Super Bowl 2025 halftime show set list: Will Kendrick Lamar perform ‘Not Like Us'?

New York Times

09-02-2025

The Athletic has live coverage of the Super Bowl halftime performance featuring Kendrick Lamar.
Predicting Kendrick Lamar's set list for the Super Bowl LIX halftime show isn't easy, given his extensive catalog over the last 15-plus years.
In his interview Thursday with Apple Music's Ebro Darden and Nadeska Alexis, Lamar said he liked being the 'present,' and 'storytelling' should be expected from Sunday's performance. He also mentioned the show from his The Big Steppers Tour following his 'Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers' album lasted 90 minutes.
He's now tasked with telling a halftime story that will only last 13 minutes.
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I attended the Sacramento stop on The Big Steppers Tour in August 2022. Through his performance, Lamar told the story of the album cohesively while also mixing in his biggest hits. Lamar referencing that tour while discussing his upcoming halftime show lends credence to a thematic performance rather than a medley of hits from all his albums.
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It also helps that his latest work, 'GNX,' is a hit with songs that engage the crowd. The album, in many ways, is a tribute to the music that inspired Lamar from the 1980s and '90s. That alone provides for some potentially interesting visual ideas.
Will there be an actual black GNX — a 1987 Buick Grand National — on the halftime stage? Will there be guest artists tied to the 'GNX' story besides SZA, who has already been announced as part of the show leading up to the Grand National Tour this year? Will Lamar have us longing for the dance music of the 1980s? Maybe R&B of the '90s?
After winning five Grammy Awards for his track 'Not Like Us,' including Song of the Year and Record of the Year, it's hard to believe Lamar won't have that as part of the show. If a crowd of music stars and executives can yell lyrics at the Grammys, and if the beat to the song is played as part of the lead-up to the show, it doesn't seem that the legal issues with Spotify and Universal Music Group will keep the track from being a part of the show.
The entire crowd at the #GRAMMYs was singing along to Kendrick Lamar's "A Minor" line pic.twitter.com/1Ww9WYm2O0
— BAY AREA STATE OF MIND (@YayAreaNews) February 3, 2025
Keeping all of this in mind, Lamar is one of the most creative artists of his generation, and he could go in a completely different direction with his plans for halftime.
As we inch closer to the start of the halftime show, here is one final prediction on what we may hear at Caesars Superdome. This is a little different from the previously published set list predictions, as this one leans heavily into 'GNX' — in addition to some hits that might still work.
This should be a no-brainer, given the track has the line 'Walk in New Orleans with the etiquette of L.A.' Lamar said in the Apple Music interview he wants to bring the Los Angeles energy to the South because so many people in California have southern roots. Plus, the idea of Lamar yelling the 'Mustaarrrrd!' line with DJ Mustard on stage makes too much sense.
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Chance it's played: 100 percent
The first preview of this song was at the beginning of the 'Not Like Us' video. The sample of Debbie Deb's 1983 hit 'When I Hear Music' makes it something easy to dance to.
Chance it's played: 100 percent
Lamar said in a discussion with actor and film producer Timothée Chalamet that this song was the easiest to write on the album, and he meant every word of it. Lamar repeats 'I deserve it all' on the track. That is the kind of talk someone celebrating the accomplishment of playing at the Super Bowl would say on that stage. It's also a song that resonates across generations, as it is in the same vein of Nas' 2001 classic 'One Mic.' LeBron James is a public fan of the song, too. Why wouldn't Lamar use the song to take in the moment?
Chance it's played: 100 percent
Another sample from the 1980s — Luther Vandross and Cheryl Lynn's 1983 version of 'If This World Were Mine' — is in this song. It features SZA, and it's a hit.
Chance it's played: 100 percent
Another soulful track that fans have already mastered a line dance for. The Los Angeles Dodgers won the World Series in 2024. Lamar is often wearing a variation of a Dodgers hat. If he's walking 'in New Orleans with the etiquette of L.A.,' then a Dodgers song feels right.
Chance it's played: 90 percent
This song samples from SWV's 1996 hit 'Use Your Heart' and tells Lamar's story of how he climbed the ranks in the music industry, starting with his early days of simply trying to be noticed. Bringing SWV out for a guest appearance would resonate with Lamar's soulful roots. It also would be a chance to bring out the members of Top Dawg Entertainment who are mentioned on the song.
Chance it's played: 80 percent
This is a tribute to Tupac Shakur. If Lamar leans into a story of paying tribute to those who inspired him, a verse from this fits.
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Chance it's played: 75 percent
This song, a metaphor for hip-hop, has to be considered because it features SZA. The song also is one of three that features mariachi singer Deyra Barrera. Lamar heard her sing at Game 1 of the 2024 World Series as part of the tribute to Dodgers legend Fernando Valenzuela, who died before the series. Lamar often shows respect and admiration to Hispanic culture; Lamar collaborated with designer Willy Chavarria for his line of clothes for the Super Bowl. It would be a nod to Southern California if Lamar performed 'gloria' in New Orleans.
Chance it's played: 60 percent
This is one of my favorite songs on 'GNX.' The 'Black Noah, I just strangled me a goat' lyric is a Biblical reference, but also a subtle jab at Drake, who some consider a GOAT (greatest of all time) in the music world.
Chance it's played: 55 percent
This song is the first on the 'GNX' album. It mentions Lil Wayne, the New Orleans native who has said he will not be at the game. The song also mentions Snoop Dogg — whose loyalty Lamar questions — while having kind words for Nas. (Maybe it's Nas who is a surprise guest?)
Chance it's played: 50 percent
This track references being 'trophied up' and could get play just for that line alone, considering Lamar's recent Grammy success. (He has 22 Grammys total.)
Chance it's played: 40 percent
It's the title track, but it's also the song I have the hardest time seeing how Lamar fits in a 13-minute set. It features three other artists in Hitta J3, YoungThreat and Peysoh.
Chance it's played: 25 percent
No diss track ever collected awards like 'Not Like Us' did at the Grammys. The NFL is hands-on when it comes to what kind of language it allows in the halftime show, so this will be a cleaned-up portion of the song. But after the Grammys, it feels inevitable the world will be screaming 'A minorrrrrrr!'
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Chance it's played: 100 percent
This is the biggest hit of Lamar and SZA's collaborations. If SZA is a part of multiple songs, then this is a good bet to be on the list. Given the tour this year, it also fits Lamar being in the present with the performance.
Chance it's played: 90 percent
One of the hits from the Pulitzer Prize-winning album, 'DAMN.,' this song could be played should Lamar lean into some of his past hits.
Chance it's played: 80 percent
Here's another song from 'DAMN.' album that would translate well in a live show.
Chance it's played: 80 percent
This is another great live option, a track from Lamar's 2015 album 'To Pimp A Butterfly.'
Chance it's played: 60 percent
If there's a Lamar song more than a decade old that's worthy of the Super Bowl, it's this one from 2012.
Chance it's played: 50 percent
Lamar performed this three years ago as part of the Super Bowl halftime show with Dr. Dre. I can't see him bringing it back, but if he does, it'll be a hit.
Chance it's played: 25 percent
Remember when Lamar and Drake collaborated on tracks years ago? This is one of those tracks from back in the day. But now, there's a better chance of Tom Brady leaving the announcer's booth and playing in the game than Drake and Lamar performing together. Drake is on tour in Australia, so there's no chance of this happening in the first place.
Chance it's played: minus-1,000,000 percent