Who is Kendrick Lamar? A gay guide to the 2025 Halftime Show headliner

Did Kendrick Lamar perform at the Super Bowl before?

Yes, Kendrick Lamar did perform at the Super Bowl Halftime Show once, before 2025, along with other artists brought together by Dr. Dre.

The Dre-helmed 2022 Super Bowl Halftime Show was centered around hip hop and featured coheadliners like Mary J. Blige, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, and Kendrick Lamar. Anderson Paak and 50 Cent also performed as featured guests.

In other words, the 2025 Halftime Show was Lamar's first time headlining as the main act — unlike his appearance as one of many artists who had a brief moment in the 2022 telecast.

Fun fact: Pepsi sponsored the Super Bowl Halftime Show every single year since 2013 (headlined by Beyoncé), but had its final showing as a sponsor at the 2022 Halftime Show (headlined by Dr. Dre). Starting in 2023, the main sponsor of the event has been Apple Music.

Who did Kendrick Lamar bring to the Super Bowl?

In the lead-up to the performance, SZA was the only confirmed artist joining Kendrick Lamar's Halftime Show. In case you didn't know, Lamar and SZA are hitting the road together with the Grand National Tour starting in April.

SZA is signed to Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE), a label that Lamar was also attached to for most of his career. As reported by NME, Lamar left the label in February 2022 but never stopped supporting Top Dawg artists like SZA and Doechii.

Lamar and SZA are also frequent music collaborators who have released seven songs together (so far). Of note, SZA and Lamar released "All the Stars" in 2018 as the official theme song for the Black Panther film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).

"All the Stars" was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song, but ultimately lost to the unstoppable Lady Gaga anthem "Shallow" featured in 2018's A Star Is Born.

Other collabs include SZA-led songs (featuring Lamar) like "Babylon," "30 for 30," and "Doves In the Wind." In turn, there are Lamar-led songs (featuring SZA) included in the GNX album, such as "Luther" and "Gloria." Moreover, Jay Rock's "Easy Bake" features both Lamar and SZA as featured artists.

Did Serena Williams appear on Kendrick Lamar's Halftime Show performance?

Yes, the one and only Serena Williams appeared onstage during Kendrick Lamar's Halftime Show performance. The GOAT athlete was seen dancing on her own and having a great time.

Though Williams's inclusion in the Halftime Show could've been entirely unrelated to any rap beef (and, frankly, even for no reason at all — it's Serena Williams!), some publications pointed out that her inclusion might've been yet another dig at Drake. As reported by People, Drake briefly dated Williams around 2011.

Was Samuel L. Jackson on Kendrick Lamar's Halftime Show?

Yes, the booked-and-busy legend Samuel L. Jackson was also included in Kendrick Lamar's Halftime Show performance at the 2025 Super Bowl.

However, Jackson didn't just appear as himself. The actor wore an all-American patriotic costume and introduced himself as "Uncle Sam."

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines "Uncle Sam" as a nickname and caricature representing "the U.S. government" itself, and many viewers picked up on the themes and messages conveyed in the performance.

X user @CaseyyMcGaw wrote:

"'Too loud, too reckless, too ghetto.' Uncle Sam representing those who tell the Black community how to behave. The dancers forming a disconnected American flag. The imagery. The cultural significance & relevance. An absolute work of art here."

Which songs did Kendrick Lamar perform at the Super Bowl Halftime Show?

Below is the complete set list of songs that Kendrick Lamar performed during his 2025 Halftime Show concert:

"Bodies"
"Squabble Up"
"Humble"
"DNA"
"Euphoria"
"Man at the Garden"
"Peekaboo"
"Luther"
"All the Stars"
"Not Like Us"

Where to watch Kendrick Lamar's full Halftime Show performance?

Kendrick Lamar's full 2025 Super Bowl Halftime Show performance is already available to watch for free on the official YouTube channel for the NFL.

Snippets of the performance have also been shared across the NFL's official social media profiles.

What are Kendrick Lamar's biggest hit songs?

Kendrick Lamar has five no. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 charts: 2014's "Bad Blood" remix (with Taylor Swift), 2017's "Humble," and the 2024 hit songs "Like That" (with Future and Metro Boomin), "Squabble Up," and "Not Like Us."

Other very popular songs by Lamar include "Goosebumps" (with Travis Scott), "All the Stars" (with SZA), "F**kin' Problems" (with A$AP Rocky), and "DNA."

