"Lot of blame being thrown at Jay-Z" - Shaquille O'Neal addresses NFL picking Kendrick Lamar over Lil Wayne for Super Bowl show

Former NBA superstar Shaquille O'Neal is a huge hip-hop fan. The LA Lakers legend even brought the “Shaq’s Fun House” event to Los Angeles for 2022 Super Bowl weekend. Among his guest performers were Diplo, Zedd and Lil Wayne.

O’Neal will not have the same act for Super Bowl in 2025, but no one will be surprised if he attends the game in New Orleans. The LSU icon has already expressed interest in knowing who will join Kendrick Lamar for the event’s highly anticipated halftime show.

Jay-Z, on the NFL’s board for music and entertainment, recently announced Lamar as the headliner for the 2025 Super Bowl halftime show. The news was greeted with mixed reviews as some expected Lil Wayne, a New Orleans native, to take that stage.

Shaquille O'Neal, in his podcast, had this to say about the issue:

(40:52 mark)

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“I love them both. Really love Kendrick [Lamar], really love Lil’ Wayne. It would make sense to have a lot of involvement with Lil Wayne.

"I don’t know what’s going on, a lot of blame being thrown at Jay-Z but Jay-Z is part of the committee. I don’t think he runs the committee. It’s my understanding that the city also has an influence on who they pick.”

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The city of New Orleans and the NFL both had a hand in making the decision. It is reportedly the league that sends a list of performers to the host city who make the final decision.

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Shaquille O'Neal hopes Kendrick Lamar invites Lil Wayne and Drake to the Super Bowl LIX halftime show

Now that Kendrick Lamar has been named the Super Bowl LIX halftime show headliner, the “Not Like Us” hitmaker has several cards to play. He could do a solo or bring some of his closest rappers/friends.

Shaquille O'Neal, though, had something in mind that could potentially cause jaws to drop:

(43:49 mark)

“If I was Kendrick, I’d go 10 [minutes], drop the mic, ‘I got a present for you’ and then walk off the stage. Just five minutes of just hits, one minute, one song. Five hot songs and then boom. And then Kendrick and Lil’ Wayne and Drake comes out and they all hug it up.”

2025 Super Bowl doesn’t happen until February. With the date roughly five months away, a lot of things could still happen. But Shaquille O'Neal’s idea for the event is a certified blockbuster that will undoubtedly shatter viewership records.

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