of the typical Super Bowl halftime show and turned entertainment鈥檚 largest platform into something all her own.
And she did it while also with her second child.
More an avant garde dance piece than a concert, the Barbadian superstar, dressed in a bright red jumpsuit, plowed through 12 of her hits in 13 minutes surrounded by dozens of androgynous dancers dressed in white who mirrored nearly every move she made on and off the giant stage at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
In case anyone was confused, this was all about Rihanna. No special guests. No breaks. No momentum shifts. From her start on a platform suspended above the stage, to powerfully belting out the inspirational 鈥淒iamonds,鈥� she kept a tight grip on everyone鈥檚 attention by performing one smash hit after another, from 鈥淲ork鈥� to 鈥淯mbrella.鈥�
It was fully her vision -- polished, yet playful 鈥� and completely self-assured. She didn鈥檛 throw in any ballads to show off the power of her voice because she doesn鈥檛 need to prove herself to anyone. And she didn鈥檛 need to say anything beyond, 鈥淭hank you, Arizona鈥� to make her points.
It was all an unconventional extension of what was an unconventional decision to perform at this particular time.
While most artists use a Super Bowl halftime appearance to launch a new album, Rihanna that her follow-up to 2016鈥檚 鈥淎nti-鈥� is not finished.
She didn鈥檛 even perform 鈥淟ift Me Up,鈥� her contribution to the 鈥淏lack Panther: Wakanda Forever鈥� soundtrack, which is currently nominated for an Oscar.
Before the revelation that Rihanna was pregnant, there were rumors of a potential tour, but that seems unlikely now, with a new child to join her son who turns nine months old on Monday.
She鈥檚 not really selling anything.
You can鈥檛 even buy a Savage X Fenty t-shirt that says 鈥淩IHANNA CONCERT INTERRUPTED BY A FOOTBALL GAME, WEIRD BUT WHATEVER.鈥� Those sold out before the game even started.
Of course, slaying on entertainment鈥檚 biggest stage, with an anticipated audience of more than 100 million, won鈥檛 be bad for business. Something the knows all about.
Rihanna, 34, was clearly doing this for the challenge and because she had something she wanted to say.
She previously declined to perform in the 2019 halftime show out of solidarity with quarterback of racial inequality. But plenty has changed since then, including her friend and mentor Jay-Z鈥檚 Roc Nation partnering with the NFL on the halftime show.
And her performance made a powerful point about equality. Because her massive troupe of dancers were completely covered, including their faces, no one could tell what race they were. They would be judged only by their dancing, their abilities to entertain.
That message shows how much Rihanna has changed since her last solo performance 鈥� when she accepted the Video Vanguard award at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards. That also featured her performing with no special guests, only a troupe of dancers, but it showcased different sides of her musical personality in four different performances. Whether it was hip-hop, dance pop, reggae or ballads, Rihanna showed how she could bend the genre to her will.
With her halftime show Sunday, Rihanna simply created her own genre and raised the bar for halftime shows to come.
Glenn Gamboa, The Associated Press
