I was there it was a dud
But Post Malone at the Pregame was great
Adam Altman
Boy do I hear you Bob.
The biggest event of Super Bowl weekend was the Madden Bowl. Much like you suggest, our headliners were Tucker Wetmore, Shaboozey, Jellyroll and Chris Stapleton. Trombone Shorty played from the opera boxes in between sets. All to a packed New Orleans house of NFL players from Peyton to Derrick Henry. Yes we went country and the response was through the roof. You know me… we made this decision last year and went all in. I believe this was the best party of the weekend driven by the musicians we chose to represent our brand.
Steve Schnur
I agree!
John Huie
95% of the comments on X state it was the worst halftime show in history. Also, I may have missed you mentioning that Taylor Swift was booed and Donald Trump was cheered.
The times they are a changin’.
Thanks,
Ernie Canadeo
DUD!
Wayne Forte
Should at least have had captions
Michael Fremer
My 12 year old daughter liked SZA and watched specifically for her. She was tuned out and drawing on her iPad during Kendrick.
Ken Madson
About eight minutes and I texted my kids “when does the song start?”
Bill Siddons
You aren’t alone. It was a dud. I couldn’t understand a word of what Kendrick was saying, but I thought it was the sound system not picking it up.
I almost turned on closed caption.
I did hear “turn off the TV.”
So I did.
Kim McAllister
Amen! It lacked in every performance aspect.
David Spero
100%. Agreed.
Bobby Houck
It’s was to boring to even say it sucked.
David May
Two minutes into Kendrick, I was longing for a marching band, or a livelier version of Bebop Bamboozled.
The halftime show was a stinker, just like the game itself.
John McCormack
Shocker. Who could have seen this take coming?
Be the tiniest bit less predictable, maybe.
John Rybicki
I agree. I thought that, while it was very well produced, visually it lacked dynamism. It also wasn’t particularly musical. By contrast, the last several halftime performances were terrific spectacles that I thoroughly enjoyed, even though I wasn’t familiar with the music.
By the way, country music hasn’t been in a halftime show in years because country doesn’t attract the same worldwide audience that pop and urban music do, nor does it lend itself readily to the kind of dynamic, outsize spectacle that has become the hallmark of recent halftime shows. Taylor Swift could probably pull it off (although she’s hardly “country” these days), but it doesn’t seem as though she wants to do it, at least not yet.
Don Friedman
If you are under 30, it worked just fine and was a breath of fresh air to the stale spectacle.
Many of the commercials catered to the oldsters. I heard Zeppelin. the Who, Bruce.
Jon Uman
I thought so as well, but did not say so to my friends as we were watching.
Loren Parkins
Hip hop to me has always been about the vibe. And Kendrick playing halftime looking in the camera telling Drake “I hear you like em young” will never get old to me. I loved the performance.
Van Patton
There was no surprise. And if Kendrick has embodied anything the past few years, it’s been surprise.
Hence, a mild show. Nothing surprising, nothing worth noting.
Unfortunate!
Tim Brunelle
Kendrick Lamar was not exactly bad, it was just lifeless and boring.
The Squid Game dance numbers were a yawn.
Jeff Capshew
Did you pre-write this? Hip hop will not get off your lawn.
Nate Dorough
I was bored stiff. Total dud.
Carl Lenox
It was a load of bang average bollocks … grist to the hate mill
NICK HANSON
Completely and utterly underwhelming
Josh Cohen
it was incomprehensible
from a whole different planet
the nfl has lost touch with mainstream america
the commercials sucked
the game was a blow out
boring evening
average tkt price $5400? absurd
ilt523
Agreed
Max Gunther
Respectfully, it wasn’t for you. He showed up
To do a performance that was a critique of being a black performer in America. this is insane:
"I don't want to beat a dead horse here, but in reality this was the year country should have headlined the Super Bowl. Hip-hop has been losing market share and mind share and country has been burgeoning. If I was sitting in a board room deciding what to program for this year's Super Bowl would I really have chosen Kendrick to rap to tape?"