How many Grammys did Kendrick Lamar win?

Kendrick Lamar is one of the most critically acclaimed rappers of all time. The rapper has received a mind-blowing 57 nominations at the Grammy Awards and has won 22 of them.

In 2025, Lamar arrived at the 67th Grammy Awards with seven nominations. He subsequently won five of them (more than any other artist this year): Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Rap Performance, Best Rap Song, and Best Music Video… all of which were for "Not Like Us" — Lamar's diss track for Drake that ultimately ended their rap beef of 2024.

How many albums has Kendrick Lamar released in his career?

Kendrick Lamar has released six studio albums: 2011's Section.80, 2012's Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, 2015's To Pimp a Butterfly, 2017's Damn, 2022's Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, and 2024's GNX.

Given that GNX is Lamar's most recent studio album — released in November 2024 — it wasn't surprising that the rapper included several songs from this latest LP to perform at the Super Bowl.

What is Kendrick Lamar's track record with the LGBTQ+ community?

Miles Marshall Lewis, author of the 2021 book Promise That You Will Sing About Me: The Power and Poetry of Kendrick Lamar, wrote an op-ed for Slate in 2022 following the release of Lamar's fifth studio album, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers.

After highlighting Lamar's long-standing "silence on LGBTQ+ issues," Lewis contended with one particular song from Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers titled "Auntie Diaries."

Lewis describes how "Auntie Diaries" featured Lamar recalling fond memories about this relative while making quite a few problematic mistakes along the way. "The third verse details the gender transition of his cousin Mary-Ann," Lewis wrote. "That narrative culminates at an Easter Sunday service, where Kendrick challenges a preacher who condemns the LGBTQ+ lifestyle as an abomination."

Lewis also observed the tension that's always existed in Lamar's lyrics when discussing certain topics. "When it comes to Kendrick Lamar, his good intentions often end up mired in problematic elements," Lewis wrote in the aforementioned Slate op-ed.

In a story for Them, James Factora noted that "Auntie Diaries" was a "nearly five-minute ode to two of Lamar's relatives, both of whom are trans," while also acknowledging how "polarizing" the song turned out to be even within the LGBTQ+ community.

Besides deadnaming trans relatives while bringing up fond memories of them, the rapper repeatedly used the F-word slur in the lyrics of "Auntie Diaries," which drew criticism of its own.

The polarizing interpretations of "Auntie Diaries" brought up in the aforementioned Slate and Them stories were also discussed in articles from Out and NPR, among other publications and social media networks.

One Reddit thread with nearly 2,000 upvotes, for instance, included a bold title that "Auntie Diaries is saving trans youth." However, plenty of critics of the song also made strong and valid arguments about how hurtful the song actually is.

Is Kendrick Lamar a Trump supporter?

No. Kendrick Lamar has spoken out against Donald Trump in several instances when he first ran as a presidential candidate in 2016, as well as in the 2024 presidential elections.

When Joe Biden dropped out of the race and Kamala Harris became the Democratic candidate, her campaign started with an ad accompanied by Beyoncé's "Freedom" — a song that features Lamar.

While it's true that Lamar has been more critical of Trump in the past than he's been in recent years, multiple reports reiterate that he very much stands against many conservative values spewed by President Trump.

In a story for The Nation, Dave Zirin wrote about whether Lamar would protest Trump's politics during the Halftime Show performance, ultimately concluding that this scenario was unlikely. Yet, many fans argue that Lamar protested during his Halftime Show with subtle gestures and imagery that he could get away with while being on such a large platform.

Has Kendrick Lamar collaborated with pop stars?

Some rappers frequently collaborate with pop stars for remixes or guest verses added to certain songs. While Kendrick Lamar isn't exactly known for doing those collaborations, the rapper has experimented with pop music (or pop-adjacent) in partnerships with certain artists.

Of note, Lamar was featured in a version of "Looks Good With Trouble" by Solange Knowles in 2012. He then collaborated with The Lonely Island's (comedy) song "YOLO," and with Robin Thicke for the track "Give It 2 U" — both released in 2013.

In 2014, Lamar had a verse on the remixed version of "Radioactive" by Imagine Dragons. He was also featured in Alicia Keys's "It's On Again" song for the soundtrack of The Amazing Spider-Man 2.

How is Taylor Swift connected to Kendrick Lamar?

Kendrick Lamar's most well-known collaboration in pop music came out in 2015. The rapper not only hopped on the remixed version of "Bad Blood" by Taylor Swift, but also appeared in the star-studded music video of the song.

