Kendrick Lamar

[stedge]

Yep.  The generations dont really change that much.  We just get old. 
 

 

[kizanski]

My "dissatisfaction" with the halftime show had nothing to do with musical taste or any sort of generation gap.
I don't expect to know the entertainer, or even like the music, but I do want to be entertained.

I am one of the rare consumers of the Superbowl who props himself down when the game starts and doesn't move until the Lombardi trophy is raised and the MVP player announced.
I take it all in; the game, the commercials, the halftime show, and of course more commercials. It's probably the only 4 hours in a the year that I pay attention to commercials.  Then I go take a well-deserved pee and return to watch something else.

But above all, I want to be entertained. 

Like @diablo175 suggested, I don't want to have to take an online course on the background or the subliminal (and overt) messages being transmitted, and the more I read about it, there was a great deal of it; Sam Jackson (a black man) dressed as Uncle Sam telling Lamar he's being too ghetto, the dancers aligned to make the American flag (which was split down the middle with Lamer in the middle), Serena Williams (former Drake girlfriend) dancing on stage.  The list goes on and on.

I even read a story yesterday (yes, I've taken a deep dive) about the "fashion statement" that Lamar made in wearing jeans that were NOT baggy and hanging halfway down his ass, as anyone from Compton surely would.  Yes, an article about someone's clothes fitting properly.

The segment simply required too much background, too much inside knowledge, which I did not possess.  That's why I didn't enjoy it.
 

[alantig]

1 hour ago, stedge said:

Yep.  The generations dont really change that much.  We just get old. 

We take over the previous generation's roles and update their references.

[The Shark]

On 2/10/2025 at 12:35 PM, kizanski said:

I get what you're saying and I agree with you on principal, meaning I'm going to have to take your word and everyone else's who is praising him for it since I couldn't understand a word he said.

I knew of him and his Drake battle, but that's about as far as I delved into it because I don't give a shit. Most of these "battles" are manufactured to drum up record sales, anyway. Granted, probably not this one, but still...

It's funny who we choose to support when it comes to an artist making a stand or a point about some injustice.
Lamar performs his song at the Superbowl, even though Drake is suing him over it and we pat him on the back.
Sinéad O'Connor tore up a picture of the Pope on Saturday Night Live to bring awareness to widespread child abuse by the Catholic Church and the related coverups, and she was vilified and her career dragged through the street.  So what if it turned out she was right.

Lamar's lyrics may be "fire" (to borrow the parlance of today's youth), but I'll never know because the songs don't grab me. Musically, they lack a certain *something* for me that would make them "catchy" or compelling. None of what I heard last night grabbed me in the least.  And again, it's not a question of me not knowing or likeing rap/hip hop.
Back in the early '80s when Run DMC was gaining popularity, I had a passing interest but wasn't 100% onboard, but then I saw Public Enemy live in 1987 and it had a profound effect on me and my music tastes. 

In the immortal words of my friend Mike, that show had a "healthy amount of suck"...

[Bluesking]

My opinion of the Halftime Show has zero to do with demographics, generational dissonance, race, gender, or age.

It just sucked. It sounded like the kid who placed last in a grade school talent show. After, many people were commenting on his "genius". That word's definition must have changed in the last 10 years.

I can appreciate the talent displayed in most genres of music, even those that don't appeal to me. For example, to me, Jazz sounds like 5 people that are each playing a different song simultaneously. I don't get it, but I can appreciate the talent required to play it. 

My Grandparents loved Big Band music, but that was not my bag as a teen in the early 1980s. Just Sabbath and Priest for me in those days, but I still didn't think Glenn Miller sucked. Those guys could play, period.

Maybe the HT Show was a modern dance piece and I just don't know it.

There's also a lot of shit I don't know, so there's that.

 

 

[specialk]

20 hours ago, Biz Prof said:

the music industry version of pro wrestling drama. 

This!

[HSB0531]

On 2/10/2025 at 8:58 AM, Saul Goodman said:

Maybe I've been in a cave but I've never heard of this guy. Apparently everyone in the stands knew the songs so I know I'm out of touch. But honestly, I don't think I'm going to put him on my Spotify list. What am I missing? I thought it was the worst halftime show I've ever seen. My brother concurred. As did his GF. Any fans here? It looked like he was lip syncing as well.

Me and the Wife agreed to a "WTF is this crap" response.

[HSB0531]

On 2/10/2025 at 4:54 PM, cmatthes said:

I put it on Mute - no hate here, because I'm clearly not the demographic sought for that show.  I didn't watch last year's, and honestly can't recall the last time I did see the halftime show.

 

I know it's not for me, and I'm 100% fine with that.  I also know that it could have been WAAAAAAAY worse.

