I’ve always been an Usher stan. The first time I heard an Usher song I was at a house party and “You Make Me Wanna” came on the TV and I did a double take. By the time Confessions came out in 2004 I was a fully invested (despite his questionable morals lets be honest) so I was always going to be overly interested in this Super Bowl Halftime Show.
Now Usher has had his Vegas Residency rolling since 2021, so that’s basically how long he’s been preparing for this Halftime Show, Vegas is in his blood now. With that being said, this set was never going to rival Prince for the Best Halftime Performance Ever, but it was going to entertain the hell outta all the millennials watching.
The set list was a tour de force of hits – “Love in the Club”, “Burn”, “OMG” and of course, “Yeah” alongside Lil John, Ludacris and will.i.am. But the standout moments for me were the unexpected ones – like HER showing up during “U Got It Bad” for a killer guitar solo and Alicia Keys giving us just a taste of “If I Ain’t Got You” before blessing up with their balled “My Boo”.
I’ve seen a few comments that rate this performance fell a bit flat. I mean, you try signing and slaying that choreography on roller skates. Sometimes you just need to soak up a performance for just that and leave the minute critique at home. Watch Usher’s performance below.