How Kendrick Lamar Turned His Super Bowl Halftime Show Into A Giant PlayStation Easter Egg
![Lamar performed on a stage designed to represent each button on a PlayStation controller](https://media.ukgag.com/uploads/300x200/2025/02/10/lamar-performed-on-a-stage-designed-to-represent-each-button-on-a-playstation-controller.jpeg 300w,
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Lamar performed on a stage designed to represent each button on a PlayStation controller
Creative director Mike Carson added that Lamar and his production company, pgLang, are "really into keeping things clean and minimal."
"We went with a monochromatic concrete look and allowed the video game motif to come alive through dialogue, lighting, choreography, and music," Carson said.
But despite the stage's streamlined, minimalist design, the folks running the show had several difficult hurdles to overcome. Lamar, his backup dancers, the lighting, and the stage itself had to be set up and ready to go in under eight minutes. Once the performance ended, production had had roughly six minutes to get everything off the field--without messing up the turf. Even though the Superdome's turf is synthetic, protecting it was still no small task, especially given the fact that part of the set dressing was a real GNX that had been heavily modified to allow Lamar's numerous backup dancers to enter the stage in a clown car-esque manner.
"They were on board with our vision from day one," Carson said of Shelley Rodgers, who worked to bring the vehicular optical illusion to life. "Even with this being one of the largest halftime footprints ever, Shelley and team came with clever ideas and guidance to help us maintain the design integrity and get this beast across the finish line."
But every good game needs a villain, and the halftime show appeared to serve as the final act in Lamar's seemingly endless beef with fellow rapper Drake. At one point in the show, Lamar told his female backup dancers that he wanted to perform "Not Like Us," but had decided against it because "people like to sue." But near the end of his 13-minute performance, Lamar performed a lightly censored version of the incredibly popular diss track. The "life as a video game" theme also resurfaced at the end of the show, with Lamar yelling "Game Over!" as the same words appeared in lights across the stadium.
Drake has yet to make a statement about the halftime performance. Lamar's rival was reportedly out of the country during the Super Bowl.
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PlayStation 4 PlayStation 5This story originally appeared on: GameSpot - Author:UK GAG