Super Bowl LVIII occurred on Sunday, Feb. 11, and Usher took the stage at halftime. Families and friends gathered to watch the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers play in this year’s Super Bowl at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Even though the Chiefs won, adding a fourth Super Bowl win to the team’s legacy, a large topic of conversation was Usher, American singer-songwriter and dancer, and his halftime show.
Usher brought out guest performers Alicia Keys, Ludacris, H.E.R., will.i.am, and Lil Jon to perform with him. He had a temporary residency in Las Vegas in 2023, and a few of his songs performed at the Super Bowl were similar to the ones performed in his residency.
First-year nursing student Emily Sheridan expressed her opinion on Usher’s halftime performance this year, “I thought that the beginning was a little slow but I think that by the end he [Usher] brought a lot of energy.”
“I love that he brought out Ludacris and Alicia Keys. The dancers and the performance were very Vegas-themed though.” Sheridan said.
Usher was announced to be headlining Super Bowl LVIII in September of 2024. His performance included some of his hit songs such as “OMG” and “My Boo” with Alicia Keys.
Usher started his performance with “Caught Up” and “You Don’t Have To Call.” His opening performance included many dancers and performers doing intricate tricks, some with many props.
First-year biology major Ella Rice said, “Honestly, I liked it. At first, I was thinking it was going to be bad because there was too much going on and it seemed unorganized, then, he brought out a bunch of famous people and it started to get good. He played his best songs, so I liked it.”
Toward the middle of the performance, Usher and his dancers glided around the stage on roller skates. He had an outfit change right before, and the performance picked up speed with his more upbeat and popular songs played at the end of his halftime show.
First-year business marketing major Kinsey Howard said, “I liked Usher’s performance. I thought he did a good job and seeing all the celebrities he brought out was really fun, but it wasn’t as outstanding as other Super Bowl halftime shows. I was really hoping that Justin Bieber was going to come out because I heard he was at the Super Bowl.”
The fans’ energy was high in the stadium as Usher’s Allegiant Stadium halftime performance concluded with his most popular song, “Yeah!” from 2004. His show had the audience on their feet at Allegiant Stadium and fans were immersed watching from home.
Nick Hancock 
Steve Anderson