It’s been two days since hip-hop took center stage at the Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show, and fans are still talking about the show-stopping musical event that saw Dr.Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar perform some of their most iconic hits. Fans also were treated to a surprise appearance from 50 Cent, and Eminem brought another surprise, by taking a knee on stage.
Recently TMZ caught up with Dr.Dre, who clarified several speculations surrounding Sunday’s big performance, including some minor changes the NFL made at the last minute — such as the removal of Kendrick’s lyrics “and we hate po-po” from his hit single “Alright.”
“There were a few things that we had to change, but it was like really minor things,” Dre said. “Em taking the knee, that was Em doing that on his own, and there was no problem with that,” the super-producer told the outlet. As previously reported, league spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a statement that “We watched all elements of the show during multiple rehearsals this week and were aware that Eminem was going to do that.”
“The Chronic” musician didn’t address the “Alright,” song changes but he did reveal there was a discussion about the opening line from Kendrick’s “m.A.A.d city,” record where he says, “If Pirus and Crips all got along.”
“They had a problem with that, so we had to take that out. No big deal, we get it. But, all in all, everybody came in, we were professional, everybody was on time,” Dre said. “Everybody felt the magnitude of what this thing was, and what we were going to be able to accomplish. It was a fantastic experience.”
The reactions to this weekend’s performance were mainly positive, although some questioned Eminem’s motive behind kneeling. Journalist Jemele Hill took to Twitter shortly after the show, where she wrote that she hopes Eminem “explains why he was kneeling.”
Elsewhere she posted, “For the record, I think I know why Eminem was kneeling, but if it’s related to Colin Kaepernick, he should say that. Not a criticism. But would be a powerful addition to the conversation.” Eminem has yet to address his trending performance.
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