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Michael Jackson
Born
Super Bowl XXVII halftime show, 1993, Rose Bowl
Watch it for the opening alone: Jackson appears on stage and then simply stands there, motionless, while the stadium goes wild, a long pause that only a star at his peak could hold. The set that follows is a tight run of hits, and the finale of "Heal the World" with thousands of local children and a crowd card stunt has a scale later shows still chase. This is the performance that turned halftime from a filler slot into a headline event, and the first time the broadcast's ratings rose between the two halves of the game.
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Diana Ross
Born
Super Bowl XXX halftime show, 1996
Pure showbiz, and proud of it. Billed as a celebration of 30 years of the Super Bowl, Diana Ross brings pyrotechnics, special effects and a stadium card stunt to the field, then tops it all by leaving the stadium in a helicopter. It is the most old-fashioned show here, all glamour and no irony, and that exit is still one of the most outrageous goodbyes halftime has seen. Watch it in full for the build to the finale.
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U2
Born
Super Bowl XXXVI halftime show, February 3, 2002
The first Super Bowl after the September 11 attacks needed a show that meant something, and U2 delivered one. The set is just three big songs, "Beautiful Day," "MLK" and "Where the Streets Have No Name," while the names of the victims are projected onto a screen behind the band. It is the rare halftime show that works as a memorial without losing its rock energy, and it lands harder watched in one sitting than in clips.
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Paul McCartney
Born
Super Bowl XXXIX halftime show, February 6, 2005, Jacksonville
No gimmicks: just a Beatle and a great band playing four songs everyone knows. "Drive My Car" and "Get Back" warm things up, "Live and Let Die" brings the fireworks, and "Hey Jude" turns the whole stadium into a singalong. It is the best choice here for anyone who wants a halftime show that plays like a straight-up rock concert, and its short, no-filler set makes a full rewatch easy.
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Prince
Born
Super Bowl XLI halftime show, February 4, 2007, Miami
The one every other halftime show gets measured against. It poured in Miami, and instead of fighting the weather Prince used it, playing "Purple Rain" in an actual downpour. Before that comes a fearless set that mixes his own "Let's Go Crazy" with covers of Queen, Bob Dylan and Foo Fighters, all without celebrity cameos or wild tricks. If you only watch one show from start to finish, make it this.
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Bruce Springsteen
Born
Super Bowl XLIII halftime show, February 1, 2009, with the E Street Band
A bar band at stadium size, playing like it has something to prove. Springsteen treats halftime as a sprint, tearing through crowd-pleasers such as "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" and "Glory Days" with the E Street Band at full volume. It is less polished than the modern spectacles and all the better for it: a rewatch shows a band visibly having the time of its life.
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Madonna
Born
Super Bowl XLVI halftime show, February 5, 2012, Indianapolis, with LMFAO, Nicki Minaj, M.I.A. and CeeLo Green
The grandest entrance of the era: men dressed as gladiators haul in a throne hidden behind gold flags, and Madonna is revealed in a gold cape for "Vogue." Cirque du Soleil helped produce the show, so a slackliner bounces on a line near her, and the guest list rolls from LMFAO to Nicki Minaj and M.I.A. to CeeLo Green with a drumline. The real reason to stay to the end is "Like a Prayer," sung with a huge choir in a darkened stadium before she sinks beneath the stage in a cloud of smoke.
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Beyoncé
Born
Super Bowl XLVII halftime show, February 3, 2013
A 13-and-a-half-minute whistle-stop tour of a catalog, delivered at full sprint. Beyoncé opens with "Love on Top," closes with "Halo," and in between brings back Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams for a Destiny's Child reunion that still gets a cheer on a rewatch. The choreography is relentless and the vocals hold up under it, which is exactly what makes this one worth watching in full rather than in highlights.
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Bruno Mars
Born
Super Bowl XLVIII halftime show, February 2, 2014, with Red Hot Chili Peppers
Bruno Mars was a relatively new star when he got this slot, and he answered the doubters with a high-octane, old-school revue that leans on his band and his dancing rather than big effects. Midway through, Red Hot Chili Peppers crash in for a rowdy "Give It Away," a left turn that works far better than it should. Pick this one for musicianship over spectacle.
