I wouldn’t put it past Lamar, Grammy-award-winning hip-hop sensation at the forefront of the biggest rap battle last year, to deliver a star-spangled callout to the highly polarized president.

“Salutations, it’s your uncle, Sam,” actor Samuel L. Jackson announced in an Uncle Sam getup, “And this is the great American game.”

Jackson welcomed Lamar’s anticipated halftime performance in the unexpected – and dazzling – red-white-and-blue array, tempting you, and everyone, to play the game. As the personification of American government and patriotism, Jackson’s Uncle Sam makes several literal interruptions to ensure the preservation and protection of said great game.

Not to mention, the kindred resemblance to President Trump’s motto, “Make America Great Again.”

A wide shot of the stage, modeled with a large X, square, O and a triangle, quickly implied that Uncle Sam was not exactly talking about the Super Bowl game, but another kind of game, the great American game.

Lights in the audience read out “START HERE” with an arrow pointed at the stage below.

Backup dancers dressed in red, white and blue moved in choreographed chaos, separating into groups with Lamar’s first track “Bodies” (GNX Teaser). As a reflection of American politics, our red and blue votes tend to define our experiences and ultimately, who’s team we play for in the great game.

“The revolution about to be televised, you picked the right time for the wrong guy,” Lamar said after performing “Bodies.”

With the recent pardoning of Trump supporters for the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection, it is key now more than ever to understand that the repercussions are and have been disproportionately imbalanced against Black voices and left-leaning causes. In the Black Lives Matter protests around the same time of the insurrection, attendees were shot with rubber bullets, several whom where peacefully exercising their rights.

“No no no no no, too loud, too reckless, too ghetto,” interrupts Jackson’s Uncle Sam, “Mr. Lamar, do you really know how to play the game?” Uncle Sam delivers a sudden, ultimate knock-out line encompassing the all-too-familiar censorship of Black voices in American history.

As to conform to the callout from Uncle Sam, dancers quickly arrange to the shape of the American Flag while Lamar changes course to perform hit track “HUMBLE.”

“Be humble, sit down, be humble,” Lamar sang while dancers marched organized and synchronized to Uncle Sam’s liking.

In a revolution, Black American activists often get placed into the Malcolm X or Martin Luther King Jr. categories, reinforcing the outdated concept that Black experiences are limited and better digested through a white lens.

Yet, Lamar plays around with both roles in the theatrical display. He demonstrates that Black people and artists are able to play multiple sides, not always necessarily out of free will, but out of the desperate urge to free oneself from the confinement of the white-oppressive lens.

Black American history is the history of both resistance and oppression. And just like in history, Lamar showed resilience, picking up the rhythm once again with “DNA.” and “Euphoria.”

Like in a video game, the lights in the audience shone brightly to reveal a “WARNING WRONG WAY” sign, which Lamar and the dancers do not face directly. As the momentum increases, like in any revolution, so do the stakes.

The game masters know about the warning signs, and likely, how the game will end. But the players don’t stand a chance.

“Scorekeeper, deduct one life,” Uncle Sam interrupted once again, turning to look straight at the camera. The near-haunting line creates a twisted link between the altered reality of childhood video games and the very real and tangible targeting of Black communities by law enforcement.

In video games, the X button in a controller typically represents the ability to select an action or see an options menu. Dancers and Lamar organized in this section of the stage as if contemplating the next move. As in American history, Black and other oppressed people are constantly cornered and left scrambling for a better way to organize that will hopefully be deemed acceptable by the oppressor.

Guest performer SZA’s tranquil R&B spell dominated the stage to signal the necessary hope and healing in any revolution.

Iconic “Black Panther” anthem “All the Stars” ft. SZA, was a memorable moment of nostalgia for the Academy-award-winning film. The track encapsulates the struggle in the Black experience of self-acceptance and love in a polarizing climate as reflected in the film.

Despite the artistic demonstration, conservative commentators were quick to comment against the meaningful and historic symbolism of Lamar’s performance.

Jack Posobiec, alt-right political activist and conspiracy theorist wrote “DEI halftime show” on X.

In addition, American politician and lawyer, Matt Gaetz wrote “The halftime show you just watched is clearly the regime’s response to Trump’s historic gains with black men.”

According to Navigator, “Young Hispanic and Black Men Were Deeply Pessimistic About the Country, Focused on Costs, and Approved of Trump.”

However, Lamar was announced as the halftime show performer before Trump won the 2024 election. Gaetz later sent another post stating “It was sarcasm.”

With recent attacks against DEI programs by the Trump administration, it was only a matter of time before the alt-right stripped away the blood, sweat and tears of cultural contributions by Black creators like Lamar and minimized them to mere shot-in-the-dark DEI golden-ticket opportunities.

However, the ultimate truth is that American history is undeniably built on the labor of under-represented groups and the oppression of Black people and others.

“That’s what America wants,” said Uncle Sam, “Nice and calm, you’re almost there. Don’t mess this–”

Lamar, however, quickly interrupts him with the highly anticipated track “Not Like Us,” picking up on Uncle Sam’s great game of interruptions.

“40 acres and a mule, this is bigger than the music,” said Lamar before the track in reference to the promise of land and resources to formerly enslaved African-Americans after the Civil War.

As if pulling the curtain for the final act, Lamar redirects the audience to the idea that up until this point, his halftime performance was the most digestible, spoon-fed version of the revolution. Yet, no extravagant display will ever fully conceal the grime and crude reality behind American history and those who were hurt by it.

The blowout diss track against rapper and singer Drake won five Grammy awards among several other nominations.

The performance comes to a strong end with “tv off,” a track bursting with confrontation and clap-back with lyrics like “This revolution been televised, I fell through with the knick knacks.”

Lamar is a Pulitzer Prize winning musician with college courses dedicated to his masterful storytelling abilities surrounding the Black American experience. An open stage at one of the nation’s most compelling, live broadcasts is like a pivotal bullseye he could hit blindfolded.

“I get on they ass, yeah, somebody gotta do it, I’ll make them n***** mad, yeah, somebody gotta do it,” Lamar sang as a final call-out that his spirit and culture are ultimate strengths and will not be demonized by the oppressor’s perspective and fear. Instead, his voice is his weapon and he has used it proudly at one of the nation’s most televised events.

A “GAME OVER” sign was shown brightly above the stage among the audience as Lamar took his exit.

Story updated Feb. 13 @ 6:15pm to include visual elements. 

Story updated Feb. 15 @3:30pm. A previous version of this story stated “Jan. 6, 2020 insurrection” instead of “Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection.”