Rihanna delivered a powerful and confident performance for her first Super Bowl halftime show in five years. She also revealed that she is pregnant, which was an unexpected surprise and added to the awe-inspiring vibe of the performance.
Her performance may not have matched that of fellow superstars Dre, SZA or Jay-Z, but she brought elegance to her halftime medley. That’s an impressive feat for any singer, let alone one who hasn’t released a new album in nearly three years.
Everyone other than Trump seemed to love her performance
Rihanna’s Performance
Rihanna, who hasn’t released a new album since her last studio release in 2016, delivered one of the most entertaining performances during the Super Bowl. She blew through 13 of her biggest hits in less than 15 minutes, a pace that put even frenetic punk-rock pioneers The Ramones in their breathless “one-two-three-four!” prime to shame.
She also tethered herself to a platform that hovered above the field at several points in her impeccably choreographed set. She was surrounded by dozens of dancers, all in identical white hooded outfits.
She performed a medley of her most popular songs and even took the opportunity to plug her brand, Fenty Beauty. She also appeared to rub her pregnant belly during the performance, a hint that she may be expecting her second child.
The Visuals
Rihanna threw out all the conventions of the typical Super Bowl halftime show, turning entertainment’s largest platform into something all her own. She shook Arizona’s State Farm Stadium with a medley of her hits that melted faces on pure nostalgia factor alone.
A Super Bowl halftime show is often a meticulous affair, from the stage design to the carefully curated theme. But Rihanna’s medley of her hits lacked a basic theme and was essentially a 15-minute mega-mix of her biggest hits.
The Barbadian singer ascended into the sky on a floating stage that swung and moved as she performed, her body visible from several different angles in the air. Her setlist also incorporated firework effects that illuminated the sky multiple times, creating an effect reminiscent of the music video for her song “Diamonds.”
The Music
Rihanna’s performance featured a 15-minute mega-mix of her biggest hits. This is the first Super Bowl appearance she’s made since her last album, Anti, was released in 2016.
The Independent’s Mark Beaumont praised her show as one of the best performances in Super Bowl history.
“Rihanna is a billionaire fashion and beauty mogul with an enviable discography and the kind of self-assured style that suits the NFL’s halftime shows perfectly. She’s also a new mother and the face of Fenty beauty products.
She declined the 2019 halftime show offer to support Colin Kaepernick’s protest against racial inequality. Now, she is visibly pregnant again and has announced her second child with boyfriend A$AP Rocky. Hopefully, she will perform again at a future Super Bowl! Until then, we can only hope she’s healthy and happy.
The Stamina
Sharing our own Rihanna super bowl performance review, it was full of energy and she made sure to showcase her incredible discography in spectacular style. However, there was something that stood out during her performance and that was the stamina she displayed.
Performing in heels and on a floating platform during the Super Bowl wouldn’t be easy and it would have taken a lot of stamina for her to do it while pregnant. This shows her level of dedication and commitment to her career.
Her setlist included some classic Rihanna hits, as well as her more recent singles. She also added a few twerking moves to her setlist as well, which really amplified her performance.
Despite her amazing performance, viewers noticed that she seemed to be lacking energy during the show and some even speculated that she might be in the early stages of her second pregnancy. This was only confirmed by Rihanna’s representatives after the Super Bowl.
