Personal Story

Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl Performance: Why Moms Should Lean In, Not Tune Out

written by DAIZHA RIOLAND
kendrick lamar halftime show"
kendrick lamar halftime show
Source: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images

It’s no secret that the opinions, the TikTok think pieces, and the hot takes roll in after every Super Bowl performance. Some say it was the best thing ever. Others act like it was the worst thing to ever hit the main stage. People debate whether the dancing was sharp, the vocals were strong, or if the performance actually entertained the audience it was meant for. But let’s be real: when you’re performing in front of all of America and beyond, that is an impossible task.

Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show was no different in stirring up reactions, except for one thing: everything about it was different. From the messaging to the intentionality, his performance was a cultural reset. As a Black mom, I knew exactly what he was saying and who he was speaking to. Whether you loved it, didn’t get it, or felt it deep in your soul, there are lessons to take from what happened on that stage. And as moms raising the next generation, leaning in instead of looking away matters now more than ever.

“Whether you loved it, didn’t get it, or felt it deep in your soul, there are lessons to take from what happened on that stage.”

So while it’s easy to dismiss the performance as noisy, boring, or confusing, what if, in moments like this, when art makes us uncomfortable or challenges us to think differently, we didn’t tune out? What if we actually leaned in?

More Than Just a Performance

Kendrick Lamar has always been an artist who makes bold statements—I mean, the man does not have a Pulitzer Prize for nothing. And while his rap beef with Drake took center stage this past summer and came full circle on the Super Bowl stage, this halftime show was about much more than that. 

Yes, he gave us the best bell-bottom jeans on the market. Yes, we got Serena Williams C-walking in a tennis skirt. But beyond the entertainment, Kendrick made sure Black folks knew they were seen, heard, and not just here to perform for others. His performance was a reminder that Black history is American history. That you can be bold even when not everyone understands you… and sometimes being misunderstood is the point. 

Why You Should Lean In

When I talked to friends who didn’t fully understand the performance, I could see the discomfort. They weren’t sure how to respond or react. Some weren’t even sure if they should react or if they were “missing something.” And to be honest, that’s OK. Everything isn’t meant for everyone to immediately understand—but that doesn’t mean we can’t learn.

“Everything isn’t meant for everyone to immediately understand—but that doesn’t mean we can’t learn.”

We live in a time where knowledge is literally at our fingertips. We have books, Google, TikTok, community, and so many ways to seek understanding. And while Black folks don’t owe anyone a dissertation on the symbolism and significance of Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show, there are countless creators, scholars, and voices already doing the work to break it down. The resources exist. You just have to be willing to engage with them.

Leaning in doesn’t mean you have to get every cultural reference or that you’ll instantly grasp every layer of meaning. It means being open. It means choosing to listen rather than dismiss. It means asking yourself why something makes you uncomfortable instead of turning away from it. Because at the end of the day, raising kids who are thoughtful, empathetic, and willing to engage with perspectives outside their own starts with us being willing to do the same.

How to Lean In

It’s so easy to see something we don’t like or hear something we don’t understand, and just dismiss it. I know because I’ve done it. And when I saw people saying they didn’t like Kendrick’s performance, my first instinct was to remove them from my space. A space I’ve intentionally crafted to protect my peace as a Black woman. And I still hold that sacred. But I also know that leaning in isn’t just for other people—it’s for me too.

Because if I want my kids to have this perspective, this open mind, this ability to lean into things they don’t understand or don’t want to understand, I have to model it first.

“If I want my kids to have this perspective, this open mind, this ability to lean into things they don’t understand or don’t want to understand, I have to model it first.”

Start With Questions

So how in the world does a Super Bowl performance help us learn to lean in? To lean into Black culture, Black history, different lived experiences, the power of art? It starts with asking questions. It’s amazing what a 13-minute performance can bring up, how many lessons we can learn.

And if you didn’t get it, if you didn’t understand it, here are some questions you can start with:

  • Why was Samuel L. Jackson playing Uncle Sam? What does Uncle Sam represent, and why does it matter that a Black man took on that role?
  • What is “40 Acres and A Mule”? Why is this phrase still important, and what does it say about broken promises to Black Americans?
  • What was the meaning behind the American flag imagery? How was Kendrick using it, and what was he trying to say about patriotism?
  • Why were most of the dancers Black men in patriotic colors? What does that say about Black masculinity and how it’s viewed in America?

There are hundreds of other questions and deeper symbolism breakdowns, and trust me, there are so many of those out there. I won’t go into depth, but these are a good place to start—to learn about histories that are often erased, to dive deeper into the beauty of Black culture, and to say wow, Black history deserves a moment, a month, an entire integration into American history.

How We Can Lean In With Our Children

Obviously, discourse is going to come regardless. If it wasn’t Kendrick Lamar at the Super Bowl, it would have been someone else. But the lesson isn’t about the Super Bowl performance itself or whether Kendrick Lamar’s set was loved or hated. The message is that when we have moments like this, especially on a world stage like the Super Bowl, when the entire world is watching, we have these little opportunities—in our homes, in our workplaces, in our communities—to show an example of what it looks like to react to discomfort. So what are we doing with these moments?

As mothers, we are amazing. We are strong. We are loving. We are opinionated. We are complex. We are multifaceted. And our kids see that. They see how we react to things. They see how we handle discomfort. And when we have the chance to lean in and teach them to be brave, and bold, to ask questions, and to love other people’s lived experiences and cultures, we are single-handedly helping raise a generation of kids who won’t shy away from hard conversations.

“When we have the chance to lean in and teach [our kids] to be brave, and bold, to ask questions, and to love other people’s lived experiences and cultures, we are single-handedly helping raise a generation of kids who won’t shy away from hard conversations.”

A generation that will embrace curiosity. A generation that won’t just stop at “I don’t like this” or “I don’t get it”—they’ll ask why. They’ll want to learn more. They’ll sit with what makes them uncomfortable and lean even more into it.

And that’s the type of world I think we can create.

So yes, Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show was amazing to some and not to others. But at the end of the day, especially during this month, during Black History Month, we have an opportunity to show our kids that Black history matters. That culture matters. That learning about and honoring the histories that don’t always get centered—Black history, Asian history, Latino history, Indigenous history… all of it matters.

And if we start teaching them to lean in now, maybe they’ll grow up knowing that history, culture, and art aren’t just things to watch, they’re things to engage with. To ask questions about. To understand.

And maybe, just maybe, we’ll raise a generation that doesn’t turn away, but instead, leans all the way in.

Daizha Rioland
ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Daizha Rioland, Contributing Writer

Born and raised in Dallas, Daizha is an antiracist parenting consultant and advocate. With a unique blend of motherhood and storytelling, she seeks to shift narratives about People of The Global Majority and how they take up space in this world. A self-proclaimed coffee fanatic and taco lover, Daizha spends her days raising two young antiracist daughters, walking around the lake by her house, and binging episodes of Real Housewives of Potomac.