Dude won best record and best song categories at the damn Grammys. And Beyoncé won this years best country album, Hip hop continues to
Transcend generations! You don’t get it and that’s ok but don’t call for country on a Super Bowl broadcast when the masses are not listening to it!
They are about Charlie xcx and Sabina and Chappell
Bridget Bland Bogee
It’s cool not to like it. Everyone doesn’t like something.
Can you really think of an act that would have had the entire country talking? I doubt it.
Patrick Charles
Super dud!!!
Sandra Vaughan
Kendrick Lamar sucks
Patricia Rainer
Agree that it sucked. Country is better
Tim Madigan
"There's something happening here and you don't know what it is…
… do you, Mr. Lefsetz."
www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/1iluv11/im_nearly_50_and_dont_know_who_kendrick_lamar_is/ 23k upvotes on Reddit. Check out the comments, seems like you may have missed some of the references.
It's cool dude, you're not racist, just out of touch.
Forest Casey
Dud is being generous. It was downright awful.
Jan burden
I tried watching it with CC (closed captioning) and the sound off.
It still didn’t make any sense.
Jeff Weicher
It sucked. Couldn’t understand a word. Up With People was at least understandable.
Wyllys Ingersoll
It was about the lyricism not the flash.
Jeremy Shelton
Agreed,
If there were sub titles maybe…
Just didn’t know what it was all about.
Thanks Bob!
Anne Buckley
I agree with you. The performance made me wish for rock and roll half time artists.
queenie taylor
I like Kendrick and I agree with you Bob
Zach Sutton
Where is the closed captioning when we need it?
Best Regards,
Bobby Tarantino
100% Bob. I agree it was soul-less.
Chris Gillespie
Not your first bad take, but easily your worst bad take.
Simon Sweetman
New Zealand
??????????????????????????????You are definitely not the only one.
Boring AF.
Like ChatGPT ??????????????????????????????created a rapper. ????????????????????????????????????????
Dan Millen
Thanks Bob. I think your analysis is spot on. It’s a shame you have to calibrate the blowback just for speaking your mind respectfully.
Kevin Bennett
It was a dud. I respect the craft, but it just didn’t play well for TV. Kinda like the Chiefs. 2 duds in the Super Bowl that we all probably thought would be a big hit.
todd gallopo
Ok and thank your for your very YT Privileged analysis from your Old White Man perspective Mister White Man. And DEI is for below average White Men and White Women.
Dale ‘Rage’ Resteghini
Bob gets exactly what I thought. I didn't know what was going on there. They should bring back Metallica that would really be a good show.
Rob Barrish
Agree
Dave Rene
Is it ironic that Kendrick’s own supporters might tell you, “Bitch, sit down. Be humble”?
Clearly he empathizes with people who want to speak their mind, even if against a vast power structure (would he recognize far left social media *is* that power structure? IDK).
But hey, racism is over because no matter what your ethnicity, if you pledge allegiance to Trump you will reap all the benefits and if you oppose him you will be punished. So your status is no longer skin-dependent, it’s cult-dependent.
Optimistically,
-Drew De Four
100% a Country show would have made more sense. CHRIS STAPLETON, LAINEY WILSON, MORGAN WALLEN, etc.
Joe Fletcher
100% agree Bob.
Gregg Quinn
Agree.
Jeff Shattuck
Agree 1000%
Patrick Whitaker
My thoughts exactly.
Steve Roche
Lame as hell. Boo half-time
Jeff Aldridge
It was a solid performance with really great choreography. Definitely not a dud of a performance.
Gabe Lehner
And I’ll get in trouble for saying this too. I didn’t get it either.
Jim Anderson
Hammer on the nail my friend.
Don de Brauwere
My wife and I went looking for sub titles! Interested but old ya…
Charles Thompson
Worst superbowl half time show ever. Eclipsed only by most boring first 1/2 in Super Bowl history.
