Our favorite Super Bowl halftime shows of all, from Usher to Madonna to Rihanna—we rank the real main event
The year's most-watched musical performance wasn't at the Grammys; it was the Super Bowl halftime show. 2024 marked the second year Apple Music took the reins of the country's largest musical spectacle, bringing us 13 full minutes of Usher.
The halftime show is a long-standing tradition that's featured some of the country's biggest stars, from Madonna to Prince to Lady Gaga. Every year, it brings us a thrilling performance filled with fireworks, splashy entrances, special guests and plenty of surprises to keep you glued to your TV set. It's also what gets many non-sports fans to tune into the big game.
But despite the many hits over the decades, we've also seen our share of halftime show misses. Below, we look back at the Super Bowl halftime shows that got us dancing, singing and discussing at the office the next day.
RECOMMENDED: How to watch the Super Bowl halftime show
Best Super Bowl halftime shows
1. Shakira + Jennifer Lopez (2020)
The first Latina duo to headline a Super Bowl halftime show was quite the spectacle. Shakira introduced the world to champeta and mapalé, two traditional Colombian dances, while Jennifer Lopez shocked the crowd with a suggestive pole dance. The two joined forces to close out the 14-minute performance, signing off with a duet of "Let's Get Loud"/"Born in the USA."
Photograph: Shutterstock/Anthony Correia
2. Prince (2007)
The Purple One kicked all kinds of ass with a medley of classic-rock covers and his own hits, but the weather-fueled spectacle created by this rain-soaked Miami game was equally enthralling. Standing in a literal downpour, the Artist tore it up on “Purple Rain.” Pop shows don’t get much better than that.
3. U2 (2002)
In the wake of 9/11, Bono and his cohorts performed this moving tribute, playing “Where the Streets Have No Name” on a heart-shaped stage as the names of those lost in the attacks were projected onto a giant screen. Paul McCartney appeared during the pregame show to perform his own memorial, the anthemic “Freedom.”
4. Michael Jackson (1993)
After the previous year’s disastrously snoozy Winter Magic pageant, Michael Jackson ushers in the age of megawatt halftime shows with an insane spectacle of gyrating hips, a giant inflatable globe and a chorus of kids from around the world.
Photograph: Joshua Mellin
5. Usher (2024)
The lead-up to 2024's Usher concert was long, tense and aggressive—two full quarters of football as the San Francisco 49ers took on the Kansas City Chiefs. While Taylor Swift's boyfriend and his team, the Chiefs, came out victorious, it turns out we were all winners of Super Bowl LVIII, and our prize was 13 minutes of Usher—plus Lil Jon, Ludacris, Alicia Keys, Jermaine Dupri and H.E.R. The Apple Music-sponsored show was the longest in Super Bowl history and saw Grammy-winning Usher perform a remix of all his top hits alongside a full marching band. And lest you forget he's also a world-class dancer, Usher wowed us with a full dance break on rollerskates.
6. ’N Sync + Aerosmith with Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige + Nelly (2001)
Have you ever listened to “Walk This Way” and thought, You know what this song could use? Steven Tyler and Justin Timberlake performing dueling chicken dances. Thankfully somebody did have that notion, and also realized that “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” sounds way better played back-to-back with “Bye Bye Bye.”
7. Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg + Eminem + Mary J. Blige + Kendrick Lamar (2022)
A history-making performance.
8. Rihanna (2023)
Rihanna made history as the first billionaire (!) and pregnant person (!!) to headline a Super Bowl halftime show. It was also the first time Apple Music sponsored the coveted performance slot. Her white-clad army of dancers was giving Squid Game while Rihanna's red, designer ensemble gave us Elmo. We stan for the superstar but something about her performance fell flat—no wardrobe changes, no surprise guests, no prop umbrella! The highlight? The cheeky plug of her makeup brand, Fenty—pun intended.
