Hip-hop artist Kendrick Lamar will perform at the Apple Music Super Bowl LIX halftime show, marking his second performance at the event in the last four years.
The announcement comes after a big year from Lamar. The artist has gone through a very high-profile musical feud with Toronto rapper and R&B artist Drake, which has led to the release of his hit songs, including “Not Like Us” and “Meet The Grahams.”
The rapper had previously showcased at Superbowl LVI in Los Angeles alongside musical guests Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, 50 Cent and Anderson .Paak, which was dubbed a “West Coast Takeover.”
With this being Lamar’s second Superbowl performance, it only furthers his outstanding accomplishments. In 2018, he was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in Music for his 2017 album, “DAMN.,” where he was not only the first hip-hop artist awarded the Pulitzer, but he was also the first non-classical or jazz musician to achieve the prize.
Despite this being a major announcement, some believe Lamar headlining the show was a dropped ball on the organization’s part.
There had been buzz that New Orleans-born rapper Lil Wayne was set to be this year’s performer. After the announcement, Lil Wayne took to Instagram to express his thoughts.
“It hurt a lot,” Lil Wayne said in a post. “It broke me, but I’m just trying to put myself back together.”
Since the announcement, there has been a slew of mixed opinions surrounding Lamar and Wayne. Some have even brought other rappers into the conversations. Ex-rappers Mase and Cam’ron took to their podcast, “It Is What It Is,” to criticize Lamar for being chosen.
“Listen, I love Kendrick Lamar,” Cam said. “I think he’s one of the top artists of this generation. [I] Hate the selection. It’s in New Orleans. You don’t get Lil Wayne?”
Cam’rons not the only one who believes this. Popular American media personality Joe Budden, took to his own podcast claiming Jay-Z advocated for Lamar to be the performer, because of his alleged hatred towards Drake. By picking Lamar, it meant a major snub towards the Canadian rapper because of his close friendship with Lil Wayne.
Lamar hasn’t released a statement regarding Wayne or the “snub” since his initial announcement.
Regardless of how the media has reacted, Kendrick Lamar can look forward to joining the small list of artists who have been on the Super Bowl stage more than once.