Mike Ritchey
I agree with you. Could not understand the words and missed music like in the past. Also, did like how the Star Spangled was sung.
Bill Sarnoff
I agree Bob, it was a joke. It feels like a race to the bottom sometimes.
Jason Morris
Spot on.
I wanted to hear what he was saying, but I could not understand a thing. Try reading lips when the singer is hiding them behind a microphone.
Paul Nunes
You’re stuck in your bubble, Bob.
Joshua Leto
The show was sh*te.
Dawn Holliday
Halftime show sucked.
El;aine b. Coleman
Couldn't agree with you more!
A pathetic excuse for entertainment!
Non musical and boring .
jameduncan
Snooze
Simma Levine
That was a weak effort that employed lip syncing to its weakest degree. In other words, your analysis of Kendrick is completely accurate in my opinion.
Live music, with musicians giving their all is what I pay to see....
Keep on writing the truth!
Bruce
Well said, Bob. I went into the performance with an open mind, and came away extremely disappointed.
Cheers,
Geoff Mealey
My 86 year old mother-in-law said she didn’t like it. For a minute I thought it was because she was a Drake fan until she said she wanted the Super Bowl to bring back college marching bands.
Marty Winsch
I couldn’t agree more.
Alan Slusky
I agree. Some of the video taken from above the stage was cool, looked like jigsaw puzzle pieces. But the performance was boring and perhaps because I’m not a close follower of Lamar, the words were unintelligible. Thanks as always for saying what you think.
Sandy Warren
To quote my 20-year-old daughter: “I love Kendrick and I was bored.”
David Vawter
Horrid use of advertiser money.
If I were an advertising agency I could not recommend my clients spend money on this next year.
Ray Kester
I tweeted mid half time about how bad that was. Thought i would be out of touch. My feed was 95-5 besides my few followers who also hated it. Worst half time ever. McCartney was in the house.
John Mauldin
Agree, and I’m a huge fan of his. I just kept thinking that I’ll bet 90% of the people watching haven’t the slightest idea of what this is, and it certainly isn’t accessible on first listen of you’re out of the loop.
Tony George
My kids and their cousins are 16-25 years old, all love hip hop and all thought it was “mid” as they refer to average. “Kendrick was good 8 years ago, all of his new stuff sucks.”
I saw him with my daughter 7 years ago, was decent but yes it’s devoid of melody
Chan Dillon
I was waiting patiently for this email to drop and see if you agreed with me. As much as I love Kendrick, this was the year of country and should have been the music for the half-time show. Hip-hop never translates well live on a stage. There, I said it too.
Jenn Amato
A waste of time and money and an embarrassment
Robert Dilenscheider
Thumbs up! Totally aligned with you Bob.
John Green
I don’t know Bob…I myself would have rather seen RUN/DMC but what do I know I’m old.
Stevie Salas
I was not familiar with any of the material ahead of time. I could not have told you the name of one Kendrick Lamar song. I watched the entire halftime performance. No, I could not understand most of the lyrics, but to me, it didn’t matter – I WAS BLOWN AWAY. I thought it was FANTASTIC!
Mark Towns
It was so boring they cut it off at the end. Why not Bruno Mars?
Alan Segal
The halftime show didn't seem very dynamic music-wise but it was an impressive logistical spectacle. I don't think it "played" but in fairness, I didn't know the material at all.
The pre-game NOLA show seemed to beg the question: why not a NOLA-themed halftime show? There are plenty of young great New Orleans musicians and it was a lot more fun than Kendrick's set.
William Nollman
Generous serving(s) of crap on crap. What was the point, to lose viewers ?
Wonderful idea !!
Ron Iafornaro
You’re right Bob.
Thank you!
Best, James Regan
I watched the game with four friends and we all thought the half time show was terrible. Very boring.
James Fallon
My son who is a 17 and a HipHop fan said it was “ass”.
