The Super Bowl halftime show is a performance looked forward to by many. My female cousins surrounded the television impatiently waiting to see Justin Timberlake satisfy their need for some JT hits; while, the men sat by and judged whether this twelve minute performance was worth the hype.

P!nk was chosen to sing the national anthem for this momentous event in Minneapolis, Minnesota on February 6th, 2018. With her as the chosen one, it was known that the anthem would be successful. Even though she had a slight crack in her voice due to a cold, she crushed it without a doubt. After a full half of exciting football between the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England Patriots, Jimmy Fallon introduced his good friend, Justin Timberlake, while standing in front a large well-lit sign. After finding out that Justin Timberlake was involved in a Super Bowl controversy dealing with revealing Janet Jackson’s breast in 2004, I was surprised to see that he was given the opportunity to perform again.

Following last year’s entertaining performance by Lady Gaga, many people doubted his ability to reach the standard that Lady Gaga had set, especially after having witnessed her arriving to the stage from mid air. Justin Timberlake’s performance was going to be watched worldwide, and it had to be up to par or else put aside as a performance that one would not easily remember. While sitting beside my family with a plate of ribs and coleslaw, my eyes were glued to the screen not knowing what to expect. My cousin was announcing the several different ways people thought he would arrive on stage: on a ski, from underground, on a helicopter. Unfortunately, for all those who bet on the manner of his appearance, they lost a lot of money, because he simply walked up onto the stage.

The actual show began below the stadium, in an environment that resembled that of a concert/club where he began to sing one of his recent songs, “Filthy.” He made his way towards the field with style as he danced and interacted with the crowd. Compared to past years, one can say that his performance focused on his ability to entertain through purely his dancing and his charisma while singing with his incredible voice. Other major hits that he sang were the following: “Rock your Body,” “Cry Me a River,” “Sexy Back,” “My Love,” “Suit & Tie,” and more.

Two moments do stand out, however. He included a tribute to the late Prince by singing “I Would Die 4 U” while playing the piano with footage of Prince being projected behind Timberlake. This was incredibly significant due to Prince having been born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In addition to this emotional moment, towards the end of his performance, he entered the stands and sang “Can’t Stop The Feeling” with crowd lining the sides of him. He ended his performance by clapping along with his crowd and wishing the crowd a “Happy Super Bowl.”

Yes, his performance was not filled with tricks nor eye-catching acts, but his ability to entertain made for a performance that was thoroughly enjoyed by many. Even though my family was divided on the overall success of this performance, I can say that it was easily seen that he had fun performing and the crowd did not stop singing along. Justin Timberlake pulled off a performance that was of his own style.