Just watched the halftime show and have mixed feelings

[happybird]

If they had left out 50 and Kendrick Lamar it would have been great.

The stage/set was weird. Would have rather seen a traditional big stage, viewable from all sides of the stadium- I’d have been pissed if my $$$$$ superbowl seats were facing the closed ‘back’ of the houses. The set made the performers look tiny.

The dancers were great. Loved the homage(s) to Tupac. Enjoyed Anderson Paak’s huge smile and enthusiasm singing along with Eminem. He was so obviously stoked, it made me smile.

I could watch and listen to Dre and Snoop all day long. Mary J was fabulous, as always, and Eminem was great. That’s all they needed, imho.

Just my 2 cents. Saw lots of comments, both positive and negative, on here last night so was interested to watch it today.

[hlthe2b]

1. Thanks for posting. The crowd seemed to like it and I can see very costly $$ production values...

Today I've seen some of the idiotic/racist RW comments (including laughably that it was "racist" because it was "all black rappers" )! I guess Eminem might be interested to hear that.

Would not have been my choice, but probably good for the NFL to mix it up some.

[jmbar2]

2. I don't get rap at all

I can see good stagecraft, good rhythm, smooth transitions between performers and good dancers. Don't get the crotch grabbing or twerking. I'm old.

But the music itself escapes me. It is a high energy, exciting show, but I don't hear music.
I'm a jazz freak. I'm trying to figure out what makes rap "good". Will someone please explain it to me.

I'm serious. Thanks.

[Ocelot II]

3. Rather than thinking of it as music in the usual sense,

I guess I look at rap as more of a poetry recitation with a rhythm background, and it does have a lot of energy if not much music. I'm not much of a fan of it, but I'm old and I like opera, so what do I know?

[jmbar2]

6. The review in the Guardian helped me understand the performance better.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/feb/13/dr-dre-snoop-dogg-eminem-kendrick-lamar-and-mary-j-bliges-half-time-show-an-all-timer

[NewDayOranges]

4. Rap as an art form is literally a narrative or prose

Told to a beat or melody...

Just like any other art form there will be narratives with beats/melodies that you like and there will be narratives with beats/melodies that you DON'T like and that's okay...😎

[jmbar2]

5. Thanks for the explanation

Since the halftime performers were stars already, I am assuming that the audience knew the lyrics, and they were meaningful to their lived experiences.
The Guardian had a good review of the performance that explained some of the nuances to me as well.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/feb/13/dr-dre-snoop-dogg-eminem-kendrick-lamar-and-mary-j-bliges-half-time-show-an-all-timer

Thanks again.