The 57th Super Bowl has officially found its halftime show performer in pop legend Rihanna. Although the “Umbrella” singer has been distant from the music world for a few years now, mostly dedicating herself to her fashion and makeup brand as well as becoming a parent with rapper A$AP Rocky, she is still an undeniable megastar.
It’s a lot of pressure stepping up on the Super Bowl stage, known for showstopping performances from some of the music industry’s biggest names. Michael Jackson was the first major popstar to take over the NFL event’s halftime break in 1993 with a historical performance that led to (a perhaps unconscious) competition between the artists that followed him to outdo one another in creating the most memorable spectacle possible.
Rihanna is no stranger to spectacle, and with an almost two-decade long career to her name and so many hits that it would take two paragraphs to list them all, it’s actually surprising she hasn’t done the Super Bowl before. It almost happened in 2020, but the singer turned it down in solidarity with football player and activist Colin Kaepernick.
There are more than a few iconic Super Bowl performances that will inevitably be on everyone’s minds during the 2023 edition. Can Rihanna rise to the challenge? Well, She’s Rihanna, so the odds are already in her favor.
Beyoncé in 2013
Queen Bey did not come to play when she rose onto the Super Bowl stage, framed by a lit up tenfold silhouette of herself. Beyoncé started off strong with a tribute to football coaching legend Vince Lombardi by quoting his Super Bowl II pregame speech on excellence, and excellence she delivered.
The energy never once faltered as the Houston native hopped from one hit to the other with the help of fiery pyrotechnics, innovative visual effects, her iconic all-female band and dance crew, and a couple of her best friends, none other than Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams for a Destiny’s Child reunion.
The performance was so ambitious not even New Orleans’ Superdome could handle it. Following Beyoncé’s exit from the stage, a power outage delayed the second half of the game by 30 minutes. It is still getting talked about today, almost a decade later.
Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band in 2009
Bruce Springsteen’s Super Bowl halftime show was easily one of the most electrifying to date. The Boss gave it his all at the Raymond James Stadium that evening, bringing hits like “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” and “Glory Days” to the audience, both in-person and watching at home.
If Springsteen starts his mini-concert by telling people watching on their screens to “step back from the Guacamole dip, (…) put the chicken fingers down, and turn your television all the way up,” then you know you are in for a joyride.
The legendary heartland rock musician, who was 60 at the time of his performance, had the audience in complete frenzy by engaging with them like at any other one of his concerts. Springsteen’s simple stage allowed him to be engulfed in fans, and the intense energy coming from both sides eventually became completely self-feeding.
Michael Jackson in 1993
Although controversy has largely tainted Michael Jackson’s image after his death in 2009, there is no denying he is basically the most famous entertainer of all time. The young star of The Jackson 5 grew up to revolutionize the music industry, and his Super Bowl performance was a big part of his legacy.
Jackson is largely credited with beginning the tradition of the Super Bowl halftime show as a major pop culture moment in an effort by the event’s broadcaster at the time to retain viewership during the break and into the second half. The “Thriller” singer was at the height of his career, so the choice was obvious.
After standing still on stage for two minutes, basking in the sound of the stadium’s mass hysteria, MJ finally broke into his now immortal dance moves consisting of high kicks, crotch grabs, and hip thrusts. The King of Pop followed “Billie Jean” and “Black or White” with a plea for empathy and love as he was joined by over 3,000 children to sing “We Are the World” and “Heal the World.”
Prince in 2007
Prince was never about following a formula. Instead, he created his own. Instead of going on stage and speeding through a medley of career hits with a crowd of dancers taking up the stage, Prince put on a concert in the truest sense of the word.
It took little else than himself—shredding his guitar centerstage, and dripping passion from his voice—for Prince to go down in history as one of the greatest Super Bowl performers of all time. Not even the pouring rain could stop him. In fact, his rendition of his biggest song, “Purple Rain,” under the downpour was one of those eerily poetic moments that comes once in a lifetime and feels like divine intervention.
Prince’s performance was also marked by an unusual number of covers from “Proud Mary” to “All Along the Watchtower” and “Best of You.” It fit perfectly in this soulful celebration of music. Ultimately, you can’t argue against greatness, and there aren’t a lot of artists who could dominate a stage so thoroughly, so easily.
Lady Gaga in 2017
Lady Gaga has built a career out of extravagance, weirdness, and showmanship of the highest degree. It felt suiting that her Super Bowl performance was at times a little awkward, and yet grandiose for the most part. She just makes it work, and risk taking is ultimately how culture is made.
Gaga made it a point to sing live, which can’t be said for every performer on this list. Unlike that uncomfortable Black Eyed Peas halftime show in 2011, the “Shallow” singer did it flawlessly.
