Rihanna Confirms She's Performing During The Super Bowl 57 Halftime Show
The "Umbrella" singer posted a photo of her hand holding an official NFL football on Instagram.
Rihanna stans — rise up! The Barbados-born singer confirmed the rumors that she would be performing at the 2023 Super Bowl halftime show!
Following a report from TMZ that the new mom had been in discussions with the NFL and Roc Nation about performing at State Farm Stadium in February 2023, the pop star confirmed the exciting news by sharing a photo her tattooed hand holding up an NFL-branded football.
No caption was added to the photo though that didn’t stop fans and celebrities alike from celebrating the news. Lizzo commented on the post, expressing her excitement for Rihanna’s performance with just one word: “screaming”.
Katy Perry echoed that sentiment. “Hell yeah,” she commented.
The official Instagram account for MTV jokingly wrote, “SUDDENLY I LOVE FOOTBALL”
The news comes as a bit of a shock considering just three years ago, the Fenty Beauty founder expressed no interest in performing at a Super Bowl halftime show. She had even previously turned down the opportunity to headline in solidarity of activist and former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
“I couldn’t dare do that,” she told Vogue in 2019. "For what? Who gains from that? Not my people. I just couldn’t be a sellout. I couldn’t be an enabler. There’s things within that organization that I do not agree with at all, and I was not about to go and be of service to them in any way.”
While some fans may be confused about Rihanna’s decision to take center stage in front of millions of viewers in February, her friends and colleagues are making it clear how thrilled they are to have the singer perform.
“Rihanna is a generational talent, a woman of humble beginnings who has surpassed expectations at every turn. A person born on the small island of Barbados who became one of the most prominent artists ever. Self-made in business and entertainment," Jay-Z, said in a statement.
Dr. Dre, who performed at the halftime show in 2022, sat down with Apple Music 1 host Ebro Darden to discuss the announcement.
“I just like her and what she does, and her get down, and how she approaches her artistry and the whole nine,” Dr. Dre said. “It’s fantastic. She has the opportunity to really blow us away. I know we set the bar extremely high.”
The NFL is also celebrating the “Work” singer finally appearing on the most watched sporting event of the year. “We are thrilled to welcome Rihanna to the Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show stage,” Seth Dudowsky, NFL Head of Music, exclaimed in his own statement.
“Rihanna is a once-in-a-generation artist who has been a cultural force throughout her career. We look forward to collaborating with Rihanna, Roc Nation and Apple Music to bring fans another historic Halftime Show performance.”
Super Bowl LVII airs on Sunday, February 12, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. That means you have about 5 months to come up with your dream setlist, preferred guest appearances, and perfect those dance moves.
Is it February yet?
