The Riverside Press-Enterprise
Performers
the Grammy-winning Dutch DJ and producer who bowed out Thursday, citing a family emergency.
Nice mix, right? Well, the challenge is it’s highly unlikely most fans will be familiar with all the artists on the bill. There just doesn’t seem to be a lot of crossover between the Reba and Kaskade fan bases.
That’s where we come in, with a guide to the performers at Super Bowl LVIII. Think of it as a cheat sheet of sorts, delivering just enough information so you can impress guests at your Super Bowl party with your musical knowledge between bites of seven-layer dip.
Here’s what to know about the marquee entertainers.
Usher
SUPER ROLE >> Headlining the halftime show
ORIGIN >> He was born in Dallas but raised in Tennessee and Atlanta.
NICKNAME >> The King of R&B
TOP SONGS >> “My Boo,” “Love in This Club,” “You Make Me Wanna … ,” “Nice & Slow,” “DJ Got Us Fallin’ in Love” and “Yeah!”
ALSO FAMOUS FOR >> Being present on TV for years. Most notably, he worked as a coach on seasons 4 and 6 of “The Voice.”
VEGAS CONNECTION >> Recently wrapped up a lengthy residence at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace.
SUPER BOWL EXPERIENCE >> This will be Usher’s second halftime performance, having made his first appearance as one of the two guests when the Black Eyed Peas headlined in 2011. (The other guest was the mighty Slash of Guns N’ Roses fame).
BEYOND SINGING >> Usher is a tremendous dancer, something that has regularly factored into his performances and should surely play a role today.
POSSIBLE GUESTS >> We’d love to see Alicia Keys show up so the duo could reprise their smash, “My Boo.” Ditto for Pitbull when it comes to “DJ Got Us Fallin’ in Love.”
ACTING CHOPS >> Usher made his big-screen debut in the wonderful 1998 horror film “The Faculty.” He’s also had roles in “She’s All That” and “Light It Up” (both 1999) and “In the Mix” (2005), and as boxer Sugar Ray Leonard in “Hands of Stone” (2016). He made his Broadway debut in a critically lauded performance as lawyer Billy Flynn in “Chicago” in 2006.
WHAT’S NEW >> Last week Usher released “Coming Home,” his first full-length studio effort since 2016’s “Hard to Love.”
COMING TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
>> The performer has just announced a careerspanning concert tour that includes four shows at the new Intuit Dome in Inglewood (next to Sofi Stadium) on Sept. 21-22 and 24-25. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Monday at Livenation.com.
Reba Mcentire
SUPER ROLE >> The country legend will be belting out the national anthem.
Born and raised in Oklahoma
ORIGIN >> NICKNAME >> Country
The Queen of
TOP SONGS >> “The Last One to Know,” “Little Rock,” “Whoever’s in New England,” “How Blue,” “Somebody Should Leave,” “What Am I Gonna Do About You,” “One Promise Too Late” and, best of all, “Fancy”
She has a long list of TV credits,
ALSO FAMOUS FOR >>
including starring in her self-named TV sitcom — “Reba” — for seven seasons. And, following in the footsteps of Usher, Mcentire signed up to be a coach on “The Voice.”
VEGAS CONNECTION >> The singer did a Vegas residency (also at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace) with fellow country stars Brooks & Dunn.
NATIONAL ANTHEM EXPERIENCE >> As the story goes, Mcentire took a job in the mid-’70s singing “The Star-spangled Banner” at the National Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City. Country-western performer Red Steagall was in the audience one night and — greatly impressed with what he heard — helped Mcentire land her first recording contract with Mercury Records.
THE PLAY’S THE THING >> She ventured to New York in 2001 to take on the title role of Annie Oakley in the Broadway musical “Annie Get Your Gun.”
AT THE MOVIES >> Like Usher, Mcentire made her big screen debut in an awesome horror film. So, definitely go watch 1990’s “Tremors” (co-starring Kevin Bacon) if you haven’t seen it before (or, like us, are willing to see it for the 12th time). She was originally cast as Molly Brown in James Cameron’s “Titanic,” but filming delays led to scheduling conflicts and Mcentire eventually had to depart the project, with Kathy Bates taking her place.