Barry Fantle
I’m bummed you missed the bigger picture of the performance. I personally found the storytelling and symbolism incredibly powerful, and Samuel Jackson as Uncle Sam was awesome!
While I'm not a huge hip hop fan myself, I found the performance entertaining and thought-provoking. It felt like a rallying cry against the current political climate, and as a bonus it clearly struck a nerve with some MAGA politicians.
Best,
Duff Rice
Agreed.
Alicia Etchison
Geezer patrol checking in. I barely watch sports, I tune into the Super Bowl to see the fewer and fewer clever commercials, and check out the annual boring dance party halftime extravaganza at the Super Bowl. But as I'm watching the halftime show, I'm texting my son, and I ask, is this real music? He knows me and my old fashioned musical tastes, and he jokes, "Dad, you're not the demographic they're aiming at." But we agreed, no one will be humming that whatever song/melody the Super Bowl Singer du jour just sang? (does anyone remember what melody means?) Much less a year from now.. Industrialized Manufactured Music for the Moment. Can I trademark that? A forgettable Super Bowl, too except for the Philadelphia fans. Maybe a record company should put out a late night multi-LP offer/collection: "Memorable Super Bowl HalfTime Shows. (And They Used to Call it Music?) As I mentioned, my son suggests I am not the demographic they're aiming at. I'm gonna look for a Beatles LP or....
Chip Lovitt
Absolutely a dud! And not just halftime. The game, the commercials, the halftime…worst of all time.
Matthew Grandi
It wasnt for you.
(Or me)
Those in my life that it was for found it revelatory.
Nick Lawson
it was weak.!
and the fake audience audio response
was so obviously enhanced- the cheers were
exactly placed, unlike a real crowd,
where there is a delay, especially
in the half asleep football crowd!
Rob Preuss
Horrible take. You obviously didn’t get any of the political messages sent through his performance and are obviously too old to enjoy his style of music, doesn’t mean it didn’t work or that the rest of America didn't like it.
Catherine Ryan
Completely agree.
I thought I might learn something about the artist but I couldn’t understand a word he said.
American Flag visual with all black men was cool though.
Marc Jacobson
Both musically and visually, one of the most boring halftime shows I can remember.
Jonathan McSweeney
P.S. But it fit right in with the boring game and boring commercials and boring post game interviews.
Thanks for writing this.
Kendrick Lamar's Superbowl show was very weak!!
You could not hear one word that he was saying.
And there was no melody.
And this has nothing to do with the fact that I am extremely angry at Kendrick and Drake for their moronic rap battle that has just caused division among their fans.
Bob Marley taught us that the mission of music to instill consciousness and uplift the people.
Yet still the critics and the Grammys patronize the Not Like Us song, which is filled with hate.
But since I am coming from a place of love, I will forgive Drake and Kendrick if they will meet and shake hands and unite their fans and do some community work instead of being spoilt millionaires.
Native Wayne Jobson
Jamaica
We are down in Mexico and eagerly watched half time and we agree with you, didn’t work for us.
Jules and Fran Belkin
Agreed. Well said.
Taylor Brereton
Yeah, it sucked..I perused the comments on the NFL'S Facebook page.. Almost all were negative, as in "worst ever show"..Ditto, everywhere else.
No melody or instrumentation, that's a given, it's all about the MESSAGE, right?..But what if you can't HEAR the message? You're left with diddly.
And the production value was basic AF..
Did he sell any tickets for his stadium tour because of THIS? To anybody that wasn't ALREADY on board? Not bloody likely..
James Spencer
The audio sucked. I thought the whole idea behind rap was the words. Never heard one word.
Buried in the music track and over compressed.
I agree I thought country might have worked a bit better.
-will eggleston
I didn't get the halftime show. Frankly, you said just what I did--there was a guy in jeans running around saying things I couldn't understand.
That's music? Perhaps to some, but not to me.
dave roberts
Dave Roberts
I didn’t notice a lack of melody! Really.
