- Serena Williams popped up during Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show
- She performed a dance she was criticised for doing at Wimbledon
- The tennis star also has some history with Lamar’s rival Drake
Kendrick Lamar fans were surprised to see Serena Williams appear during his Super Bowl half-time show at the weekend.
Read more: The biggest moments from Super Bowl LIX
The tennis star appeared crip-walking at one point during Lamar’s half-time extravaganza, which received widespread praise on social media afterwards. A shot of him grinning at the camera has even become a meme.
Fans have spotted that the show was filled with references to moments in Lamar’s career and pop culture and Williams’ moment to dance was no different.
For one, several people were seen crip walking in the music video for his recent single squabble up. Williams appearing during Not Like Us was also significant in another sense too given her past relationship to Lamar’s rival Drake.
Serena Williams crip walking at Wimbledon
Williams faced criticism after crip walking in celebration of her gold medal at the London 2012 Olympics after she defeated Marina Sharapova at Wimbledon.
Some suggested the dance was inappropriate and glorified gang violence, criticism which others argued was racist.
Crip walking originated among members of Los Angeles-area street gang the Crips in the 1970s.
Read more: A timeline of Drake and Kendrick Lamar’s beef
“Man I did not crip walk like that at Wimbledon,” she said in a video afterwards. “Oh, I would’ve been fined.”
“It was all love,” she added of her Super Bowl cameo.
Crip walking became a popular dance among the hip-hop community of Los Angeles. Given that Lamar is known for making references to the city of his birth, this is also very on-brand for him.
Serena Williams’ connection to Drake
Lamar appeared to reference Williams in Not Like Us, saying Drake “better not speak on Serena”. Consequently, having her dance during that number is likely another dig at his rival.
Williams and Drake are believed to have dated for a number of months in 2011 and potentially again in 2015. Drake appeared in the stands at a number of her tennis matches. He later made references to her in some of his songs, including 2013’s Worst Behavior – “I’m with my whole set, tennis matches at the crib. I swear I could beat Serena when she playin’ with her left.”
He also nodded to her on the 2022 single Middle of the Ocean, which includes the lines: “Sidebar, Serena, your husband [Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian] a groupie.”