For Swifties, "Bad Blood" is one of the most iconic music videos of all time. The song is also widely acknowledged — and reported by Rolling Stone — as a direct jab at Katy Perry, with whom Swift was publicly feuding at the time.

"Bad Blood" wasn't well received by Lamar fans who felt like the rapper delivered unusually weak verses that didn't measure up to his standard lyricism. However, as this collab between Swift and Lamar reaches its 10-year anniversary in 2025, there's suddenly an additional layer of interest attached to the song.

Is Drake involved in the 'Bad Blood' collab between Taylor Swift and Kendrick Lamar?

Around the time when the "Bad Blood" remix was released, Lamar was starting to get a few questions about his rumored feud with Drake (via Complex). Even though Lamar denied those initial rumors in various interviews, his choice to collaborate with a pop star like Swift (in what was essentially the pop version of a diss track) was interpreted by some as Lamar also addressing an industry peer with whom he had issues.

For instance, Time magazine still acknowledges Drake as "the object of the song's disdain" in Lamar's verse for "Bad Blood" — noting how one of Drake's diss tracks in their 2024 rap feud was titled "Taylor Made Freestyle" in an attempt to poke fun at Lamar for his "Bad Blood" collab with Swift.

"It is rather rich to call forth Taylor Swift — with reference to Kendrick's takeover on the remix of 'Bad Blood' — as evidence of the rapper's weakness," Lauren Michele Jackson wrote in The New Yorker. "When Drake and Taylor, in terms of their capital interests, glutted output, and paranoid fans, partake in the same stratagems."

Cut to 2025: Taylor Swift attended the Super Bowl to root for her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, a player for the Kansas City Chiefs. Meanwhile, Lamar performed as the main headliner for this year's Halftime Show after having the biggest year of his career with the massive success of the "Not Like Us" diss track targeted at Drake.

How is Lady Gaga connected to Kendrick Lamar?

Lady Gaga and Kendrick Lamar announced an exciting (but never released) song titled "Partynauseous" for the rapper's Good Kid, M.A.A.D City album — which is still one of the biggest mysteries in modern-day pop music.

After teasing the song for months and speaking highly of each other, Lamar never released the song. In response, Gaga shared a statement suggesting that some behind-the-scenes drama might've happened between them.

Gaga first announced the song in August 2012 through an X post (formerly tweet) where she wrote, "I am so excited to announce that a record I've been working on has now become a collaboration with @KendrickLamar for HIS ALBUM."

For context, Gaga had released the Born This Way album in May 2011 and wouldn't release her next album, ARTPOP, until November 2013. When she announced the "Partynauseous" collab, Gaga was still touring the world with the Born This Way Ball.

The "Partynauseous" timeline did align with Lamar's scheduled releases. At the time, the rapper was working on Good Kid, M.A.A.D City — his second studio album, but first major label album — scheduled for a release in October 2012.

Gaga explained in a subsequent X post that she wrote "Partynauseous" about her experiences in Jakarta, noting that she wishes she could "get high with the enemy" to reach a peaceful conclusion.

In 2012, Gaga announced that she had to cancel a concert in Jakarta, Indonesia in response to a series of religious protests against her in the country that posed serious threats to her safety, as reported by BBC News. Gaga's announcement suggested that "Partynauseous" was somehow related to that situation.

"Once @KendrickLamar + I started talking about life + his forward thinking views about love + hip hop, the song became something more," Gaga wrote in another X post about the song.

Unfinished demos of the song did leak, but the collab was never officially released.

What happened to 'Partynauseous' by Lady Gaga and Kendrick Lamar?

"Partynauseous" was indeed not featured on the Good Kid, M.A.A.D City album. In an interview with The Breakfast Club, Lamar discussed why the track was scrapped (via Billboard):

"Me and Lady Gaga, we're really good friends. [But] she's not on the album," Lamar explained. "We got some records, but when I was breaking down the bulk of the album, the ones we picked, we set them aside for future reference. I already had everything premeditated for this day, for October 22nd [album release date]."

On the other hand, Gaga shared a very different version of the story that was also reported by Billboard, writing:

"When I collaborate with an artist I work solely with them, not with their camps or management. It's purely organic and creative. I love Kendrick dearly as a friend, but was not willing to compromise musically to the changes his team was making to my music. This is why I am not his record."

