Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre lead the Super Bowl set, which includes Eminem taking a knee

Hip-hop led the Super Bowl halftime performance for the first time, with Dr. Dre and proteges Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, and Eminem invoking a racial justice protest by taking a knee on music’s largest stage.

The anticipation for the ’90s lovefest, which included Kendrick Lamar and 50 Cent onstage midway during Sunday’s game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals, had been growing for weeks.

The field was transformed into a massive map of Los Angeles, which is hosting the National Football League championship for the first time in nearly three decades, for the show.

Dre and Snoop’s ode to gangsta rap began with their single “The Next Episode,” followed by a tribute to Tupac Shakur on “California Love.”

East Coast made an appearance as 50 Cent dropped from the ceiling and launched into the early 2000s song “In Da Club,” before Mary J. Blige took the concert to the next level with her smash “Family Affair.”

R&B diva Mary J. Blige next sang “No More Drama” in all white and sequins before Lamar’s performance of “Alright” in front of the stage, surrounded by men in all black complete with “Dre Day” sashes.

Eminem performed his Grammy and Oscar-winning song “Lose Yourself” before taking a knee, invoking former NFL player Colin Kaepernick’s social justice protest and igniting social media.

In 2016, Kaepernick began kneeling during national anthems to protest police brutality and racial inequality, sparking years of debate.

After singing his song during music’s most visible gig, Eminem, wearing a black hoodie, knelt and held his head in his palm, appearing to represent Kaepernick.

Dre then sat at the piano and dropped the legendary beginning notes of his hit “Still D.R.E.,” before all of the performers joined together to close the rap extravaganza.

Anderson’s name is Anderson.

Paak also made an appearance on drums.

It was Jay-Roc Z’s Nation’s third consecutive Super Bowl performance, which was enlisted by the NFL to “amplify the league’s social justice efforts.”

The first show Roc Nation created was a well-received performance by Jennifer Lopez and Shakira, with The Weeknd following suit with an outstanding pandemic-era show last year.

The 2022 edition comes three years after the NFL was chastised for choosing pop-rock band Maroon 5 to lead the prized concert – whose audience routinely exceeds 100 million – in Atlanta, widely regarded as America’s hip-hop capital.

Jhene Aiko performed “America the Beautiful” with the help of a harpist during the pre-game programme.