But I couldn’t understand the lyrics and that was annoying.
The staging and production, however were fabulous and I actually loved seeing no instruments.
Kendrick Lamar is a Pulitzer Prize winner so the lyrics mean a lot.
Was it a good halftime show? It wasn’t Prince. But it had a good beat and Serena Williams could dance to it. :-)
Regards
Amy Krakow
I totally agree with you that the half time show was an absolute bust. Aside from the teens in the room, the 15 adults in the room all asked “This is Music?”. I think this show is a leftover from a previous mandate. Maybe hitting bottom this year will give us hope for next year.
Thanks for your articles. You are a gifted writer.
Doug Cavanaugh
It immediately put me into an unconscious state.
It was horrible.
Leigh Goldstein
100% agree. You hit the bullseye..My kids are fans, I wanted it to be great. It wasnt.
Best,
Marcus Linial
ML Presents
It was awful.
No melody.
No energy.
Once again, you nailed it Bob.
Kevin Vahidi
I agree. It was not good. The only thing that really struck me was when they were arranged like the American flag. It was a nice visualization that was interesting and felt fresh how it was animated. Otherwise, and I’m a big hip hop fan, i was quite underwhelmed.
Ethan Block
I think a simple way of saying it is that he didn't win any fans, but he didn't lose any, either.
Taylor Rummel
Right on Bob. I am a Kendrick Lamar fan, but that was a big dud. Boring and worst of all, was the horrible mix. Sounded muddy and mushy and his vocals sounded muddy. Can they change the drum sound. C’mon, this is all pre mixed and this is what they put out over the air? Sounded like a mix I did when I was 16 when I had my Tacsam 4 track on cassette back in 1986.
One of the weakest Super Bowl performances I have seen period.
Fritz Dorigo
Agreed. Rap doesn't work well for non-fans and he has about 10% of A.Paak's stage presence.
No charisma... borrring show.
DG
P. S. In truth, not boring, unwatchable.
when you write tone deaf crap like this, all you do is show your entitlement and cultural ignorance.
you’re a smart guy but you miss the mark more often than not these days.
Diane Gordon
100%. Recorded mumbo jumbo with Squid Game choreography. That and a crap game made for the worst Super Bowl in at least XII - XL years.
Michael Craig
Totally agree with you. Hopefully the next set of staffers for SP50 will have watched FireAid Benefit Concert and select some real artists to entertain at halftime.
LIna Lambert
That was well said. I couldn't agree you with you more.
dogandponyindustries
Agree, Bob.
Zero connection. Wrong venue.
Next.
(And yes, Prince was greatest performance of all time)
Robert Vitale
I, like millions of other people, love Kendrick. That half time was boring. His mic was too quiet, and the show was just dull. Disappointing.
Michael Urbano
I thought everyone was trying to figure out what kind of Buick Lamar was standing on, a Regal, a Grand National or a GNX.
Alan fenton
I watched it. I didn’t care. But the kids danced because the species felt the vibe. Everyone who’s old enough to know better, knew that this wasn’t anything to write home about. The younger generations don’t know the difference. They just want vibes. And they got it.
It’s not my cup of tea and you’re right about what kind of quality exists. But humans want to dance and they did.
It’s not getting better. It’s getting worse. But like the frogs in the pot of boiling water, they can’t tell the difference.
I’m just hoping we find the bottom sometime soon.
Brooks Nelson
It was boring. Artistically ambitious, cool choreography but boring. Like the game. The college kids I watched the game with thought the same thing. Frankly, America is boring right now. Trump is boring, fascism is boring.
Jack Ross
It was horrible
And Prince was my all time fav halftime too
And Whitney’s SSB was also an all time fav
tags-amazing7r
We switched over to YouTube and watched Prince’s Superbowl performance then switched back for comparison. Night and day.
Fleetwood Gruver
Dud.
