After releasing what could be the song of the summer with “Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar had another big surprise for his fans as the NFL season kicks off: he’s doing the Super Bowl halftime show.
The rapper made the announcement with a video on his YouTube channel in which he launches footballs from a passing machine while in front of the American flag.
After several years largely out of the spotlight, Lamar exploded back into the pop culture consciousness with his much-publicized rap battle with Drake. It’s a battle he won decisively when “Not Like Us” — a dance track that questions Drake’s authenticity as an artist and calls him a “certified pedophile” — blasted to the top of the charts.
Lamar followed that up with an acclaimed Juneteenth concert at the Forum in Inglewood which ended with him performing “Not Like Us” five times in a row while joined on the stage by dozens of fans, including LeBron James and Russell Westbrook, as well as a music video for the song released on the Fourth of July.
Even during the Super Bowl announcement, Lamar seemed to throw shade at recent — and since-deleted — Instagram posts by Drake suggesting he wanted to reignite the feud, including a video of NBA legend Rasheed Wallace famously promising that the Detroit Pistons would win game 2 of the 2004 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers.
“You know there’s only one opportunity to win a championship,” said Lamar. “No round 2s.”
This will be the second time Lamar has performed at the Super Bowl, having previously done so in 2022 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood as part of an all-star rap showcase that included Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and surprise performances by 50 Cent and Anderson .Paak. It became the first Super Bowl halftime show to win an Emmy.
Lamar is also attached to work on a feature film comedy with “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, which is currently set for release on July 4, 2025.
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