” “You really bout to do it?” “Yeah they tried to rig the game but you can’t fake influence.” “Then get on it like that.” “Ayo I’m trippin. I’m slidin. I’m ridin through the back like… Mustard on the beat bro.”

And we have arrived.

Kendrick smiles during Not Like Us at Super Bowl LIX

Kendrick finds himself going around in a circle and rapping, avoiding eye contact with the cameras until this line “Say Drake… I hear you like em young". Kendrick looks directly into the camera with the most diabolical mischievous smile. Instant meme.

“Tryna strike a chord and it’s prolly a-minoooorrrrrrrr” - yes. The crowd said this part and production decided to drop out the backtrack so those at home could hear it. Every one is petty! Seeing Kendrick performing Not Like Us for the first time since The Pop Out show was great. Outside of the beef, it truly is a really good bop and I get joy whenever I hear it and I can’t help but to dance and sing along. It reminds me of a moment in time, and I believe this is true for everyone, of where I was when all the beef started to where we are now.

Cut to THE Serena Williams C-walking on stage. I lost my mind. She deserves this moment and I IMMEDIATELY thought of her doing the C-walk at Wimbeldon in 2012 and how America’s reaction was so harsh. This was a win for her! I have seen a lot of people say she was there because her and Drake are also not cool but I want to remind you that this is bigger than the music. This was Serena’s get back for Wimbeldon, if Drake is a casualty then so be it.

“I go by the name K.Dot, Dot, Kendrick Lamar, Oklama, Mr. Morale. This is GNX. We come all the way from Compton, California to party with y’all. Let me hear you say… MUUUUSSSSTTTAAAAAAARRRRRDDDDD!!!!!!!!”

Kendrick brings out producer Mustard, also first time Super Bowl appearance, Super Bowl LIX

Mustard comes out and joins Kendrick for tv off. A wholesome moment and yes, the crowd screams Mustard’s name. Mustard also had an incredible year and deserved his own post which will be coming soon. But for now, we finish up the Super Bowl with Kendrick walking away from the camera and saying “turn his tv off, turn his…” and while acting like he has a remote in his hand he “turns the tv off”, music stops, static sound and stage black. Crowd lights say, “GAME OVER”.

GAME OVER crowd lights at the end of Kendrick’s Super Bowl LIX performance

What’s next for Kendrick? Well we know the GNX tour is starting in April but before that, we will all be waiting and wondering if this Friday or the next is a Luther video, the Clipse feature, or a deluxe album. Personally, I don’t care what the man does. It’s true, I may still be a little hungry because it’s been 5 years, but I feel fed for now. He could drop, or not, and I’ll be fine until the tour. See you in LA Ken!

Kendrick Lamar wins the Super Bowl LIX