Ralph Covert
Amen! We didn’t expect to see anything at the level of Prince but we were expecting a musical performance of some sort and didn’t get one. The banter of the football analysts had more of a musical quality about it than whatever Lamar was doing tonight. It was absolute sh*te. Whoever booked that act or OK’d it should be ashamed of themselves. Thanks for speaking the truth.
James Hirsch
I have a lot of respect for Kendrick Lamar. His records are for the most part great art. (The Drake thing is stupid). He might actually be the Bob Dylan of Hip-Hop-- truly a great artist deserving of his Grammy's but his show went no where for us watching the Super Bowl on TV. You are completely correct Bob. His performance was fine but not for the Super Bowl gang -- we were falling asleep. Next time give us someone who can get us off our couches and dance!
Jim
I loved it. I’m not a huge hip hop fan or ingrained in the hip hop culture, but I have been a huge fan of Kendrick for over a decade and I really dig him.
So for me I think I just enjoyed Kendrick. I personally don’t love most modern country beyond Zach Bryan and Kacey musgraves. So I was happy to see Kendrick perform and man I loved it.
Also, my room of 11 6th grade boys loved it more than I did. They kept saying throughout how sick it was and they were cheering and singing the whole time. Young people love Kendrick. It was the highlight of the game for them. Seriously, every boy there was going crazy for him and his performance. Big hit with the 11-13 year old dude crowd.
John N. Hamilton
F*cking terrible. Spot on, Bob.
Glen Hachenverg
You’re right. Three words are all anyone would need to hear to know that Kendrick Lamar is not suitable for a Super Bowl halftime show:
Not
Like
Us
It sucked.
Dan Wiethorn
It’s not racist to have an opinion about an artist who happens to be Black. But the show was not meant for you. The show was for fans of Hip Hop, which as a reminder, is the largest genre of music and has been for quite a few years. It also over indexes for the fanbase the NFL is targeting as evidenced by the growth in viewership over the past few years and most likely why they brought on Roc Nation.
There’s definitely a demographic attached to the show, the music, and the fandom. It probably wasn’t as mainstream as the Super Bowl halftime show usually is, but that didn’t make it bad. It just made it not your cup of tea. Where you didn’t hear melody, millions did. Where you may not have taken the time to hear what he was saying, millions did. The sound was actually more clear than we are used to in Hip Hop.
The choreography was impressive and he brought together blue and red on one stage, making a strong unity statement that probably doesn’t affect the neighborhood where you live in LA. There was also white outfits added to symbolize the flag— a statement that all of us in the US can probably relate to, especially right now.
The NFL has been going after a younger and different demographic for a few years. Their viewership is finally increasing with the demographic they’re seeking. They are achieving their goal. That was the value of a Kendrick Lamar halftime show.
The fans of Hip Hop just had a Super Bowl performance that they wanted to watch. Next year, it’ll be something different. But I’m sure it’ll focus on the NFL’s demographic because that’s the whole point of marketing. The fact that you were watching it was just an added plus for them. You are no longer their target market—neither am I. But I thought Kendrick snapped (that’s a compliment). Hope you’re doing well. Loved your recent podcast interview. It was inspirational.
--
Wendy Day
Rap Coalition
There was no art in that Kendrick Lamar performance. By that I mean: it shed no light on the human condition. It was meaningless. Even my kids (who are in grade school) didn’t feel like getting up to dance - and they were totally ready to dance. But there was nothing there.
Pat Cook
Bob---Year after year, millions of Americans never experience any musical performance beyond the Super Bowl halftime show. How pathetic that the country whose unique indigenous pop music is revered and lionized throughout the western world is home to such far-reaching ignorance. Paul Lanning
Your on the money!
Margouleff
Keep up the good work Bob,
I have heard Bowie, T-rex, Mot the Hoople, and other bands from that era, backing TV commercials, I will bet you everything I got,
that in 30 years you won't be hearing rap or hip hop etc. backing anything.