 

On 2/10/2025 at 8:58 AM, Saul Goodman said:

Maybe I've been in a cave but I've never heard of this guy. Apparently everyone in the stands knew the songs so I know I'm out of touch. But honestly, I don't think I'm going to put him on my Spotify list. What am I missing? I thought it was the worst halftime show I've ever seen. My brother concurred. As did his GF. Any fans here? It looked like he was lip syncing as well.

AC/DC

That's my idea of a halftime show.

[mathman]

I am not a fan of Lamar so I didn't enjoy the music much.  I did enjoy some of the symbolism in the show.  It seems very simple to me really. I am 65 and white.  I was not the target demographic this time.  Perfectly understandable for a national audience event.

I don't care for his music but I did investigate some of his lyrics and songs.  And I can appreciate  his writing even it isn't meant for me.  Just like I can appreciate many art forms have followers and can be considered quality, even if I don't like them.

 

YMMV

Edited February 12 by mathman

[velorush]

I was immediately put off the whole affair when it opened with the protagonist standing (¡standing!) on the hood of a Grand National. Honestly, Prince himself would likely not have been able to recover in my mind from such an idiotic pose. All I could say was, "are you kidding me?"

Enjoyed SZA's tiny part - actual harmonic content!

Don't care about celebrities. Don't care about their corporately generated alleged "feuds." I do enjoy symbolism, and an intriguing story expressed without words, but not when it is a myopic personal beef expressed at the opportunity cost of millions missing an entertainment opportunity (I say this with the assumption of validity for my kids' opinion that KL is genuinely talented).

I discovered Sunday night I need a Sammuel L. Jackson break: he appeared in frame, and I immediately anticipated "what's in your wallet?"

[cynic]

On 2/10/2025 at 3:54 PM, cmatthes said:

I know it's not for me, and I'm 100% fine with that.

Good grief...I hope we all aren't expected to be as adult as this.

On 2/10/2025 at 4:06 PM, diablo175 said:

But in my humble opinion, one shouldn't need be apprised of the back story and history in order to enjoy a performance. It should stand on it's own regardless of style, genre, age of performer(s), the back story, etc.

So, in your humble opinion, it was only your ignorance of the backstory that prevented you from enjoying the performance?

On 2/11/2025 at 7:44 AM, cmatthes said:

The whole brouhaha over a silly halftime performance makes me think of how many of our grandparents would have complained that Up With People performing in the 70s was just "noise", and why couldn't they do a nice Sousa Marching Band or Some good old Glenn Miller hits?

Again with this adulting nonsense!

 

Many of you have become the reason we played our music so loud as kids.

[kizanski]

19 minutes ago, cynic said:

So, in your humble opinion, it was only your ignorance of the backstory that prevented you from enjoying the performance?

No, I think the point he was making is that knowledge of the backstory was required for enjoying the performance.  

[velorush]

2 hours ago, cynic said:

So, in your humble opinion, it was only your ignorance of the backstory that prevented you from enjoying the performance?

I have to say, I disliked the halftime program (finding it non-musical, at best), but I didn't hate the halftime program until I got to work Monday and was told the backstory.

(one of) My point(s) in the prior post was it is incredibly self-serving, immature, nearsighted, narrow-minded, small, of an artist to squander the opportunity to perform before one of the largest television audiences available to one-up your rival rather than entertain (again, assuming my kids are correct and that Mr. Lamar is indeed talented - Sunday night did not bolster that opinion (in my opinion)). 

[diablo175]

4 hours ago, cynic said:

 

So, in your humble opinion, it was only your ignorance of the backstory that prevented you from enjoying the performance?

 

Enjoying? Nah.

It would have a bit more meaning had I known of all that backstory. I won't touch on the political and cultural commentaries he wove in there but being rather unfamiliar with his music and not being able to fully digest the words in real time (even with the subtitles), it required I dig back into what he said in order to appreciate/respect the commentary. Again, it takes away from the immediacy (and enjoyment) of the event. Not very entertaining.

[HSB0531]

52 minutes ago, diablo175 said:

Enjoying? Nah.

It would have a bit more meaning had I known of all that backstory. I won't touch on the political and cultural commentaries he wove in there but being rather unfamiliar with his music and not being able to fully digest the words in real time (even with the subtitles), it required I dig back into what he said in order to appreciate/respect the commentary. Again, it takes away from the immediacy (and enjoyment) of the event. Not very entertaining.

I enjoyed the preshow with Lady Gaga, Harry Connick Jr., and the local talent: Jon Batiste, Trombone Shorty, Lauren Daigle, & Ledisi.

[velorush]

14 hours ago, HSB0531 said:

I enjoyed the preshow with Lady Gaga, Harry Connick Jr., and the local talent: Jon Batiste, Trombone Shorty, Lauren Daigle, & Ledisi.

I missed all that. Would have enjoyed that immensely. 

[HSB0531]

7 hours ago, velorush said:

I missed all that. Would have enjoyed that immensely. 

I'm sure its on YouTube somewhere.