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Alicia Keys, H.E.R. and Ludacris also made surprise appearances during the singer’s performance, which featured some of his fan-favorite songs, including “Love in this Club,” “Yeah!” and “U Got It Bad.”
By Carly Thomas
Associate Editor
Usher gave an electric performance filled with special guests during the Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show on Sunday, singing some of his biggest hits throughout his 30-year music career.
The singer kicked off the show on the football field, wearing an all-white outfit and a cape by Dolce & Gabbana. His performance featured a mashup of many of his classic songs, including “Caught Up,” “Love in this Club,” “U Got It Bad,” “OMG,” “Yeah!” and more.
Usher is joined by a marching band while performing "Love in this Club" at the #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/9HhEWMZzKP
Alicia Keys was the first guest to make an appearance, singing “If I Ain’t Got You,” and then “My Boo” with Usher. She sported an all-red, shimmery look by Dolce & Gabbana, while Usher later lost his shirt when performing “U Got It Bad.”
Alicia Keys joins Usher during the #SuperBowl Halftime Show pic.twitter.com/7punF28ABZ
H.E.R. also delivered a special guitar solo, right before Usher came back onto the stage, this time on roller skates, wearing a glittery black and blue look. He went on to sing “OMG.”
Usher performs on skates during his #SuperBowl Halftime Show pic.twitter.com/NfvnPRIMo0
will.i.am and Jermaine Dupri made appearances during the performance as well, while Lil Jon later sang “Turn Down for What.” Ludacris made a cameo at the end to sing “Yeah!” alongside Usher.
Other smash hits featured during the Usher’s halftime show included “Caught Up,” “Superstar,” “You Don’t Have to Call,” “Nice & Slow,” “Burn” and “Confessions Part II.”
Usher, Lil Jon and Ludacris perform "Yeah!" at the Apple Music #SuperBowl Halftime Show pic.twitter.com/YzTLyYWHIK
Ahead of his halftime show during football’s biggest night, Usher said he planned to incorporate elements of his Las Vegas residency into the performance. “I was very mindful of my past, celebrating my present, which is here in Las Vegas, and thinking about where we are headed in the future,” he said during a press conference on Thursday. “What songs do people know me for? What songs have been a celebration of [my career]? That was the idea.”
The Grammy-winning singer also previously said on Good Morning America that he wanted his performance to pay homage to Black artists who came before him. “I didn’t start where I am now, and I didn’t get there by myself,” he added. “So, everybody that has been a part of it, I’m carrying them with me.”
Going into the halftime show, Usher was feeling “happy and blessed,” especially about headlining at this point in his career.
“God allows things to happen in the time that they’re intended,” the “There Goes My Baby” singer told The Hollywood Reporter last week, adding that a Super Bowl performance is a “celebration of a career. Everybody that has had that moment, they’ve had a career that spanned, and they reached a place where the world needed to see and celebrate it and recognize that person.”
Earlier on Sunday, Reba McEntire performed the national anthem to kick off the Super Bowl, Post Malone sang “America the Beautiful” and Andra Day performed “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”
The Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers are facing off at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas for Super Bowl LVIII.
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