What’s an Usher Halftime Show without appearances from his famous friends?
Over his decades-long career, Usher özgü cultivated and worked with some major names in pop and R&B. Some of his biggest hits have been collaborations with the likes of Ludacris and Lil Jon (“Yeah”), Alicia Keys (“My Boo”), and Pitbull (“DJ Got Us Fallin’ In Love”). And then of course, there’s Justin Bieber, the Canadian pop wunderkind who was discovered by Usher.
Mashable’s Elizabeth de Luna made her predictions, but who did Usher actually end up inviting to the one of the world’s biggest stages tonight? Did de Luna get her predictions right? Let’s dive in.
Alicia Keys
When it was time to slow it down for a mid-performance palette cleanser, Usher passed it over to Alicia Keys in a billowing red cape on her red piano. Keys started with her own song “Some People Want it All,” and transitioned to “My Boo,” after unveiling a red catsuit.
Jermaine Dupri
The legendary music producer came out for a quick little cameo to introduce “Confessions,” which then transitioned to “Burn.”
H.E.R.
When it came time for the guitar solo in “Burn,” who else but H.E.R. came out to shred. The musician had her moment on the mainstage and then out popped…
Will.i.am
We got a brief glimpse of Will.i.am doing his part on “OMG.” But in a blink, we panned over to…
Lil Jon
Lil Jon, the man famous for making the word “yeah” multi-syllable started out his cameo with “Turn down for what.” And then…
Ludacris
“Peace up, A-town down.” It’s not a nostalgia fest without the millennial party anthem, and Usher delivered with the full squad. As anticipated, Ludacris and Lil Jon accompanied Usher for a banger rendition of “Yeah” and brought the house down.
Who Usher didn’t bring
Alas, no Bieber, no Pitbull. But we got some surprises that we didn’t even anticipate. That’s why we love the Halftime Show.