The 2022 Super Bowl halftime show included what many argue to be five of the best R&B artists of all time and they were Mary J. Blige, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, and 50 Cent.

The songs performed by the five-artist generated 18.7 million views the day following the Super Bowl, according to Billboard charts. Although the artists were not paid for the time they spent performing, it seems that the publicity gained from the event sufficed.

This year’s show saw an increase of viewership by seven percent and it accumulated an average of 103.4 million views throughout the performance. The ratings also showed that the Super Bowl as a whole had the most viewership of any other, over the past five years.

“The NFL got one thing right this year and that was the 2022 halftime show.” – Anna Kate Clark, University of North Georgia Student

The halftime show began with Dr. Dre on the soundboard as Snoop Dogg was singing “The Next Episode” and it let into a joint performance of “California Love” by Tupac. Then 50 Cent surprised fans with his appearance as he performed “In Da Club.”

The show became electric as Mary J. Blige performed her hit “Family Affair,” and it kept going from there as she continued into “No Drama.”

Kendrick Lamar was up next and he did not disappoint as he performed two of his hits “Alright,” and “m.A.A.d. City.” The show quickly moved to a performance from Eminem as he sang his hit song “Lose Yourself.”

The halftime show was a great way to show what Dr. Dre did for the R&B community as he had produced or collaborated with every artist that performed. Dre finished the set by performing a song from his mentor Tupac and it was “I Ain’t Mad At Cha” then, it was ended with a joint performance from all the singers and the song was “Still D.R.E.”

The halftime show was not spared from the controversies that arose at the 2022 Super Bowl. Many were up in arms about Eminem taking a knee as his performance ended, paying tribute to former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

The troubles did not stop there as most of the performers were spotted walking around the stadium without masks on as most of the crews surrounding them were forced to wear theirs. This made viewers speculate if the NFL had these R&B artists perform this year because of the current and former racial lawsuits that have occurred.

The show did not come without its memes, and a few of them began before the performance. The halftime teaser was released a month before the Super Bowl and it had viewers calling these performers the Avengers of music. This is a reference to the Marvel Avengers, which is a band of superheroes that fight to save the world and these artists did the same for Hip Hop.

The NFL now has pressure to top this performance next year.