Pregnant Rihanna soars in Tremendous Bowl halftime efficiency

Rihanna performs throughout the halftime present on the NFL Tremendous Bowl 57 soccer sport between the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. AP

Rihanna was above all of it.

She started and ended the Tremendous Bowl 57 halftime present hovering excessive above the sphere at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The efficiency delivered on fan expectations however it included a serious shock — the singer is pregnant along with her second youngster.

She wore a puffy, brilliant purple jumpsuit with tight, rubbery garb beneath as she stood on a clear rectangular platform that raised and lowered as she belted out the lyrics to “Bitch Higher Have My Cash” over the turf the place the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas Metropolis Chiefs had been battling moments earlier.

Dancers sporting white ski-style fits and shaded goggles had their very own suspended platforms that moved in live performance with hers.

She and the dancers had been lowered to a protracted stage that matched her outfit as she sped by means of hits together with “Work,” “The place Have You Been,” and “Solely Woman,” belting out “Need you to make me really feel like I’m the one lady on the planet.”

There have been not one of the immediate costume modifications, scene shifts or shock visitor appearances which have been a continuing at different Tremendous Bowl halftimes. (Her set included songs that had been studio collaborations with Drake and Ye, however neither all of the sudden confirmed up.)

The theme — and the colour scheme — stayed the identical all through the 13-minute present, with purple lights bathing the stage at occasions and golden fireworks exploding within the air above her.

The lengthy stage allowed for prolonged pull-away pictures as she stared down the digital camera and overhead monitoring pictures of Rihanna and her dancers.

At one level she powdered her face and checked it in a mirror earlier than getting again on the mic.

Lights sparkled from the stands as she was hoisted alone again into the air and sang “Diamonds” — with its chorus of “shine brilliant like a diamond” — because the set closed.

Rihanna’s efficiency was her first dwell occasion in years, and her first since changing into a mom 9 months in the past.

A merely spangled banner

Nation star Chris Stapleton made the nationwide anthem a easy affair at Tremendous Bowl 57, standing alone on the sphere accompanied by solely his electrical guitar as he sang “The Star Spangled Banner” moments earlier than the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs kickoff to the Philadelphia Eagles to begin the sport.

Dressed merely in clean black denim and sun shades, with neatly combed hair as a substitute of his signature feathered cowboy hat, he sang the anthem as a plaintive ballad, selecting it as much as rock solely briefly as he delivered the ultimate strains “banner but wave” and “land of the free!”

His anthem felt sluggish, however it clocked in at 2 minutes, 2 seconds, below the two minutes, 5 seconds predicted by oddsmakers. Nevertheless it was greater than 10 seconds longer than final yr’s sung by one other nation star, Mickey Guyton.

Eagles coach Nick Sirianni and beginning middle Jason Kelce each had tears of their eyes throughout Stapleton’s emotional efficiency.

Because the eight-time Grammy winner sang, “CODA” star Troy Kotsur, the primary deaf man to win an appearing Oscar, signed the anthem lyrics.

Different anthems

Earlier than Stapleton’s anthem, “Abbot Elementary” star Sheryl Lee Ralph carried out “Raise Each Voice and Sing.”

Sporting a flowing purple velvet robe, Ralph started the music dubbed the Black nationwide anthem as a reflective ballad, and it grew to become a hovering hymn because it went on, with military-style drums becoming a member of her and a choir dressed all in white chiming in behind her on the sphere at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.

And R&B legend Babyface delivered “America the Stunning” as a soulful people music, enjoying an acoustic guitar painted with an American flag and blue flowers as he stood alone on the sphere. A backing monitor with drum machines and singers kicked in earlier than he was completed.

Well-known followers, performers and pitch individuals

Die-hard Chiefs fan Paul Rudd was on the sphere earlier than the sport, sporting an enormous smile and a workforce jersey.

Philadelphia native Bradley Cooper, sporting an Eagles T-shirt, celebrated from the stands as his workforce put the sport’s first factors on the board. One other well-known Philly fan, Kevin Hart, sporting a jersey, stood and flapped his arms.

Jay-Z, Tiffany Haddish, rapper GloRilla and chef Gordon Ramsay had been additionally noticed within the stadium.

Pregame performances got here from DJ Snake and Jason Derulo, whose backup dancers included synchronized robotic canines.

Many stars have made the scene at Tremendous Bowl week events.

And lots of others, together with Serena Williams, Adam Driver and John Travolta, are exhibiting up within the massive sport’s massive commercials.

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