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Usher-Raymond-Concert.jpeg

Usher Will Be Performing At The Halftime Show For Super Bowl 2024

By Brian Richards | Celebrity | September 25, 2023 |

By Brian Richards | Celebrity | September 25, 2023 |

Usher-Raymond-Concert.jpeg

Finally! A reason to talk about football that doesn’t involve racism, domestic violence, sexual assault, more domestic violence, or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy!*

Yesterday morning, it was announced that U-S-H-E-R R-A-Y-M-O-N-D himself, Usher, will be performing at the Halftime Show for Super Bowl LVIII next year, and that announcement was made with the help of videos that blended footage of Usher from the “Confessions, Part 2” music video with appearances by Kim Kardashian, Marshawn Lynch, Odell Beckham, Jr., and Deion Sanders.

From ESPN.com:

The NFL, Apple Music and Roc Nation announced Sunday that Usher would lead the halftime festivities from Allegiant Stadium on Feb. 11, revealing his role in a social media post Sunday that included Kim Kardashian. Usher, an eight-time Grammy Award winner, previously was a guest at the Super Bowl XLV halftime show in 2011, which was headlined by the Black Eyed Peas. He said he is looking forward to performing on the NFL’s biggest stage.

“It’s an honor of a lifetime to finally check a Super Bowl performance off my bucket list,” Usher said in a statement. “I can’t wait to bring the world a show unlike anything else they’ve seen from me before. Thank you to the fans and everyone who made this opportunity happen. I’ll see you real soon.”

He will join a list of featured acts who have played Super Bowl halftime shows that includes Beyoncé, Madonna, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Coldplay, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem, U2, Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson and Katy Perry.

Much like when Kylie Jenner appeared in the music video for Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s “WAP,” Kim Kardashian appearing in the announcement video for Usher at the Super Bowl had some fans on social media quoting Joseline Hernandez and asking, “Ho, why is you here?”

That didn’t stop those same fans from celebrating this news, and getting excited at the thought of Usher performing some of his biggest hits on one of the biggest, most-watched stages in the world.

And they also couldn’t help but use this news announcement to be incredibly petty towards one Twitter user who went viral when they tweeted back in February that Usher doesn’t have enough hits to be considered for the Super Bowl Halftime Show. (That same person attempted to clarify their remarks with another tweet by explaining that what they meant was that Usher has R&B hits, but not pop hits that have crossed over and appeal to a much wider/whiter audience.) A lot of people on Twitter laughed and scoffed at that tweet when it was first posted then, and they were laughing even harder and talking even more sh-t about that person’s tweet (and at other tweets implying that Usher isn’t as popular or relevant today as he used to be) once the news about Usher became public. Especially when this is the same Usher who appeared in an NPR Tiny Desk concert that has been viewed on YouTube over 18 million times, and which gave us a classic Black Twitter meme as a result.

The same Usher who has headlined an incredibly successful residency since 2021, which started at the Colosseum in Las Vegas before bringing it to Park MGM, a residency that is expected to end in December, two months before his performance at the Super Bowl.

Will Usher use this opportunity to do the funniest thing ever by inviting Keke Palmer to be in attendance at his Halftime Show, and give Darius even more reason to log onto Twitter and remind everyone of his tendency to sound like a misogynistic dumbass? We’ll find out when the Super Bowl Halftime Show featuring Usher airs on Sunday, February 11, 2024.

*Obviously, this was submitted for publication before we got the footage of Taylor Swift cheering on her rumored boo, Travis Kelce, as the Kansas City Chiefs played against the Chicago Bears. And the less said about how Kelce’s mustache now makes him look like Chris Evans in Lobby Hero, the better.