For The Win
Kendrick Lamar absolutely rocked the crowd in New Orleans with his electric performance during halftime of Super Bowl LIX. But the bombastic rapper’s show wasn’t a total solo act. He had some help from a few special guests.
Actor Samuel L. Jackson was the first guest to appear, dressed a bit like the classic and patriotic Uncle Sam and performing as a narrator of sorts for the show, warning Kendrick to not go overboard and give the audience what they want.
Next to show up was SZA, who performed two songs alongside Kendrick, including the Oscar-nominated “All The Stars” from 2018’s Black Panther.
And then, perhaps most unexpectedly – while Kendrick performed his Grammy-winning “Not Like Us” – the camera panned to tennis legend Serena Williams, who was dancing along to the track in the middle of the field. Her appearance was no coincidence or accident. It’s worth noting that Kendrick and Serena both hail from Compton, California.
After the show, Williams said, “I did not crip-walk like that at Wimbledon. I would’ve been fined!”
Serena Williams makes an appearance during Kendrick Lamar’s performance of “Not Like Us” at the #SuperBowlLIX halftime show pic.twitter.com/3LzvubFcWs
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) February 10, 2025
The last guest appearance was by DJ Mustard, who emerged when Kendrick began performing “TV Off,” which the DJ produced.
Let’s consider for a moment that not only did Kendrick Lamar parlay his hatred for Drake into a diss track that became a Grammy-winning summer anthem, but also into a Super Bowl performance that got the greatest tennis player of all-time dancing to it on national television. Drake is never recovering from this, y’all.
