Kendrick Lamar and his Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans was nothing short of electrifying, but Drake and Taylor Swift fans weren’t thrilled.
While the rapper delivered a powerful performance that included his Grammy-winning diss track Not Like Us, Taylor Swift fans—aka the Swifties—were left disappointed. Why? Because Lamar didn’t perform Bad Blood, his hit collaboration with Swift, and they’re not letting it slide.
For many Taylor Swift fans, the Super Bowl halftime show was a chance to relive the magic of Bad Blood, the 2015 chart-topping remix that featured Lamar.
Some even hoped for a surprise appearance by Swift herself. But when the performance came and went without so much as a nod to the song, Swifties took to social media to vent their frustration.
One fan tweeted:
“You have countless Swifties watching the Super Bowl and you couldn’t simply ask Taylor for the rights to your version of Bad Blood. Pathetic!” Another wrote “Just really feel like Bad Blood would’ve brought a little razzle-dazzle to the halftime show.”
While Swifties mourned Bad Blood’s absence, Kendrick Lamar had other plans. The rapper leaned into his beef with Drake performing the Grammy-winning diss track Not Like Us.
The song, which recently earned Lamar five Grammy trophies—including Record of the Year and Song of the Year—has been at the center of a legal battle. Drake sued Universal Music Group (UMG), alleging defamation and claiming the song contains false and damaging allegations against him.
Lamar, ever the provocateur, addressed the controversy head-on during his performance. Midway through the show, he teased the audience:
“I want to perform their favorite song, but you know they love to sue,” before launching into Not Like Us.
The track’s biting lyrics, including the infamous line, “Certified Lover Boy? Certified pedophile,” were slightly altered for the performance, with Lamar omitting the term “pedophile” amid the ongoing legal dispute. Still, the crowd roared along to the song’s definitive line:
Tryna strike a chord and it’s probably A minor.
At one point, he stared directly into the camera, cracked a menacing grin, and mentioned Drake by name, instantly spawning a new meme format.
Even tennis legend Serena Williams made a surprise appearance, crip-walking to the chorus of Not Like Us. The moment lit up social media, with fans praising the unexpected collaboration.
Check out the full Super Bowl Halftime show here:
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