The Surging News reporter Qian Lianshui
In the United States, rap has been the backbone of popular music for nearly 1/4 of a century. On the evening of February 13, local time in the United States, it finally conquered the last virgin land and boarded the Super Bowl halftime show. The most blockbuster producer in rap history, Dr. Dre and members of his rap family moved their turf Compton Street to SoFi Stadium. Tam's Burger, Dale's Donuts and Eve After Dark are on this street, just a 20-minute drive south of Los Angeles, where the Super Bowl is located. Dr. Dre's rap group N.W.A. formed in Compton later became the cradle and arena for the godfathers of gangster rap.
At a pre-match press conference, Snoop Dogg gave the show a ovation, saying it was "the largest combination of sports and music genres on the planet." Dr. Dre complained decently: "It's crazy that we were so late to get acknowledged." With the exception of Kendrick Lamar, the others who performed that night ended their careers at least a decade ago. The quarterbacks on NFL teams are mostly white, reflecting its ethos. Janet Jackson's breast-revealing incident and M.I.A's vertical middle finger drew national protests and slowed the NFL's acceptance of rap power.
Dr. Dre (left) and Snoop Dogg Image credit: Visual China
Dr. Dre's spit is the result of rebellion within the scale, each side giving way. Snoop Dogg ended up instead of putting on a gangster rap shirt and replacing it with a bright blue pullover jersey to first climb to the roof of Old Street to show the classic Los Angeles local dance moves. He and Dr. Dre met and laughed, celebrating the twenty-odd drive to the destination that took decades to finally arrive. Dancers dance freely on the map of Compton Street, and the pure white house band and dancers are in a relaxed and happy state. Eminem got what he wanted, kneeling on his left knees and raising his right hand in homage to the sages (the legendary 2Pac holographic projection did not appear, replaced by Dr. Dre plays the melody of his I Ain't Mad at Cha on the piano).
Eminem got down on one knee
After the show, the NFL issued a statement saying that they had been aware of Eminem's kneeling plan and agreed to it, not that Eminem had applied for a kneeling request as previously stated, and the NFL declined.
50 Cent is not among the five performers announced in advance. He suddenly appears upside down on the roof, recreating the upside-down footage of the 2003 "In Da Club" MV. The only woman of the six and R&B singer Mary J Blige are like silvery hunting goddesses, and two songs, "Family Affair" and "No More Drama", set the stage for the night's halftime show.
50 Cent (bottom) and Mary J Blige (top)
Kendrick Lamar, the best descendant of West Coast rap, is surrounded by zombie dancers in a cardboard box, dancing wildly and dangerously. Next up is the only white man, Eminem, and Lose Yourself from Eight Mile is timeless. Finally, three generations in Dr. Musicians who grew up under Dre's patronage watched him sing Still Dre as a tribute to the young history of West Coast rapping.
This year's halftime show suppliers, like the previous two years, are roc Nation, the entertainment and sports company of big guy Jay-Z. 2016 was a turning point. That year, colin Kaepernick, a black-and-white San Francisco 49ers quarterback, knelt down on one knee during the Super Bowl anthem to protest police violence and social injustice, and was banned by the league without suspense. Since then, he has been a free agent but has nowhere to play, filing a lawsuit with the NFL on the grounds of racial discrimination. Black athletes have followed Kaepernick, Rihanna, Cardi B, Adele and other A-list singers as a support, and have refused the invitation to the Super Bowl. The 2019 performer Maroon 5 was the result of a collective boycott that left the league in disgrace.
Kendrick Lamar
Maroon 5 that year, 45,000 signatures tried to prevent them from taking the stage, comically moving from one injustice to another. This year, Dr. Dre sang the forbidden lyrics "Still Not Loving Police." The awakened Lamar among the zombie dancers sang the "Black Lives Matter" theme song "Alright." Whether the NFL's posture is in tune with the times or actively embraces the times, these are all moments that have already happened.
Editor-in-Charge: Chen Shihuai
Proofreader: Luan Meng