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UTEP students have mixed opinions after five hip-hop and rap legends, for the first time, headlined the halftime show for Super Bowl LVI Sunday, Feb. 13, at the SoFi Stadium.
Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar, and a special guest performance by 50 Cent brought their California pride to the stage and transported the audience back to the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Their performance was highly anticipated since the NFL announced the lineup back in October 2021. However, for some UTEP students, the halftime show did not meet their expectations.
The Prospector asked students to share their thoughts on the halftime show performance on social media, and some responded saying, it was not what they hoped for or simply described it with one word, “blah.”
Other UTEP students responded to The Prospector’s poll, saying they loved it and that it was the best halftime show of all time.
Although all six artists performed, the show centered around Dr. Dre.
Dr. Dre helped produce several songs performed during the show, he also mentored and collaborated with all the artists who performed at the halftime show, when they started their careers.
The stage was a series of all-white stages that represented the homes of South L.A. Dr. Dre and Snoop Dog opened the show by performing “The Next Episode” and paid homage to Tupac by performing “California Love.”
Throughout their performances dancers surrounded the stage with low riders lined up in the front.
Fans were not expecting a special guest, but 50 Cent surprised the crowd by making a special appearance upside down and performing “In Da Club.”
Blige was the star of the show as she appeared at the rooftop with a sparkly silver attire with high knee white boots surrounded by dancers as she performed her hit songs “Family Affair” and “No More Pain.” She ended her performance flat on her back.
She was the only artist who had previously performed at the Super Bowl halftime show in 2001.
Although fans were excited over the biggest halftime show headline to date, not all artists had the same amount of time to perform.
Kendrick Lamar, the youngest performer on stage and the most contemporary artist, stood out and performed “M.A.A.D City” and “Alright” around dancers despite having less time to perform. Eminem later appeared on the rooftop alongside Anderson .Paak on the drums and performed “Lose Yourself” and kneeled as he ended his performance. All six artists joined to rap “Still D.R.E.” for the closing act.
Victoria Rivas is the Arts & Culture Editor and may be reached at [email protected]; @VicRivas_18 on Twitter.
