It would also contribute to Lamar’s recent success, which includes being the first solo rapper to host the Super Bowl halftime show and winning the 2025 Grammy Awards.
With 133.5 million viewers, the performance, which included a highly debated performance of his popular Drake diss song “Not Like Us,” Is the most viewed Super Bowl program ever.
This is a 3% increase over Usher’s performance from the previous year. The previous record, set by Michael Jackson in the 1993 Super Bowl, was 133 million viewers.
After the gig, Dave Free, pgLang co-founder and Kendrick’s longtime manager, spoke to the Wall Street Journal about the creative process that went into the historic performance.
“We wanted there to be a dramatic and cinematic component to this performance. We can state with confidence that no Super Bowl performance compares to this one,” he remarked.
Free went on to say that he and Kendrick watched every Super Bowl halftime show in order to be ready for the occasion, especially Beyoncé, Prince, and Michael Jackson’s performances.
