Usher Super Bowl halftime show start time and Taylor Swift live updates: Gronk kick, is Usher being paid, guest performers

From Usher’s performance to Taylor Swift’s arrival to the best commercials and prop bets, join us as we cover the spectacle of the Super Bowl.

Usher, Taylor Swift headline the ‘spectacle’ side of the Super Bowl
The Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers made it to Las Vegas for the Super Bowl.

As did Usher. And, yes, Taylor Swift.

As the Chiefs and 49ers play in the NFL’s biggest game of the season, many eyes will be focused on Usher’s halftime performance at Allegiant Stadium. This will be Usher’s first appearance as a headlining act at the Super Bowl and his second appearance since 2011, when he was a guest with the Black Eyed Peas.

Many questions await the 45-year-old megastar who recently completed a residency in Las Vegas. What songs will be a part of his 13-minute set list? Who will be in attendance as a guest appearance? How many tracks will be a part of his new album, “Coming Home,” which debuted on Friday?

And, of course, will Swift — who took a private jet from Japan to Las Vegas to see Travis Kelce and the Chiefs — somehow be included in the show?

For all of that and more on the 2024 Super Bowl halftime show, follow along for analysis and updates from members of The Athletic’s staff.

You expected Taylor Swift to be shown during the national anthem. She wasn’t. You expected Rob Gronkowski to make his relatively easy field goal for his commercial. He didn’t.

Those were relative upsets in our party pool, and here are some more results: Reba McEntire’s anthem went over with ease and she sang with instrumentation. The coin flip was heads.

Who could join Usher on stage?
The game has started, which means the cutdown to Usher is officially underway. Based on rumors and reports, here are three guests I expect to perform with him at halftime.

Alicia Keys
Lil Jon
Ludacris
Keys means we’ll get “My Boo” from Usher. And it seems impossible for Usher to perform without singing “Yeah!” so that means Lil Jon and Ludacris would have to appear as they’re featured on the song.

It would be a great way to start or end the show.

Why is Usher performing the Super Bowl halftime show for free?
With all of the press, bells and whistles surrounding Usher’s Super Bowl LVIII set, you’d think the R&B star would be walking away with a pretty penny.

But nope. Since the Super Bowl halftime show was introduced in the 1960s, the artists who grace the stage to perform on one of the world’s largest stages haven’t been paid.

But that’s not to say that the NFL gets off scot-free. The league still covers the production costs of the set and the artist’s travel, which can end up getting very expensive. From LED lights to screens and fireworks, production expenses have reportedly run as high as over $10 million.

So if they aren’t getting paid, why is the slot so coveted?

It’s simple. The return on exposure. The world’s largest stars see an incredible boost in streaming numbers, merch sales, etc. The interviews and press run that artists go on tend to be invaluable as the level of exposure can’t be reached on other platforms. And we see Usher taking advantage of this with a new album released and tour announced.

Country singer and actress Reba McEntire sang the national anthem ahead of this year’s Super Bowl matchup. She didn’t go acapella, so sorry to all of you who had that on your prop bet sheet. The over/under for her time was 90.5 seconds. We’re still waiting for official word on how long her rendition went.