Who's performing in Super Bowl halftime show? What to know about Kendrick Lamar
To be chosen as a performer at the Super Bowl halftime show can be a gift to those who accept the invitation from the NFL.
With an expected audience of over 100 million people watching the Super Bowl, the exposure can boost record sales and bring a whole new audience to a genre of music that some may not be familiar with.
This year's Super Bowl halftime performer is award-winning hip-hop artist Kendrick Lamar. Lamar has performed at a previous Super Bowl as he was a co-headliner with Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, 50 Cent, and Mary J. Blige at Super Bowl 56 in Inglewood, California. That performance won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Special (Live).
What to know about Kendrick Lamar
Kendrick Lamar Duckworth was born on June 17, 1987, in Compton, California.
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He was first signed to Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records and released his first album, "Section.80", in 2011. His next release catapulted him into the mainstream with 2012's "Good Kid, M.A.A.D City," which has spent more than 12 years on the Billboard 200 album charts. His albums have sold nearly 8 million copies in the United States, with four hitting No. 1 on the charts.
Kendrick Lamar awards
Kendrick Lamar is one of the most decorated hip-hop artists in history, winning 17 Grammy awards, including wins for Best Rap Album, DAMN. (2018) and for Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers (2023)
This year, he has been nominated for seven Grammy awards: Record of the Year, Song of the Year, twice for Best Rap Performance, twice for Best Rap Song, and Best Music Video.
Lamar has also won 37 BET Hip Hop Awards and seven Billboard Music Awards, but what has set him apart is winning the 2018 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Music for his album DAMN., becoming the first non-classical or jazz artist to be awarded.
The Pulitzer Board said that DAMN. was "a virtuosic song collection unified by its vernacular authenticity and rhythmic dynamism that offers affecting vignettes capturing the complexity of modern African-American life."
Beef with Drake
Rap beefs are part of hip-hop culture as the music itself and the latest war of words between top-selling artists have involved hurt feelings, internet chatter, and numerous lawsuits. The beginning of the Lamar-Drake beef seems to be the 2024 release of "Like That" by Lamar, Future, and Metro Boomin. Lamar then released "Euphoria" and "6:16 in LA," and Drake hit back with "Family Matters."
Lamar then returned with "Not Like Us," a No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit that is nominated for five Grammy awards this year and has been streamed more than one billion times. In the song, Lamar accuses Drake of being a pedophile.
In January 2025, Drake sued Universal Music Group in federal court for defamation and harassment over 'Not Like Us," saying that the record label released the song even though pedophilia allegations against him are false.
"The lawsuit is not about the artist who created 'Not Like Us,'" the lawsuit said. "It is, instead, entirely about UMG, the music company that decided to publish, promote, exploit, and monetize allegations that it understood were not only false, but dangerous."
Previous Super Bowl halftime performers
Last year, R&B artist Usher thrilled the crowd at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. To view the history of the Super Bowl halftime performance, click here.
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