Kendrick Lamar vs. Michael Jackson: 133.5 Million Watched, but Did the Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show Reach MJ’s Level?

Big as the Super Bowl? Or even bigger? In Kendrick Lamar’s case—the first solo rapper to headline a Super Bowl halftime show—it was, in fact, bigger.

While the Big Game averaged 126 million viewers, halftime saw a spike to 133.5 million with K-Dot on stage. Not even Michael Jackson reached that number. But the question remains: was Kendrick’s performance truly superior to MJ’s?

The answer to that question isn’t simple. Yes, Kendrick surpassed MJ in terms of viewership, but only by 100,000. Adding another layer, the King of Pop managed to pull that number (133.4 million) in 1993, 30 years ago, when smartphones weren’t a thing. TVs were all the rage back then—4:3 aspect ratio screens with rooftop antennas. Lucky if you had built-in antennas. And the colors? They weren’t that good either.

Imagine pulling a number as big as MJ did back then. That’s what we call cultural impact. It was also the first-ever halftime show that didn’t feature things like Elvis impersonators, drill bands, marching bands, or circus performers doing tricks. Perhaps that played a part as well.

MJ’s performance started with James Earl Jones—the legendary voice of Darth Vader—setting the stage. Then, four massive screens around the Rose Bowl in Pasadena projected Jackson’s image, making it seem as if Jackson was teleporting from one to the next before finally emerging at the center of the stage, surrounded by fireworks and smoke.

He stood there, motionless, for two full minutes—before launching into a setlist packed with classics you still hear everywhere. From Billie Jean to We Are the World, Black or White, and Jam.

MJ agreed to the performance for a good cause, asking the league to donate a small sum of $100,000 to his Heal the World Foundation along with contributions to other charitable efforts. Now, picture 3,000 children singing We Are the World and Heal the World to conclude the show—it was perfect from every angle.

After that masterclass of a performance, we wouldn’t even blame you if you tuned into the Super Bowl just for the halftime show. It was that spectacular. That said, Kendrick Lamar’s set was just as electrifying in its own right.

Lamar is a lyrical genius—that’s no secret. Just listen to his verse on Beyoncé’s Freedom, and you’ll see why. He starts by counting backward from ten, then shifts to words with matching syllable counts—ten syllables, then nine, then eight, and so on—until he reaches zero, ending with silence instead of saying “freedom.” He’s that kind of artful, though not in the MJ way, and that’s exactly what we saw at the Super Bowl.

His set at Caesars Superdome opened with Samuel L. Jackson—also known as “Uncle Sam”—a choice that sparked speculation among fans. Some believe it was a subtle contradiction to the fact that the U.S. now has a white president, with Jackson, a Black man, symbolizing what the people truly preferred. Of course, this theory remains up for debate.

Then, Kendrick appeared standing on the hood of a 1997 black Buick GNX—the car that represents both his birth year and his recent album GNX. There’s another layer to it as well: Kendrick’s father had driven him home from the hospital in a Buick Regal, the base model of the GNX, after the future rapper was born.

He was also seen wearing an iced-out chain with a lowercase “a,” which many believe is a nod to his “A Minor” line from Not Like Us, his scathing diss track aimed at Drake. That song alone earned him five Grammys—the same number Drake has collected in his entire career—a fact that has only added fuel to the ongoing rivalry.

Throughout the show, Kendrick is interrupted by Uncle Sam, who even tells him the music is “too loud, too reckless, too ghetto.” But Kendrick stays true to his message: the revolution will be televised, and embracing your true self is perfectly fine even if that personality is “too loud, too reckless, too ghetto.”

He also brought out SZA and even had Serena Williams Crip walk—both of whom are Drake’s ex-girlfriends—fueling the fire even further in this ongoing beef.

To be fair, we couldn’t even cover half the Easter eggs Kendrick packed into his show. It was layered with intricate details, and no doubt, more theories will keep surfacing. That level of artistry takes a truly creative mind, and dismissing it outright would be a mistake. That said, we get it—not everyone is eager to dissect a halftime show while waiting for the game to resume.

So, the big question: did Lamar’s performance deserve 133.5 million viewers? Absolutely. But did it surpass MJ’s? Not quite. And if you asked Kendrick himself, he’d probably say the same. It was, however, the best in its own right.