Kendrick Lamar headlined the Super Bowl LIX halftime show this past Sunday. With his performance, Lamar became the first rapper to grace the prestigious stage as a solo act. It also broke the viewership record set by Michael Jackson in 1993 to become the most-watched Super Bowl halftime show of all time, with a reported 133.5 million people tuning in. The response has been largely very positive, though there have been some detractors. One of the main things people have claimed since Kendrick Lamar's halftime show took place is that the crowd barely knew who the acclaimed rapper was, including popular Twitch streamer Kai Cenat.
Cenat previously claimed that the NFL added in crowd noise to make it seem that Lamar was getting louder reactions than he did. He also contended that SZA and Samuel L. Jackson got the loudest reactions of the entire halftime show. Several Super Bowl attendees have posted videos of the crowd singing along at different points, including much of the stadium reciting the "a minor" line from "Not Like Us." Hollywood, a manager at Top Dawg Entertainment, claimed in an Instagram comment that Cenat was so critical of the show because he didn't have access Lamar's suite at the Super Bowl. Cenat responded to that assertion by saying that Hollywood lied.
What Did Kai Cenat Say About Kendrick Lamar
"Oh my gosh, he lied!" Kai Cenat first says. "Chat, this has nothing to do with Kendrick at all. Kendrick is his own person [...] I got my own suite, bro." Cenat also said he'd look into if the comment was real or not and if Hollywood was actually Kendrick Lamar's manager, and that he intended to send him a message to clear things up. Hollywood is not Lamar's manager, as he's been primarily managed by childhood friend Dave Free since the late 2000s. However, Hollywood is in a leadership position at TDE, and Lamar seems to still be close with many of those at his former record label.
Kai Cenat's AMP squadmate Duke Dennis said on his stream that he believes the main reason that people in attendance didn't react as strongly to Kendrick Lamar's performance as one might expect after the year he's had is that those who attend the Super Bowl are not Lamar's intended audience. The Super Bowl is one of the most expensive live events of the year to attend in person. Based on videos from the event, it seems that there were some loud reactions for Lamar (despite Cenat's claim), but it was not as loud in the Superdome as it will be when he embarks on his tour later this year.