9. Madonna with M.I.A., Nicki Minaj, LMFAO + Cee Lo Green (2012)
In between Madge entering the field in an outfit straight out of the Book of Exodus and Cee Lo stealing the show with his “Like a Prayer” cameo, M.I.A. stirred up controversy by flipping the bird right at the camera. The gesture earned her a gargantuan $1.5 million lawsuit from the NFL that she continues to fight publicly.
10. Janet Jackson + Justin Timberlake (2004)
The unforgettable event that cemented the phrase wardrobe malfunction in the popular lexicon provided a valuable lesson: The half-second appearance of a nipple on national television is enough to destroy the moral fabric of the nation. As a result of Nipplegate, halftime shows in the years that followed played it safe with a string of old-dude rockers sporting far less edgy outfits.
11. Lady Gaga (2017)
This was everything you'd expect from Lady Gaga, including starting the show by singing on the roof of NRG Stadium in Houston, jumping off and descending to a stage suspended by just two cables. Spoiler alert: the stunt was prerecorded but it was still pretty epic.
12. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (2009)
The most memorable thing about this set wasn’t the Boss imploring viewers to “put the chicken fingers down.” This was the night that (thanks to an awkward camera angle) we were introduced, intimately, to Springsteen’s crotch—and we’ve never quite gotten over it.
13. Coldplay + Bruno Mars + Beyoncé (2016)
Although Beyoncé’s number—which drew an avalanche of comments given the Black Panthers-inspired outfits worn by her backup dancers—immediately overshadowed Coldplay’s and Bruno Mars’ just okay performances, we certainly enjoyed the video montage of past Super Bowl shows playing in the background while the artists sang “Up & Up.”
14. The Blues Brothers Bash (1997)
Tragedy arose in advance of this show: During rehearsal, a stuntwoman plunged to her death while practicing a bungee jump. But the blowout itself, which also featured James Brown and ZZ Top, was one to remember—John Goodman displayed some sick dance moves during “Everybody Needs Somebody to Love” that impressed even the Godfather of Soul himself.
15. The Rolling Stones (2006)
As Mick cheekily pointed out before launching into “Satisfaction,” the Stones could’ve played Super Bowl I, but it took them four decades to get the nod. They tore up the stage, even though ABC decided to bleep out the more risqué lyrics in “Start Me Up” and “Rough Justice”—which, hilariously, caused many media outlets to employ the phrase synonym for rooster in their postshow reports.
16. Katy Perry (2015)
Katy Perry, amid a horde of Plushies, launches a thousand memes.
17. Tony Bennett + Patti LaBelle (1995)
As far as bizarre commercial tie-ins go, this Indiana Jones–themed performance, with appearances by Tony Bennett and Patti LaBelle and a stage fight between Indy and some goons, may never be topped.
18. Winter Magic (1992)
Dancing snowflakes! An R&B “Frosty the Snowman”! Olympic ice-skaters! Gloria Estefan! Would it shock you to learn that this gala caused CBS to lose millions of viewers, who switched over to Fox to watch In Living Color? This bold and successful counterprogramming strategy convinced networks to recruit megastars for subsequent halftime shows.
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What is considered the best Super Bowl halftime show ever?
The 15 best Super Bowl halftime shows, ranked.
Beyoncé (2013) Ezra Shaw/Getty Images..
Prince (2007) Theo Wargo/WireImage.com. ... .
U2 (2002) Kevin Mazur/WireImage.com. ... .
Michael Jackson (1993) Steve Granitz/WireImage. ... .
Rihanna (2023) ... .
Jennifer Lopez and Shakira (2020) ... .
Lady Gaga (2017) ... .
Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band (2009) ... .
Have the Rolling Stones ever done a Super Bowl halftime show?
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What was the most infamous Super Bowl halftime show?
Super Bowl halftime show controversies Perhaps the most infamous moment in halftime show history, Justin Timberlake's "wardrobe malfunction" during a performance with Janet Jackson led to the exposure of Jackson's breast on live television, sparking widespread outrage and controversy.
What was considered the worst halftime show for the Super Bowl?
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Maroon 5 (2019).
The Black Eyed Peas (2011) ... .
The Blues Brothers (1997) ... .
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