Rihanna announced as Super Bowl halftime performer, internet reacts

On Sunday, Rihanna made a BIG announcement that she would be the halftime performer at the 2023 Super Bowl in Glendale, Arizona. The announcement went crazy viral. Her Instagram post gained over 1.5 million likes in just over 4 hours.

This announcement came just a couple hours after speculation whirled about Taylor Swift (who's very mid) being the performer at the halftime show. I can't speak for everyone, but if Taylor Swift was performing at the halftime show, I wouldn't have even tuned in. I can't lie I am a little nervous about her stans attacking me for this one, but her music is MID. I'm someone who equally enjoys the halftime show and the game itself, so when the having the halftime show someone I really enjoy, it feels like the perfect balance.

Now on the other hand. Rihanna has been out of the music world since 2016. She hasn't released an album in 6 years and people have speculated that she quit music. The last 6 years she has spent an extensive amount of time working on her Fenty brand which includes clothes, makeup, and skincare. It's a great brand and I love the makeup, but there are lot of times where I wished she was making new music.

When an artist comes out of "music hiding," to do the Super Bowl halftime show, there's every reason to be excited. We haven't seen her perform live in over 6 years. I saw her live at the Summer Sixteen tour where she came out to do "Work" with Drake and it was an unforgettable experience. Her discography is full of timeless bangers that really appeal to every single demographic. With her coming out of music retirement, there is also plenty of speculation that she might release new music before the halftime show or after.

I mean watch the video from the tweet below. All credits to @videorih on Twitter. When I watched this video for the first time on Sunday, I was first taken back to 2009 but also instantly remembered how many bangers she has. The Super Bowl halftime show is also only around 15 minutes, so I am excited to see what track list she decides to do.

The memes were out in full force on Sunday. Here are some highlights:

Very very excited for this performance and very happy that is not Taylor Mid Swift!