WHAT’S NEW >> The Queen of Country recently put out a book — “Not That Fancy: Simple Lessons on
Living, Loving, Eating and Dusting Off Your Boots” — as well as a companion album called “Not That Fancy.”
Post Malone
SUPER ROLE >> The Post man will be singing “America the Beautiful.”
ORIGIN >> Born in Syracuse, New York, on — how’s this for a patriotic connection — July 4, 1995. Malone moved to Texas at age 9.
FUN FACT ABOUT HIS NAME >>
He reportedly got his Post Malone moniker by entering his birth name (Austin Richard Post) into a rap name generator. You can do the same by visiting myrapname.com.
We often hear him referred to as Posty. But we’re not sure we’d
NICKNAME >>
call him that to his face.
TOP SONGS >> “Rockstar,” “White Iverson,” “Congratulations,” “Psycho,” “Sunflower” and “Circles”
VEGAS CONNECTION >>
Malone just performed a sold-out New Year’s Eve concert at buzzy Vegas venue Bleaulive Theater at Fontainebleau.
ANIMATED ACTING >> He’s provided voices of characters in three major animated films — “Spider-man: Into the Spider-verse,” “Spider-man: Across the Spider-verse” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.”
WHAT’S NEW >> Posty’s most recent full-length is “Austin,” his fifth studio album overall. He will also perform country covers with friends at the Stagecoach Country Music Festival in Indio on April 27.
Andra Day
SUPER ROLE >> The R&B star will surely shine bright when she sings “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” The hymn was composed in 1900 by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson and his brother John Rosamond Johnson as a plea for Black freedom and emerged as the Civil Rights Movement’s theme song during the 1950s and ’60s.
ORIGIN >> She was born in Washington state and grew up in San Diego.
TOP SONGS >> “Stand Up for Something,” “Tigress and Tweed” and “Rise Up”
OSCAR’S ATTENTION >> Day starred as Lady Day — yes, we’re talking about the great Billie Holiday — in the acclaimed biographical drama “The United States vs. Billie Holiday.” She drew rave reviews for the role and received a nomination for best actress at the 2021 Academy Awards. (The award ended up going to Frances Mcdormand for “Nomadland.”)
BIG WINS >> She’s earned trophies at such big-time events as the Golden Globes (best actress in a motion picture drama), the Grammys (best compilation soundtrack for visual media) and the BET Awards (best actress) — all for her work on “The United States vs. Billie Holiday.” Her single “Rise Up” was a Grammy nominee and Soul Train Music Awards winner and became an anthem for Black Lives Matter protesters in 2021.
OTHER FILM ROLES >> She appeared in “Marshall” and “Exhibiting Forgiveness” and did some voice acting in “Cars 3.” She’s also set to star in the Lee Daniels horror film “The Deliverance,” set to debut on Netflix this year.
VEGAS CONNECTION >> She also performed during the opening ceremony of the inaugural Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix in November.
WHAT’S NEW >> The singer will release her longawaited third solo album this spring, according to Pitchfork. The magazine also reports that the album will be called “Cassandra” (which is Andra’s full first name).
Kaskade
SUPER ROLE >> He’s set to become what the NFL describes as the first in-game Super Bowl DJ, spinning tunes before the first play and then adding bits of music during a number of breaks in the game.
ORIGIN >> He was born Ryan Gary Raddon in Chicago, and honed his DJ skills in his dorm room at Utah’s Brigham Young University.
TOP SONGS >> His biggest single was “I Remember” with Deadmau5, which topped Billboard’s Dance Club songs chart in 2008. He also topped that chart in 2019 with “Go Slow,” a collaboration with Gorgon City and Romeo.
GRAMMYS >> Though he’s never taken home a trophy, he’s been nominated seven times.
TOP OF THE GAME >> Kaskade was voted “America’s Best DJ” by DJ Times in 2011 and 2013.
VEGAS CONNECTION >> Kaskade is no stranger to Nevada’s biggest city. In a joint statement with the NFL he posted on Instagram that “Las Vegas has been my second home for the past decade, as an architect of creating a landscape that includes House and Dance Music residencies as part of its destination.
WHAT’S NEW >> His most recent full-length outing is 2023’s “Redux 006.”