Lil Wayne revealed that he was not invited to perform at next year's Super Bowl halftime show in his hometown of New Orleans.
Earlier this week (September 8) it was announced that Kendrick Lamar to Host 2025 NFL Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show – which will be held at the Caesar Superdome in New Orleans on February 9 next year. It will be the 11th time the major sporting event will be held in the Big Easy.
Lamar's choice as the featured artist has left many hip-hop fans wondering whether Lil Wayne, who was born in the city, should take center stage in his hometown.
Now, the “She Will” rapper has taken to his official Instagram account to express his feelings about being left out of the Super Bowl performance. “First of all, I want to say, I’m so sorry for the delay. It took me a lot of strength to do this without breaking down. I have to say thank you to every voice, every opinion, all the care, love, and support. Your words turned into hands and held me up when I tried to back down,” he began.
Commenting on the snub, he said: “It hurt. It hurt a lot, you know what I mean, it hurt a lot. I blamed myself for not being mentally prepared for the disappointment that automatically puts me in that position mentally, as if someone had told me that this was my position. So I blamed myself for that.
“But I thought it wasn’t any better than that spot on stage on a platform in my city. So it hurt. It hurt so much. But you’re all fucking amazing. I felt like shit not getting this opportunity, and when I felt like shit, you guys reminded me that I’m not shit without you, and that’s an amazing reality. So like I said, it broke me, and I’m just trying to pick myself up. But oh my god, wherever you are, help me.”
Concluding his statement, the rapper said, “Thank you to all my colleagues, my friends, my family, even my homies in sports television and everyone who supports me. I really appreciate it, I really do. I feel like I really let you all down by not getting this opportunity, but I'm working on myself and working on it. Thank you.”
After Lamar was chosen to replace Wayne, Many key figures in the hip-hop world claimed that the Californian's place should have been taken by the former Hot Boy.
Similar Nicki Minaj, Minor, BirdmanMaster P and others took the time to share their thoughts on Minaj's decision, tweeting, “To deny a young black man what he rightfully brought to this game for no other reason than his ego. Your hatred for BIRDMAN, Drake [and] Nicki made you punish Lil Wayne?!?!!! LIL WAYNE!!!!!!!!!! GOAT?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOLA what's good?!!!!!! Eminem was adamant about 50 Cent getting out.”
Denying a young black man the right to what he rightfully contributed to this game just because of your ego. Your hatred for BIRDMAN, Drake & Nicki made you want to punish Lil Wayne?!?!!! LIL WAYNE!!!!!!!!!! THE GOAT?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Nola what good?!!!!!! Eminem was adamant about 50Cent getting out.…
— Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) September 9, 2024
Recently, a video has resurfaced online of Lil Wayne expressing his desire to be the main character at the NFL Super Bowl halftime show.
A clip from a rapper from Los Angeles SOUTH's 4HUNNID In a podcast that aired in February, the host asked the “Lollipop” rapper if he would like to headline the 2025 Super Bowl halftime show.
At the time, he told them he had “not received a call.” Jay-Z or anyone at Roc Nation – NFL Live Music Entertainment Strategists“But we're all praying, we're all keeping our fingers crossed,” he said. “I'm working hard. I'm going to make sure this next album and everything I do is killer, so I'm going to make it really hard for them not to yell at this guy.”
After it was announced that Lamar would be the main character at next year's Super Bowl halftime show, Jay-Z Shows Support For 'Not Like Us' Rapper: “Lamar is a truly unique artist and performer. His deep love for hip-hop and the culture defines his artistic vision. He has an unmatched ability to define and influence culture around the world. Kendrick's creativity transcends music, and his influence will be felt for years to come.”
Rumor has it that Lamar got the headlining spot because he recently got into a feud with Drake, another of Wayne's students. DJ Akademiks shared the theory that Jay-Z held a grudge against Drake because he refused to join launch of music streaming platform Tidal.
In other news: Lil Wayne has confirmed that the Hot Boys will finally reunite at the Lil' Weezyana festival in New Orleans this November.