Kendrick Lamar‘s Super Bowl LIX halftime performance brought storytelling, Samuel L. Jackson, and crip-walking to Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Sunday (Feb. 9). In a glistening pgLang chain, custom leather Martine Rose “Gloria” varsity jacket, and perfectly tailored bootcut jeans, the Compton rapper delivered unreleased music, fan favorites, and of course the chart-topping “Not Like Us” which was teased throughout the entire show.
The Grammy winner’s mini concert was initiated by Samuel L. Jackson, in character as “Uncle Sam, who scolded the performance as “too loud, too reckless, too ghetto.” Through the nearly 13-minute set, the 37-year-old explored themes of patriotism and pride, standing between settings that resembled buttons on a video game controller.
“Dave Free and Kendrick are really into keeping things clean and minimal,” explained Mike Carson to WIRED. Carson worked with Lamar, director Dave Free, and more on the halftime show. “So we went with a monochromatic concrete look and allowed the video game motif to come alive through dialogue, lighting, choreography, and music.”
With the surprise narration from Samuel. L. Jackson, the fulfilled promise of SZA taking the field, other special moments came as Serena Williams showed off her crip-walking skills and a joyful Mustard beaming as his name was yelled in “tv off” from endzone to endzone.
“40 acres and a mule, this is bigger than the music,” declared Lamar before performing “Not Like Us,” directly calling out Drake with a sly grin on one of the world’s biggest stages. Still, the game was not declared over, even after a packed stadium (and households across the country) screamed, “a minorrrrrrr in unison.”
Read below for every song the Compton rapper performed during the Super Bowl LIX halftime show.
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“wacced out murals” And Unreleased “Bodies”
Image Credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images As the show began, Kendrick Lamar teased an opening of “wacced out murals,” the first track on his latest album GNX which directly responds to the controversy that erupted from him being named the Super Bowl LIX halftime headliner. Playing just seconds of the song’s instrumental, he continued by delivering an unreleased song, rumored to be titled “Bodies.”
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“squabble up”
Image Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images Kendrick Lamar continued the show with the fan-favorite “squabble up” from GNX, keeping the energy at high-levels throughout the stadium.
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‘DAMN’ Medley
Image Credit: Christopher Polk/Penske Media via Getty Images K. Dot continued the show by taking viewers back to 2017 with songs from his acclaimed DAMN album. The moment featured a partial delivery of “HUMBLE” which transitioned into “DNA.”
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“Euphoria”
Image Credit: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images Kendrick Lamar kept the declarative energy flowing as he performed “Euphoria,” one of the defining diss records against Drake released at the height of their feud in 2024. At the end of the snippet, he closed with new lyrics, “It’s K-D-O-T.”
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“man at the garden”
Image Credit: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images Kendrick Lamar continued the performance with GNX standout “man at the garden.” The introspective track was delivered stripped down with snapping and mellow singing carrying the beat as he rapped in front of men dressed in white tops with gold teeth.
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“peekaboo”
Image Credit: Patrick Smith/Getty Images GNX continued to dominate the setlist, likely due to the rapper touring the album in the coming months. Up next, Kendrick Lamar delivered another favorite from the project “peekaboo” which features Los Angeles rapper AzChike. Lamar performed moments from both of their verses.
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“luther” Feat. SZA
Image Credit: Cindy Ord/Getty Images SZA finally made an appearance as the Super Bowl LIX performance neared its end. First, the two performed their “luther” collaboration featured GNX.
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“All The Stars” Feat. SZA
Image Credit: Patrick Smith/Getty Images The collaborative energy continued as the two performed “All The Stars,” released in 2018 as part of the Black Panther soundtrack.
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“Not Like Us”
Image Credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images As teased throughout the night, Kendrick Lamar shrugged his shoulders at the pending litigation surrounding the Grammy-winning “Not Like Us” and performed an energetic rendition of the stinging diss record. While the word “pedophile” was omitted, likely due to the big game being a family-friendly event, the crowd gleefully recited the rest of the lyrics.
Sports icon Serena Williams also appeared during “Not Like Us” crip walking to the track which commands “From Alondra down to Central, ni**a better not speak on Serena.”
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“tv off” – Feat. Lefty Gunplay
Image Credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images While Kendrick Lamar was not joined by Lefty Gunplay for their collaborative “tv off” track from GNX, the producer of the upbeat offering Mustard joined the rapper on the field for the final track. The fan-favorite song closed the show with high energy and a message: “Game Over.”
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