The performance started with a dramatic appeal to the nation’s patriotism, followed by Gaga literally diving into the NRG Stadium in Houston from a platform on the roof. After raving out to her dance pop staples “Poker Face,” “Born This Way,” “Telephone,” and “Just Dance,” Gaga sat down at the piano for a powerful vocal performance of “Million Reasons.”
Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar, and 50 Cent in 2022
Once an underground reactionary genre, hip-hop has become the most popular, and perhaps commercial, genre of music in the world. This Super Bowl halftime show perfectly crystallized this transition from underground to mainstream as West Coast hip-hop legends Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, 50 Cent, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar, and Eminem (featuring an Anderson Paak cameo on the drums) took to the stage at the brand-spanking-new SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.
While some have deemed this performance a “sellout” for its somewhat plastic choreographed nature, and censored lyrics, others have called it a long overdue celebration of a side of American culture that has been sidelined time and time again in the past. The artists on show that February evening are undeniable icons and architects of a musical tradition that has completely taken over charts today.
There’s a reason the 2022 Super Bowl Halftime show was the first to ever win an Emmy for Outstanding Live Variety Special. Nostalgia is a powerful sentiment, but these hip-hop legends’ culture-defining catalog gives it a run for its money.
Shakira and J. Lo in 2020
Perhaps one of the most underrated Super Bowl halftime shows ever, this Shakira and Jennifer Lopez shared extravaganza brought the roof down in Miami in 2020. Although they each deserved their own solo performance, the choice to combine these two forces of nature of Latin music could not have been more fitting.
Shakira kicked things off with arguably the best of the two halves, thanks to the Colombian singer’s insane versatility, and eclecticism. Both her Southern American and Middle Eastern roots were honored and celebrated through hits like “Whenever, Wherever” and “Ojos Así.” There was a rope dance performance to the sound of the mijwiz and the derbeke, that infamous Zaghrouta ululation, and of course, Shakira’s iconic belly dancing. There was also salsa dancing and a mariachi band as she was joined on stage by reggaeton superstar Bad Bunny and the African-Caribbean dance champeta during her sports anthem, “Waka Waka.”
J. Lo stunned with a poll dance reminiscent of her role in the movie Hustlers, acrobatics, and high-energy dance routines to the sound of dance bangers “On the Floor,” “Let’s Get Loud,” and a snippet of J Balvin’s “Mi Gente” featuring the Colombian singer. The most memorable moment was easily Jenny from the Block’s homage to both her hometown of the Bronx and her Puerto Rican heritage, as she sang with her daughter, Emme, while engulfed in a feathery cape with the Puerto Rico flag on one side and the Star-Spangled Banner on the other.
This performance has the potential to be timeless, and some will look back on it years from now, and realize it deserved more credit.
Coldplay featuring Beyoncé and Bruno Mars in 2016
With the pressure pumping for the celebration of the 50th Super Bowl halftime show landmark, the NFL recruited three of the music industry’s most successful and passionate soldiers. At Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Coldplay, Beyoncé, and Bruno Mars carefully orchestrated a lively celebration of the Super Bowl halftime show while simultaneously playing their own worldwide famous music.
Coldplay opened the show with a combination of their hits before the track smoothly transitioned to Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson’s impossibly addictive “Uptown Funk,” which was then interrupted by Beyoncé and her army of Black Panther-inspired dancers, performing “Formation.”
Combining performers isn’t uncommon at the Super Bowl—one must only think back to the 2001 halftime show which featured a bold mix of rock and pop artists—but they don’t always gel as well as Chris, Beyoncé, and Bruno did. For that reason as well as the genuinely good time everyone was having on that stage and for the touching compilation of halftime shows of yesteryear, this performance has earned a place among the greats.
U2 in 2002
U2’s performance at the 2002 Super Bowl is not exactly something Rihanna can rival, nor should we want her to. Very much a product of the sensitive time the United States was going through at that moment not even six months after 9/11, this halftime show is regarded by many as one of—if not the—best and the most memorable of all time.
An incomparable voice that could fill 10 stages the size of the the Louisiana Superdome, anthemic music with a powerful message, a grounded, mindful presence, and a chilling tribute was all U2 needed to ingrain this show in American pop culture history. Bono, The Edge, and fellow U2 band members Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen, Jr., sang only three songs on stage that evening, “Beautiful Day,” “MLK,” and “Where the Streets Have No Name.”
In the backdrop, names of the victims of the September attacks were projected on a scrim. By the time Bono showed off the American flag on the lining of his jacket, there wasn’t a dry eye in the crowd or at home.
After such a long absence from the stage, the pressure is on for Rihanna, but there’s a reason she picked one of the most emblematic platforms in the world for her big comeback to the music world. The Barbadian singer does not back away from a challenge, and we cannot wait to see her take on this one.
The 57th Super Bowl airs Feb. 12 on FOX.