USHER has confirmed that he did ask Justin Bieber to perform with him at the Super Bowl LVIII halftime show, but “things did not work out.”
Fans were waiting with bated breath for Beiber to make a surprise appearance, but despite the buzz he would, the moment never came.
4
Usher, 45, admitted while speaking with The Breakfast Club on Friday that the ask went out, but the singer declined.
“Things did [not] work out with Justin. I honor and recognize that my brother,” he said.
“I think it might have been the fact that he was wanting to tell a different story right now, and I understand that.”
“But we did have a brief conversation and we’re gonna do something else in the future.
Usher continued: “No love lost or anything like that. It’s a lot of pressure for the Super Bowl, obviously, for me to put together a show.
“I reached out to everybody. Justin wasn’t the only person I spoke to about doing the Super Bowl, but the moment was maybe for later.”
He added: “[Bieber is] going to play the Super Bowl… I’ll go ahead and give you that for the future.
“I profess that over his life because he has a career that deserves it. It just didn’t happen, but that doesn’t mean it’s not going to.”
NO-SHOW
Fans were disappointed not to see Beiber up there with Usher during Super Bowl LVIII.
Not only was Justin in the crowd as the Saints won in overtime, but the hip-hop superstar was his mentor and gave him his big break.
“GOD PLEASE MAKE USHER BRING OUT JUSTIN BIEBER GOD PLEASE,” one X user wrote as last Sunday’s SuperBowl aired.
“THAT’S IT???? usher’s done????? justin bieber and taylor swift are NOT coming out????” wrote another.
That said, stars like Lil Jon (an initially pitchy) Alicia Keys, HER, and Ludacris were deployed, making Usher’s halftime performances one of the best to date.
Lil Jon also addressed the possibility of Bieber joining them on stage, later TMZ: “We wanted to put Justin in the show. So, we had the idea of doing a version of the show with Justin in it.
“But I think Justin wasn’t really ready to – that’s a lot of rehearsal, a lot of responsibility, a lot of time, and a lot of eyeballs.
“And I don’t know if he was ready to do all that.”
Bieber, however, showed Usher love following his performance on Sunday, taking to Instagram to pay tribute to the Grammy winner.
“LOVE YOU MY BROTHER. NOONE CAN SING AND DANCE THE WAY YOU DO,” Bieber wrote, alongside a photo from the memorable show.
He continued, “LOVE YOU FROM THE DEPTHS OF MY HEART. BROUGHT THE ‘A’ TO THE WORLD, ONLY YOU BABYYYYYY 😘.”
‘SHE DIDN’T FALL’
Usher delighted fans playing hit after hit and showcasing impressive dance moves with aplomb.
Yet, Super Bowl viewers were stunned to notice what looked like a painful fall during the halftime show, but other fans quickly provided an explanation.
In the moment, Ludacris, 46, took the stage, as one of the many celebrity guests who performed alongside Usher.
The rap music legend wore an eye-catching outfit inspired by football, with multiple dancers around him in similarly sporty clothes.
Pole dancers also lined the stage, showing off incredible moves for the awe-struck NFL crowd.
However, in one post shared on TikTok, a dancer was seen quickly dropping to the ground after a complicated spin, with many fans thinking she’d suffered a fall.
“Anyone else notice the dancer fall off the pole during Usher’s halftime show during the Super Bowl,” the poster asked.
“I saw this when it happened and wondered if she was ok,” a user wrote in response.
“Finally someone talks about it,” responded another eagle-eyed viewer.
Soon, though, pole experts came forward to let others know that the fast drop was actually its own move, and was a planned part of the routine.
“She didn’t fall, that is a quick drop MANY dancers do on the pole. Sometimes it’s upside down, sometimes it’s one leg or both and drop,” explained one social media user.
“It’s a part of their dance they all fell at different times,” pointed out a second.
ON A ROLL
The sudden pole drop wasn’t the only dance move that shocked viewers at home, after they spotted Usher almost falling on roller skates.
Midway through his star-studded performance, Usher brought out Will.I.Am to sing their song OMG, with everyone on stage moving around on wheels.
However, nearing the end of the song, Usher rolled between Will.I.Am’s legs and seemingly caught himself before falling to the ground.
He brushed off the almost-blunder and continued his performance, but almost slipped again toward the end of the routine.
“Usher almost fell on them skates but if you ain’t see it I didn’t either,” joked one fan on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“[Usher] almost fell on them skates but we don’t care. He was skating, singing, choreography,” another commentator agreed.
‘TRASH AUDIO QUALITY’
If the risky physical routines weren’t enough, fans on X also slammed the production of the show after Usher suffered technical difficulties.
Usher’s face mic didn’t seem to be working well enough for his audio to be heard over the cheering crowd, with his mic swapped out during song changes.
“Why did they do Usher so dirty with that trash audio quality?” one person asked on the platform at the time.
“Who was doing the mic check because I can’t hear Usher’s voice that well,” another wrote with crying emojis.
“I’m glad they swapped his mic. I was going to be so disappointed if Usher couldn’t hit those notes like he used to,” added a third.
HE SAID ‘YEAH!’
The singer, as many were expecting, tied the knot with his longtime girlfriend, Jennifer “Jenn” Goicoechea.
While at a Super Bowl afterparty, Usher was photographed wearing what appeared to be a gold band on his left ring finger.
Hours later, People reported the two had indeed gotten married.
The couple had also filed for a marriage license in Clark County, Nevada, before this weekend’s big game in Las Vegas.
Adding to the earlier speculation, the couple showed up to the party all dressed in white.
The Yeah singer wore a bright white fur coat that reached to the floor.
Jenn, 40, matched in an all-white pantsuit of her own.
4
4