Weeks ago, it was confirmed that Kendrick Lamar would headline the Super Bowl LIX halftime show. Since Lamar announced his performance, fans have been buzzing about what the rapper has in store for his set. One of the biggest questions revolves around whether he’ll reference Drake, who was engaged in a rap beef with him earlier this year. Amid Lamar and co.’s work on the SB show, Usher shared some good advice for him, but what I can’t get over is the singer’s humorous response to the notion of a Drake cameo during the show.
What Did Usher Have To Say About Kendrick Lamar’s Upcoming Halftime Show?
The “U Remind Me” performer knows better than most just what kind of pressure comes with performing at the biggest game of an NFL season. Usher Raymond performed at Super Bowl LVIII earlier this year, and absolutely crushed it. During his set, he brought out notable music stars like H.E.R. and Ludacris, who later celebrated a streaming milestone achieved, thanks to the performance.
On top of that, Usher also performed some of his greatest hits, like “Caught Up” and “Yeah.” And, when he appeared on Live with Kelly and Mark and was asked if he had advice for Kendrick Lamar, he shared three words:
Play the hits.
Usher emphasized that point, given the fact that a performer only has about 15 minutes to entertain an audience during a halftime show. That’s definitely smart, as a singer would want spark energy from the jump. Having seen the “My Boo” singer’s own SB performance, I’d say he did that in a big way. The sage advice he shared aside, the Grammy winner quickly became humorous when Mark Consuelos asked if he thought Kendrick Lamar would bring Drake out during the show. After taking off his shades, the “I Don’t Mind” performer declared:
You chose violence this morning, huh? Is that what we’re doing here?
Kelly Ripa then took the conversation a step further by suggesting that the “Moving Mountains” singer could “broker” a truce between his fellow entertainers. To that, he said, “I want no part of that.” You can check out his animated response to the Kendrick/Drake question in the video below:
Usher – who got married around the time he performed around the time he headlined the halftime show – doesn’t seem convinced that there’s going to be a “kumbaya” moment. Based on what went down between the two stars at the center of one of rap’s biggest beefs, that viewpoint is understandable.
How Did Kendrick Lamar And Drake Come Into Conflict?
What set the beef in motion was a guest verse on Kendrick Lamar’s on Future’s “Like That,” which threw shade at Drake and J. Cole’s “First Person Shooter.” On that latter track, the two artists claimed that they and Lamar were the rap game’s “big three.” From there, Lamar and Drake traded shots through a variety of diss tracks, with the latter star dropping “Push Ups” and “Taylor Made Freestyle.” Lamar, for his part, hit back with “Euphoria” and “6:16 in LA.”
The Kendrick Lamar And Drake Feud Just Took A Weird Turn, And A GoFundMe Is Involved
Eventually, the feud became very personal, with the two rappers slinging allegations at each other through their music. The Pulitzer Prize winner's shots at Drake - which were conveyed through “Meet the Grahams” and “Not Like Us” - were seen as particularly scathing.
Ultimately, many dubbed Kendrick Lamar the winner of the beef and, more recently, they viewed his selection for the Super Bowl halftime show as the icing on the proverbial cake. Lamar even nodded at Drake in the announcement video, prompting fans to add fuel to the idea that the “All the Stars” writer won the feud. I’d agree with Usher in that Lamar needs to break out the hits and that he likely won’t bring the Degrassi star on stage. However, stranger things have happened, right?
Be sure to tune in for the halftime show when Super Bowl LIX airs on Fox on February 9 amid the 2025 TV schedule.