Pat Mallahan Seattle and Antigua, Guatemala....
Pretty soon, no Seattle, talk about a bunch of lost techie souls.....still good people there, but....
As one friend we had over for our Super Bowl party commented: “There are 85 thousand people in the stadium who paid 20 grand each for the weekend and are witnessing the half time show and not relating”…... out of 30 people in the room at our house one person seemed to know what was happening …..not to fault Kendrick Lamar…he does his thing…testifies his art….
But the audience on TV and live was probably not the demographic….dunno…just my guess
Game was a blowout….. so many were leaving after first half…
But hey….good reason for a party….
Bill Powell
Bob, I'm pleasantly surprised.... Finally you told it like it is without your usual Woke take on things. Well done and for the record...I AGREE! Incredible artist..Horrible Halftime show...
Kindly
Johnny Viera
I agree
Jim Henderson
You may have some points regarding the performance but to say hip-hop is losing market and mind share when Kendrick Lamar and Drake's spat last year drove conversation for months, led to Billboard #1s and as even you stated, produced a song that took home the big Grammy, your argument begins to fall apart. Not to mention the dominance of other rappers and moments like Gelo's "Tweaker" in the last 12 months.
A country artist doesn't have the catalog that fans around the US would have been anymore familiar with.
Beyonce, who released a masterful album last year, also likely won because of a split vote in a category full of artists reaching similar demos. Not to mention a chance to make up for snubbing her in the past.
Appreciate your commitment to keeping others informed about the industry but it is you who has missed the mark this time.
Nick Nuk'em
I agree.
Stephen Hutchinson
Agreed. I thought it was as one dimensional.
Nicole Paradiso
BIG DUD!!!!!
Sarah Graham
I agree 100%
Randy Schaaf
We all had the same convo: who are they trying to appeal to? Not boomer football audiences that’s for sure. The younger people I know have not a speck of interest in pro football.
But they’ve run out of classic rock legends, so what now? I can’t believe they didn’t book Chris Stapleton (or maybe he doesn’t need that stress!) or another country super star that resonates really widely, even with us boomers. Rap? Yeah. It’s apparently the dominant musical force anymore but for boomer music lovers it’s zzzzzzzzzzzz……
Young Hutchinson
Bob, thank you for the honest review of the halftime performance by Lamar. That was a total loss of time, horrible to say the least.
Mike Mitchell
Lafayette,La
I like him but it was a dud.
Beth Thornley
You are 100% correct. This summed up my thoughts very well:
Maybe hip-hop works live when everybody in the audience knows the words. But I'd posit that most people watching tonight neither knew the words nor could understand them. They just saw a guy running around while rapping into a mic and were scratching their head and asking themselves...THIS IS MUSIC?
Andrew Ramsay
That performance was art. Period. There were layers of it sprinkled all throughout. It wasn’t supposed to be obvious to the white viewers. For example, where the dancers formed the American flag and had their heads down showing their black backs because America was built on the literal backs of their ancestors. Though was it good tv? Who cares? It’s not supposed to be for everyone. Not everyone has to get your art. Kendrick wants you to think, to analyze. I think it was great tv for some and not for others. But again if you have the interest to look for the meaning in the performance you’ll really be moved and get it.
It’s exactly the kind of art we need. I’m kinda sorry that you didn’t get it. You must be out of touch with the culture but that’s okay. Dig deeper ask about it. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
Justin Portis
Love Kendrick. He’s one of the last real rappers. But as I always say, even as someone who has worked in the production side of hip hop, hip hop almost always sounds better on the recording or the album, while bands at least the good ones will always sound better live.
They should have added a live band to give this performance depth. Live drums, bass and keys would have added some oomph.
I thought when they started to march that a marching band was going to join, that also could have been a nice touch.
The production team let Kendrick down here, what could have been had the right mind produced this. And having DJ Mustard there was out of place in my opinion.
Regards,
Dean Earls
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