Football game, or Rihanna concert? There are many reasons to tune in to the Super Bowl, including the amazing commercials, and the highly anticipated movie trailers. So far, Super Bowl LVII, between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles, has been no exception. But it seems fair to say this year’s halftime show was especially exciting for many, since it featured Rihanna, an iconic artist who hasn’t released a new album in a while.
How to rewatch it
The halftime show briefly showed up online, complete with American Sign Language interpretation, via a Fox Sports YouTube video. But that video was later made private. In past years, the NFL has put the entire halftime show online shortly after it aired. If the league does that with Rihanna’s show, we’ll post it here.
Rihanna’s halftime show
The singer lit up the Glendale, Arizona night, performing a medley of songs while dressed in a bright red jumpsuit she wore unzipped over a coordinating red bodysuit.
Rihanna performed B—- Better Have My Money, Where Have You Been, Only Girl (In The World), We Found Love, Rude Boy, Work, Wild Thoughts, Pour It Up, All of the Lights, Run This Town, Umbrella and Diamonds. That’s quite the repertoire.
Some suspected Rihanna would be joined by a celebrity guest or two for the performance, but she didn’t need anyone else. However, musician A$AP Rocky, her boyfriend, cheered her on.
The halftime show also involved Rihanna and others performing on raised platforms, which led to at least one video game joke that was pretty good.
*presses up on the D-pad*
rihanna: “work work work work work”
— Limmy K. (@subdivisionist) February 13, 2023
Is Rihanna pregnant?
During the performance, many speculated that Rihanna looked pregnant. Almost immediately after the show, her reps confirmed to both Rolling Stone and The Hollywood Reporter that she is, in fact, expecting a child.
Until she shared that news, people were wondering. “The whole timeline afraid to ask if Rihanna is pregnant,” joked one Twitter user.
ok so everyone just googled “rihanna pregnant” right
— David Mack (@davidmackau) February 13, 2023
Rihanna welcomed her first child, a baby boy, back in May 2022. She’s kept details of her son largely under wraps, including his name.
Here’s a little about Rihanna
Barbadian singer Rihanna is one of those musical artists who doesn’t need to use a last name. (It’s Fenty, though. She uses the name for her makeup and lingerie businesses.) She stood alone at this year’s halftime show, unlike in 2022, when Dr. Dre, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J. Blige all shared the spotlight.
Don’t know Rihanna? She’s a pop, fashion and musical icon, a billionaire businesswoman, and an actress who’s starred in movies and TV shows. (Kids loved her as the voice of Tip in the 2015 DreamWorks film Home.) She’s won nine Grammy Awards and is one of the bestselling musical artists of all time, having sold 250 million records worldwide. While she hasn’t released a new album since 2016, she does have two songs — Lift Me Up and Born Again — on the soundtrack for Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever.
Take it from Jay-Z, who signed the singer to Def Jam Records in 2004, and now owns Roc Nation, her management company and the NFL’s official entertainment partner.
“Rihanna is a generational talent, a woman of humble beginnings who has surpassed expectations at every turn,” he said when Rihanna’s Super Bowl role was announced.
This is the first year that Apple Music is sponsoring the Super Bowl halftime show, replacing Pepsi.