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Katy Perry
Born
Super Bowl XLIX halftime show, February 1, 2015, with Lenny Kravitz and Missy Elliott
The most fun you can have with a halftime show. Katy Perry rides in on a giant animatronic lion, Lenny Kravitz joins on guitar, and a pair of dancing sharks produces the viral "Left Shark." Then Missy Elliott arrives and steals the show, and Perry wisely gives her the room. It is cartoonish from start to finish, which is the point: put this one on when the room wants a party rather than a concert.
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Lady Gaga
Born
Super Bowl LI halftime show, February 5, 2017, Houston
The most daring entrance on this list: Lady Gaga opens in a prerecorded sequence on top of NRG Stadium, with 300 lit drones in the sky, then appears to dive off the roof and drops onto the stage on a harness to work her way to "Poker Face." From there it is an athletic sprint through her hits, and the vocals stay strong through all of it. Watch it in full to see how much ground one performer can cover in a single halftime.
More about Lady Gaga12
Shakira
Born
Super Bowl LIV halftime show, February 2, 2020, Miami, co-headlined with Jennifer Lopez
Two headliners who each could have carried the slot alone, and the show is better for having both. Shakira and Jennifer Lopez trade sets of dance-floor hits, and reggaeton stars J Balvin and Bad Bunny turn up as guests, years before Bad Bunny got the slot to himself. It is a high-energy Latin pop showcase that rewards watching both halves rather than skipping to your favorite.
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The Weeknd
Born
Super Bowl LV halftime show, February 7, 2021, Tampa
A halftime show built like a music video, staged for a pandemic-restricted game. The Weeknd plays it as a single mood piece, slips into a gold-mirrored maze crowded with lookalike dancers, and finishes with "Blinding Lights" on the field among rows of dancers in full-face bandages. It looks odd in short clips, but as a 13-minute piece watched from start to finish, its cinematic style holds together better than most.
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Dr. Dre
Born
Super Bowl LVI halftime show, February 13, 2022, with Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar and 50 Cent
The first halftime show built entirely around hip-hop, and it plays like a greatest-hits album come to life. Dr. Dre presides while his guests trade '90s and early-2000s classics such as "California Love," "In da Club" and "Lose Yourself." It went on to become the first halftime show to win the Emmy for Outstanding Variety Special (Live), and the handoffs between stars are smooth enough that the whole thing is best watched straight through.
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Rihanna
Born
Super Bowl LVII halftime show, 2023, State Farm Stadium, Arizona
Calm, confident and suspended in midair. Rihanna, in red, performs from platforms floating high above the field while her dancers in white move below, and she opens with "Bitch Better Have My Money" before running through a catalog of hits. There are no surprise guests and no costume changes, and she was pregnant at the time, which her team confirmed after the show. The understatement is the appeal: under 14 minutes of pure hits, with nothing to skip.
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Usher
Born
Super Bowl LVIII halftime show, 2024, Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas
A Las Vegas residency turned up to stadium size. In 13 minutes Usher packs in hits such as "Caught Up" and a run of guests: Alicia Keys at a red piano for "If I Ain't Got You" and "My Boo," H.E.R. on a guitar solo, then Jermaine Dupri, will.i.am, Lil Jon and Ludacris for the party stretch, with a turn on roller skates along the way. It is busy, sometimes chaotic, and a joy for anyone who grew up on 2000s R&B.
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Kendrick Lamar
Born
Super Bowl LIX halftime show, 2025, Caesars Superdome, New Orleans, with SZA
The first solo rapper to headline the Super Bowl made a show that plays like a short film. Samuel L. Jackson, as Uncle Sam, helps narrate; the stage is designed to look like a giant game controller; SZA joins for "luther" and "All the Stars"; Serena Williams makes a cameo; and "Not Like Us" arrives as the payoff. It rewards a full watch more than almost any show here, because the jokes and symbols only make sense in sequence.
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Bad Bunny
Born
Super Bowl LX halftime show, February 8, 2026, Levi's Stadium, with Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin
The first halftime set performed almost entirely in Spanish turned the field into a Puerto Rican block party, complete with a piragua stand, a New York street corner and Puerto Rican plants and wildlife. Lady Gaga drops in for a salsa version of "Die With a Smile," Ricky Martin sings "Lo Que Le Pasó a Hawaii," and dancers carry flags as Bad Bunny names countries across the Americas. It is packed with details that a second watch picks up, so give it the full run time.
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