There was a long-awaited Rihanna concert on Sunday night (and some football).
The singer took the stage at the 2023 Super Bowl in Arizona for her first live performance in five years, performing a powerful medley of some of her biggest hits from a stunning series of floating stages above the field. She performed the hits without an appearance – which had been the subject of much speculation – alongside a huge troupe of backup dancers dressed in puffy white costumes.
Suspended in the air, Rihanna kicked off the set with ‘Bitch Better Have My Money’ and floated between earth and sky for renditions of ‘Where Have You Been’, ‘Only Girl in the World’, ‘We Found Love’, ‘Rude Boy “. ”, “Work”, “Wild Thoughts”, “Pour it Up”, “All of the Lights”, “Run This Town” and “Umbrella” ending with “Diamonds”.
Following widespread speculation the singer announced her pregnancy on her show, the singer’s rep confirmed she was pregnant with her second child. She and her partner, rapper A$AP Rocky, welcomed a son in May.
Watch the full show below.
The Grammy winner set social media on fire in September when she announced she would headline the 2023 Super Bowl halftime show, ending what fans thought was an interminable hiatus from music. A few weeks later, he released his first solo release in six years, “Lift Me Up,” as the lead single for the “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” soundtrack. The song earned the singer-songwriter her first Academy Award nomination.
Sunday’s performance marked his first time on stage since the 2018 Grammy Awards, when he debuted his DJ Khaled collaboration “Wild Thoughts.” Fans have been treated to new music from 2016’s eighth studio album, Anti.
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However, it doesn’t look like she hasn’t been busy in the meantime. Since 2017, the 34-year-old has launched her wildly successful Fenty Beauty empire, launched her underwear brand Savage X Fenty, and starred in the 2018 film “Ocean’s 8,” just to name a few projects. In July, Forbes named her the youngest female billionaire in the country, with an estimated net worth of $1.4 billion.
In addition, she also became a mother for the first time during the break.
In a media preview on Thursday, Rihanna said she wasn’t initially sure she would attend the halftime show, and that she made such a big decision while she was three months postpartum.
“But when you become a mother, something happens where you feel like you can conquer the world, you can do anything,” she said. “The Super Bowl is one of the biggest stages in the world. As scary as it was, because I haven’t been on stage in seven years, there’s something exhilarating about challenging everyone.”
Kevin Mazur via Getty Images
The 2023 show follows last year’s groundbreaking hip-hop extravaganza featuring rap legends Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem and Mary J. Blige. The Weeknd put on a memorable (and memorable) show in 2021, and pop icons Shakira and Jennifer Lopez hit the stage with an electrifying set in 2020.
