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Kalan Hooks, ESPN
During intermission of Super Bowl LVIII between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers, Usher will take the stage to headline the Apple Music Halftime Show on Sunday.
But two questions remain: Who will Usher bring out during the performance and what will be the first song on his rotation?
The singer says the performance will serve as a tribute to the Black artists who have come before him and will lay it all on the stage for the R&B genre.
“I think about what our country has kind of represented for Black artists having to at some point go through kitchens to even to be able to perform for an audience,” the artist told Andscape’s Kelley Carter in an interview on “Good Morning America.”
Apple Music released the announcement that Usher would be in the spotlight during halftime by using a snippet from his “Confessions Part II” music video combined with multiple teasers with some NFL greats such as Deion Sanders and Marshawn Lynch.
USHER. LAS VEGAS. APPLE MUSIC HALFTIME SHOW. #SBLVIII https://t.co/Vh4qVbj7ZC@Usher, @MoneyLynch, @nfl, @rocnation, @nfloncbs pic.twitter.com/udbZuGsuIF
— Apple Music (@AppleMusic) September 24, 2023
The Super Bowl halftime show will have Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf‘s undivided attention, as he thinks the singer will open with “U Don’t Have to Call,” but hopes he performs his hits “U Got It Bad” and “Burn.”
“I’m looking forward to it. My girlfriend’s also looking forward to it as well. She’s a big fan of Usher, so I think the artist they’ve got during the halftime show, it’s going to be a pretty good show,” Metcalf told ESPN’s Michael DiRocco during Pro Bowl weekend.
Miami Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey believes the queue of “Peace up, A-town down” will kick off the halftime festivities with a performance of “Yeah!” and possibly share the stage with Lil Jon, Ludacris and T-Pain.
“He’s going to open with Yeah! He may not open with it but that’s going to be a high one [in the set list]. That’s really the one I’ve got to hear. The rest is just icing on the cake,” Ramsey said.
Baltimore Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton believes Usher will begin with Burn and hopes to hear Confessions Part II with Chris Brown serving as a special guest.
