Feb. 12 (UPI) — Rihanna made her triumphant return to live performances Sunday on perhaps the largest stage around — the Super Bowl halftime show.
The pop singer treated fans to a medley of a dozen of her best-known songs in what proved to be a gravity-defying performance at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.
Once on the ground-level stage, she was accompanied by dozens of dancers dressed in all-white jumpsuits and sunglasses.
Rihanna followed up with “Where Have You Been?,” “Only Girl in the World,” “We Found Love,” “Rude Boy,” “Work,” “Wild Thoughts,” “Pour It Up” and “All of the Lights.” Throughout the songs, the platforms were raised up and down with dancers both on the ground and in the air.
A band joined the performance during the final three songs of the night — “Run This Town,” “Umbrella” and “Diamonds.” With the final song, she returned to the air, this time draped in a puffy red coat with a long train.
Unlike other recent Super Bowl halftime performances, Rihanna had no surprise guests join her on stage, despite much pre-show speculation.
Rihanna was tight-lipped about her Super Bowl plans during her pre-performance news conference Thursday. She told reporters that at one point she had 39 versions of a setlist to choose from.
“It’s a lot of preparation,” she said Thursday. “This is the week that everything is being tested. Everyone is just tightening up. Everybody’s dialing in. Everybody’s tuning up.
“It’s literally like 300 to 400 people breaking the stage down, building it up and getting out in 8 minutes. It’s incredible. It’s almost impossible.”
Prior to Sunday, Rihanna’s last live televised performance was at the 2018 Grammy Awards, accompanying DJ Khaled.
