10 Burning Questions We Have About Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show

How much Drake roasting will happen during this set?

Kendrick Lamar is faced with two options when crafting his Super Bowl LIX halftime setlist. Will he spend the performance time highlighting his discography, making his case as one of the best rappers ever argument? Or will he double down on his ruthless attack of Drake, using arguably the biggest spotlight in American television to go after his rival? Will the set be dedicated to the diss tracks he dropped over the summer of 2024? Will he premiere new music that attacks the 6 God? Will he perform “Meet the Grahams?” (OK, zero chance that happens.)

But watching Kendrick balance putting on a show for a family friendly audience while still eviscerating Drake will be the most interesting wrinkle of the night. Because, one thing we can almost guarantee—”Not Like Us” will be played that night. It’s the defining song of his career and the year. Which leads us to our next burning question…

Does he open or close the set with “Not Like Us”?

It’s clear that, even if “Not Like Us” wasn’t the song of the year, Kendrick has a ruthless desire to best Drake in their beef. So yeah, like I said, It’s obvious he’s going to perform it at least once. He might even perform it twice. But where in the set will the song appear, and who will he bring on stage to drop the anthem?

Kendrick can get practically any rapper in the world to make an appearance at the Super Bowl—except, well, Drake. Will he keep the moment for himself or use his star power to bring a headline-stealing co-conspirator aboard? “Not Like Us” has to be the centerpiece in Kendrick Lamar’s set, the only question is when he prioritizes that moment.

Before we move on, there’s still one more “Not Like Us” question I have...

How the hell is Kendrick going to handle those pesky “pedo” bars?

People of all ages from all walks of life with all sorts of sensibilities will be tuning into the Super Bowl, so how will Kendrick handle the most hard-hitting bars on “Not Like Us,” which are consequently the most inappropriate, too?

On “Not Like Us” he raps: “And Baka got a weird case, why is he around/ Certified Lover Boy? Certified pedophiles.” Are you even allowed to say pedophile on national TV? Could a defamation lawsuit be in the cards if it’s performed on broadcast television? I’m no legal expert, and I surely have no idea how Kendrick will handle the song’s most explicit barbs, but it’s almost certain he’ll come up with a clever workaround regardless of how he wants to present the diss track.

What kind of hidden messages will be in the set?

Fans have already been speculating about all of the hidden messages Kendrick Lamar hid in the teaser trailer for his Super Bowl halftime show. This begs the question: Will K.Dot be explicit in the way he goes after Drake during the performance, or will he once again be sprinkling subtle jabs at his rival and letting his fans piece together the brilliant machinations underpinning his ruthless destruction of Drake? Every aspect of Kendrick’s approach to the beef has let him showcase how smart he is, how many steps ahead he is, by putting faith in his fanbase to piece the clues together. Will the Super Bowl be more of the same, just on the biggest stage of them all?

Will Lil Wayne be involved?

The Lil Wayne portion of this is a developing story so by the time you read this some aspects might have changed. But there seems to be genuine disappointment that Wayne wasn't chosen. As of Monday afternoon, Nicki Minaj and Birdman have forcefully come out against the decision to not have Wayne headline, seemingly blaming Jay-Z in the process. Other commentary came from the likes of Cam’ron and Mase, Master P, and even Boosie Badazz.

Lil Wayne has been quiet (although we did hear from his engineer.) It’s hard to see a world where he shows up. Over the years, he has long been two things: A devoted son of all things Louisiana, and an avid Drake supporter—as his Young Money boss, mentor in the game, and most recently, touring partner. But, it’s weird if the greatest New Orleans rapper of all time doesn’t show up somehow! Weezy is a legend and the king in the city. And Kendrick, if anything, is someone who respects the legends. It’s hard to imagine Kendrick not extending an olive branch to the New Orleans Nightmare, especially considering the two have collaborated in the past.

How Will Drake respond to the announcement?

Kendrick Lamar’s announcement featured some Easter eggs, with the obvious being the “no round twos” line. (This is a response to a video posted by Drake promising to take home the hardware in “game two.”) With the shots being fired at the 6 God, will he be compelled to respond to this announcement? Will he try to drop more songs to dim some of the spotlight on Kendrick? Or is this simply Drake’s time to admit defeat and hope the Compton legend takes it easy on him come February? Something tells me that this is too big and Drake won’t try to meme his way out of this one.

How does Top Dawg Entertainment fit into this?

Kendrick Lamar’s deal with Top Dawg Entertainment and Aftermath Records was completed with the release of 2022’s Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers. “Euphoria,” “Meet the Grahams,” and “Not Like Us” were all released under his own name and exclusively licensed to Interscope Records. Lamar’s focus seems to be on his budding pgLang enterprise these days. So how much TDE we’ll see is a real question I have. Historically, Super Bowl headliners bring out artists to support them. TDE, while being one of the most talented labels, don’t have rappers on their roster with the star power to move the needle on the Super Bowl stage.

But they do have SZA, a real superstar. Kendrick bringing out SZA to perform “All the Stars” just makes all the sense in the world.

How deep in his catalog will Kendrick go?

Kendrick fans have all sorts of different rankings regarding his best and worst albums, so it’ll be interesting how he balances songs from throughout his discography.

Section.80 will likely be ignored, but everything else might be fair game. good kid, m.A.A.D. city has a ton of fan favorites. Could he perform “Poetic Justice” just to throw an additional shot at Drake? How many songs will Kendrick try to throw into his set? He has so many hits, it’s hard to imagine he’ll be able to offer up an accurate representation of his discography. Surely fans will be expecting hits from DAMN., To Pimp a Butterfly, good kid, and Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers. This doesn’t even include all of his guest features, his Black Panther work, his songs with Baby Keem, or his latest diss tracks. Figuring out how Kendrick Lamar is going to balance out his setlist is one of the most fascinating questions surrounding his performance.

What will Kendrick and Jay-Z say to the public?

In a press release released on Sunday, Jay-Z, the founder of Roc Nation—who is producing the Super Bowl show—had this to say about Dot: "Kendrick Lamar is truly a once-in-a-generation artist and performer. His deep love for hip-hop and culture informs his artistic vision. He has an unparalleled ability to define and influence culture globally. And here is what Kendrick’s work transcends music, and his impact will be felt for years to come."

Kendrick also had a statement: ​​"Rap music is still the most impactful genre to date. And I’ll be there to remind the world why. They got the right one."

Fine statements from both. But we’re going to need more and we'll probably get some. Super Bowl performers do their fair amount of press before the big game. If Lamar follows tradition, this will probably be the first time we hear Kendrick really talk about...everything. Will he be open and reflective on the experience, or will he use it as another opportunity to gain leverage in a battle that may not ever end? Or will he play coy? Additionally, we should also hear more from Jay, which will become interesting now that he has become centralized in this story. The winter can’t get here fast enough.