Two weeks after Lamar's release of Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, Gaga shared a video on X containing her own voice singing one of Lamar's most popular songs, "B*tch Don't Kill My Vibe."

Considering the "Partynauseous" themes and lyrics, there is no indication that the song was transformed into "B*tch Don't Kill My Vibe." And while many fans loved Gaga's version of "B*tch Don't Kill My Vibe," releasing that version only made the situation even more confusing.

The most public presentation of "Partynauseous" was heard on ArtRave: The ARTPOP Ball as an interlude for the world tour.

Nonetheless, as soon as rumors started going around that Lamar had a "big surprise" for his Halftime Show performance (via Hot New Hip Hop), Little Monsters quickly jumped to the unlikely conclusion that Lamar would include Mother Monster in his performance.

Spoiler alert: Gaga did perform at the Super Bowl, but not in any way connected to Lamar's Halftime Show.

What's the connection between Kendrick Lamar and Jay Z?

Apple Music took over for Pepsi as the official sponsor of the Super Bowl Halftime Show in 2023. Thus far, Apple Music was the sponsor behind the Halftime Shows headlined by Rihanna (2023) and Usher (2024). Kendrick Lamar was the third headliner since this change in sponsors.

An interesting factor behind Apple Music's strategy for the Super Bowl Halftime Show sponsorship is that the company has partnered with Roc Nation — a record label and talent agency founded by Jay Z — to produce these events and select each headliner.

In September 2024, producer Jesse Collins told Variety that the headliner for each Halftime Show has been "a decision that Jay makes" in recent years through the Roc Nation partnership with the NFL and Apple Music. Collins added, "Since we've been on board with that show, [Jay Z has] made [the decision] every year, and it's been amazing. He's always picked right!"

Given that Usher and Lamar are not signed under Roc Nation, it doesn't seem like Jay Z gives preferential treatment to artists within his own roster when picking headliners for the Halftime Show.

Why is Lil Wayne upset about the 2025 Halftime Show?

The lead-up to the 2025 Super Bowl Halftime Show had a few dramatic updates from Lil Wayne claiming that he had been snubbed from headlining the event. Wayne's career certainly qualifies him as a potential Halftime Show performer. Moreover, given that he was born in New Orleans, Louisiana (where the Super Bowl is taking place this year), the rapper expressed his disappointment in not being picked.

To be clear: there is zero precedent for Halftime Show headliners being picked on the basis of their connections to the city hosting the Super Bowl in a given year.

Meanwhile, other reports resurfaced with the claim that Drake had been offered the Halftime Show headliner position twice and turned it down both times (via Complex). Those claims, however, conflicted with reporting from Bloomberg alleging that Drake had never been offered the headlining spot.

How to watch the Super Bowl online via streaming?

The Super Bowl LIX game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles kicked off at 6:30 p.m. ET. The game aired on Fox and was also streaming for free on Tubi. Cable-cutters also had the option to watch the Super Bowl online through live-streaming services like YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, and Fubo TV, to name a few.

Overall, the Eagles previously won three NFL championships (in a pre-Super Bowl era) and one Super Bowl championship in 2017. The Chiefs won a total of four Super Bowl championships — two of which were in 2023 and 2024.

If the Chiefs won in 2025, it would become the first team in history to win three consecutive Super Bowl championships (a "three-peat"), as reported by The Athletic. However, the Chiefs did not win, and therefore couldn't break that record.

Meanwhile, the Eagles added a brand-new Super Bowl win to the team's overall track record, which now consists of three NFL (pre-Super Bowl) championships and two actual Super Bowl wins.

Which other artists are performing at the 2025 Super Bowl?

Besides Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl Halftime Show with SZA, The Hollywood Reporter previously confirmed that Jon Batiste was set to perform "The Star-Spangled Banner," Trombone Shorty and Lauren Daigle were scheduled to sing "America the Beautiful," and Ledisi was chosen for a performance of "Lift Every Voice and Sing" during this year's telecast.

What did Lady Gaga perform at the 2025 Super Bowl?

The Super Bowl telecast featured a surprise performance of "Hold My Hand" by Lady Gaga as a tribute to the victims of the Bourbon Street attack in New Orleans on New Year's Eve.

CBS News reported at the time that this reckless driver killed at least 14 people. To honor them, Gaga sang her Oscar-nominated ballad "Hold My Hand," released as the theme song for 2022's Top Gun: Maverick starring Tom Cruise reprising his role as Pete "Maverick" Mitchell in the franchise.