Yes, Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Was On A PlayStation Controller

Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl Halftime Show is the subject of much debate for various reasons, but one that has connections to the gaming world is…wait, is he performing on a PlayStation controller?

Gamers would probably have noticed that the stage had an X, O, Square and Triangle (I don’t know how to type those), echoing the buttons on a PlayStation controller. Random shapes to perform various dance sequences, or deliberate? Yes, very much deliberate, it turns out, according to Lamar himself and art director Shelly Rodgers, via a Wired interview. The idea was Lamar’s, and the goal was to portray his life as a video game:

“I think the was symbolic, his way to reach young people,” Rodgers says. “A lot of it is showing his journey, traveling through the American dream.”

I’m not sure Kendrick Lamar needs much help reaching young people at this point, and I do wonder how much the video game concept shone through other than the buttons and the GAME OVER finale, which many took to mean a slam dunk on his beef with Drake. The “American dream” aspect was more present with his non-stop array of red, white and blue dancers.

Lamar is 37, so like millions of other people that age, grew up with video games. I’ve attempted to do some digging to turn up what some of his favorites might be, but haven’t been able to find anything concrete.

From the sound of it, it does not sound like Sony or PlayStation were involved in any official capacity here, but no doubt they were thrilled with the reference. They don’t own the concept of putting four shapes near each other, but this serves as a de facto PlayStation ad regardless. And likely a free one.

Lamar’s Super Bowl performance tops off an incredible year for the performer with an all-time epic diss track leading to multiple top Grammy wins and the Super Bowl halftime show we just witnessed. It’s not even clear what other heights he could reach at this point, but I’m sure he’s more than satisfied with the past year of his career. And now, PlayStation gets to be included by loose association at the very least, which I’m sure they do not mind.

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