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Kendrick Lamar put on a show Hip-Hop fans will never forget during his set at the big game on Sunday night, February 9. While fans were fixated on the obvious jabs at Drake, Lamar's performance was laced with jaw-dropping details from start to finish that helped tell a story bigger than the Super Bowl.
Moments before his set began, the Caesars Superdome was illuminated with red lights, which made the venue look like a red button. "Red Button" is a song on Drake's For All The Dogs Scary Hours Edition. It also seemed like a nod to the meme Drizzy shared during the peak of their beef last year.
Lamar's set began with an introduction from "Uncle Sam" portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson. The revered actor, who's known for playing roles like "Stephen" in Django Unchained, narrated the nearly 13-minute set while dressed in red, white and blue. Jackson referred to the show as the "great American game" and pointed out the "culture cheat code" later on in the performance. The stages resembled the circle, triangle and "x" buttons on the controller for Sony PlayStation consoles. Sony owns the label Drake is currently suing, but we'll get to that part later.
Kendrick Lamar opened his set with an unreleased verse that appeared in the original trailer for GNX while crouched down on the hood of the black Grand National from the album's cover. His inclusion of the song, which did not appear on the surprise album, may indicate his plan to release the rumored deluxe version of the album sooner than later.
"The revolution about to be televised," Kendrick said during the show. "You picked the right time but the wrong guy."
Everything Kendrick did, said and wore on the field had a significant meaning. For example, the varsity jacket he wore was made by Martine Rosé and had the titles of his songs from GNX all over it from "Gloria" to "Peekaboo." He performed the latter track during his set as well. Although there was a lot going on within the seams of his jacket, all eyes were on his diamond chain with the lowercase "a" pendant. Some people believed it was a nod to the "a minor" line on "Not Like Us," but it's actually part of his pgLang logo. The completed image appeared on black flags that were waived throughout his set.
Scroll below to check out more Easter eggs from Kendrick Lamar's show and what they might mean.
Kendrick Lamar's dancers formed the American flag during "Humble"
K.Dot's back-up dancers dressed in red, white and blue to form the American flag during his performance of "Humble." Lamar walks down the middle of the flag while the dancers have their backs turned to him. This could've represented the division of today's American politics.
The huge "warning" before Kendrick Lamar performed "Euphoria"
There were a few secret messages hidden in the crowd behind Kendrick throughout the show. In the beginning, the words "loading" appeared and went from 0-100%. Right before he performed "Euphoria," the words "Warning Wrong Way" appeared. This was an ominous sign that Kendrick was about to perform his first diss track for Drake and didn't care about the repercussions. Keep your eye on those messages throughout the show.
Kendrick Lamar pokes fun at Drake's legal issues
Kendrick Lamar had a little fun before he performed the biggest song of the year. While transitioning from "peekaboo" to "luther," K.Dot told the ladies he wanted to play their "favorite song." The instrumental for "Not Like Us" kicked up but he decided to bring out SZA, Drake's other ex-girlfriend, to perform "luther" and "All The Stars" on the triangle stage. The duo gave fans a preview of their upcoming "Grand National Tour."
Kendrick Lamar namedrops Drake by name during "Not Like Us"
Kendrick kept it subtle up until he finally performed "Not Like Us." "They tried to rig the game, but you can't fake influence," Kendrick said before he began his anticipated performance. K.Dot may have served up an edited version of the song and cut out the "certified pedophile" allegations. Yet, he took the gloves off as soon as he looked directly into the camera and rapped his infamous line, "Say Drake. I heard you like 'em young." The one-two punch happened after the entire stadium echoed while singing "a minor' at the top of their lungs and when the camera panned to Serena Williams, who c-walked on the field during the performance. Williams, who also dated Drake in 2015, previously got in trouble for doing the California-based dance on the tennis court. Now she's being praised for it worldwide.
"GAME OVER"
As we mentioned up top, Kendrick had the audience flash some secret messages. At the end of his set, the crowd flashed "GAME OVER" in lights, which fans believed was a message for Drake. Kendrick's set had been referred to as a game throughout the show. Some people interpreted the game symbols as a reference to Sony, the company that owns the label Drake recently sued. However, others believe it was a nod to Netflix's show "Squid Games," in which the rich bet on the lives of the poor contestants.
Relive Kendrick Lamar's headlining set at Super Bowl LIX here.