Kendrick Lamar: GNX & Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show

Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show (February 9, 2025) is the most-watched halftime performance in NFL history and one of the most discussed cultural events of 2025. Kendrick performed at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans before 127 million US television viewers — a new record for any American television broadcast. The show, presented by Apple Music, was the culmination of the most remarkable year in Kendrick's career: following his 2024 rap beef with Drake — which produced the generational diss track "Not Like Us" — and the surprise release of his album GNX on November 22, 2024, Kendrick arrived at the Super Bowl at the absolute peak of his cultural moment. The 13-minute performance opened with Kendrick descending from above the stage on a giant American flag installation before launching into a setlist spanning his career: "HUMBLE.," "DNA.," "Swimming Pools," "Alright," "Not Like Us" (performed twice, to the crowd's thunderous approval), and a devastating close with "Auntie Diaries." SZA joined for a medley of their collaborations. The show's most viral moment: Serena Williams dancing to "Not Like Us" during the performance's climax — an image that circulated globally within minutes. Creative direction by Dave Free and pgLang. The show required nine months of preparation and 3,500 performers in the crowd. GNX — released without prior announcement on November 22, 2024 — debuted at #1 in 43 countries, was named Album of the Year by Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, and NME, and produced four Grammy nominations including Album of the Year.