The biggest stage in music is still the Super Bowl Halftime Show. In 2023, that stage belongs to Rihanna. This is a noteworthy show for multiple reasons.

Rihanna hasn’t released an album since 2016’s ANTI, which was a TIDAL exclusive! Seven years is a long time. She has since built two billion-dollar brands with Fenty Beauty and Savage X Fenty, and recently became a mother. Could this be the start of a music comeback for RiRi?

A few years ago, Rihanna famously turned down this opportunity citing her support of Colin Kaepernick. But that was before Jay Z’s Roc Nation entered into an agreement with the NFL to produce the show in 2019. That relationship — Jay signed Rihanna to her first record deal at 16 — likely patched things up.

This performance is also noteworthy since it’s Apple Music’s first year as sponsor, taking over from Pepsi’s decade long-run.

To unpack it all, I brought on Louie Mandelbaum aka DJ Louie XIV. He’s a pop music connoisseur and breaks down the genre on his Pop Pantheon podcast. Here’s what we covered on the episode:

1:38 How Rihanna has stayed relevant without releasing music
4:49 Factors behind Rihanna’s cool factor
13:18 Where will Rihanna’s performance rank among Super Bowl halftime performances?
18:03 Evaluating Roc Nation as halftime show producers
26:47 “Chaotic” MTV-era producing halftime shows
28:59 Apple Music’s impact as first-time show sponsor
32:52 Is performing at the Super Bowl still the biggest stage?
37:15 Is Rihanna finally returning to music?
45:32 Predicting future Super Bowl performers

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