On Feb. 13, the long-awaited Super Bowl halftime show took place at the SoFi Stadium. There were five headline artists consisting of Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar. This was the first halftime show to have a lineup of all hip-hop artists. When added up, there are 43 Grammys and 21 Billboard No.1 albums among them. 

When this lineup was announced, there was a largely positive reaction from the public. An older generation who were in their teens and twenties in the ‘90s and 2000s were ecstatic to get a halftime show that was nostalgic to them. 

This excitement carried over into the actual performance itself. The packed setlist began with Snoop Dogg performing “The Next Episode,” soon after being joined by Dr. Dre to do “California Love.” 50 Cent then made a surprise appearance, performing his own song, “In Da Club” accompanied by a large group of dancers. Wearing an all white outfit complete with almost mirror-like animal print, Mary J. Blige began her set with “Family Affair” and transitioned into “No More Drama.” After nearly five years of being more secluded, Kendrick Lamar performed “m.A.A.D. City” and “Alright.” 

When Eminem took the stage, the crowd roared as he began to rap “Lose Yourself.” The performance was closed out with Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre singing “Still D.R.E,” while the other performers stood alongside them. 

The performance was complete with a huge platform with dancers and five individual rooms, each one seemingly correlating to a specific artist. Dancers and musicians galore, this performance would not have been complete without every single person involved. The high-energy dancing and performing heavily contributed to the positive crowd reaction. 

Despite the positive crowd reaction, there were some controversies surrounding Eminem’s performance. The New York Times mentioned that at the end of his set, he took a knee. It is unclear if that was in solidarity with former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick or to show respect to Tupac, as he took a knee as Dr. Dre began to play a Tupac song. In 2016, Kaepernick took a knee during the National Anthem in a protest against police brutality and racial discrimination. 

Eminem’s action caused outrage, especially with people who have more conservative views. “A league spokesman, Brian McCarthy, said on Sunday that the NFL was aware Eminem was going to kneel because officials ‘watched it during rehearsals this week,’” according to The New York Times. 

In recent years, there have been a wide variety of artists performing the Super Bowl halftime show. Past halftime shows include The Weeknd in 2021 and Shakira, Jennifer Lopez, Bad Bunny, J Balvin and Emme Muñiz in 2020. In 2019, Maroon 5 headlined and had Travis Scott and Big Boi as guests. The show this year generated hype from viewers of all ages and had more anticipation than years past. This performance had much more going on and it could have easily been too much, but it was balanced perfectly, making it a worthwhile show to watch and enjoy.