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Does Taylor Swift have bad blood with Kendrick Lamar? Some of her fans think that she should.
On Sunday, the Super Bowl went down between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles.
The real attraction was, as always, the Halftime Show. This year, Kendrick Lamar put on a stellar performance, putting his anti-Drake anthem on display for tens of millions.
But one of the rapper’s most famous collaborations didn’t make the show.
Kendrick Lamar speaks during the Super Bowl LVIX Pregame & Apple Music Super Bowl LVIX Halftime Show Press Conference at Ernest N. Morial Convention Center on February 06, 2025. (Photo Credit: Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
Why didn’t Taylor Swift join Kendrick Lamar for the Halftime Show?
Kendrick Lamar was a natural pick for the Super Bowl’s Halftime Show. His music, and particularly the song, “Not Like Us,” dominated a lot of discourse in 2024. It wasn’t quite the Song of the Summer (that was certainly “Good Luck, Babe“), but it was a hot topic — and is almost universally known.
Often, when a Halftime Show performer announcement comes out, people speculate about who might join them for collaborations. Sometimes, a featured artist is more exciting than the headliner.
This year, most of the discussion was rather about how Drake would spend these next months dreading Kendrick’s performance. However, Halftime show collaborations were clearly on the minds of Taylor Swift’s fans.
Ice Spice, Ashley Avignone, and Taylor Swift attend Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome on February 09, 2025. (Photo Credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Taking to what remains of Twitter, Swifties lamented that Kendrick Lamar had not brought Taylor Swift onto the stage to perform “Bad Blood” in part or on whole.
“Bad Blood” was Taylor Swift’s 1989-era feud anthem. Though the song did not originally feature Kendrick, he did appear and sing during the squad-studded music video.
“Just really feel like Bad Blood would’ve brought a little razzle dazzle to the halftime show,” tweeted one disappointed fan.
‘Bad Blood would’ve brought a little razzle dazzle to the halftime show’
“Not me being so delusional i thought taylor swift might perform badblood with kendrick lamar,” another Twitter denizen confessed.
“You have countless swifties watching the Super Bowl and you couldn’t simply ask Taylor for the rights to your version of bad blood,” scolded another Swiftie. “Pathetic!”
Yet another wrote: “Kendrick had the opportunity to do the most iconic thing & bring Taylor out for bad blood but he didn’t smh.”
Kendrick Lamar, winner of Record Of The Year, Best Rap Performance, Best Rap Song, Best Music Video and Song Of The Year for âNot Like Usâ, poses in the press room during the 67th GRAMMY Awards on February 02, 2025. (Photo Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Those are some bold — and, in some cases, insulting — opinions. But we should remember that these are coming from a particular strata of Taylor Swift fans, not necessarily from fans of Kendrick Lamar.
A diehard Batman fan might feel disappointed at superhero films that don’t feature their best boy. Similarly, if Taylor’s your fave, seeing a Halftime show without her might seem like a waste.
That said … Taylor Swift cannot headline every show. And, in this case, maybe it’s best that she didn’t.
Taylor Swift attends the 67th Annual GRAMMY Awards on February 02, 2025. (Photo Credit: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
Maybe it’s best that Kendrick Lamar didn’t ask Taylor Swift to join him
Remember, a bunch of toxic bros booed Taylor at the Super Bowl. Why? Presumably, because some have viewed her as a “distraction” from sportsball games over the past year and a half.
Additionally, there has been a wave of “revenge politics” in recent months (and years). Another music performance at this year’s Super Bowl makes it clear that many entities are catering to the worst among us.
Putting Taylor on stage might have invited unwelcome hostility towards her. It could also have distracted from Kendrick Lamar’s beautiful feud with Drake. Can we not spend time appreciating Kendrick for being, truly, one of the greatest haters of all time?
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