Rihanna was above it all.
She began and ended the Super Bowl 57 halftime show hovering high above the field at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
The performance delivered on fan expectations but it included a major surprise — the singer is pregnant with her second child.
She wore a puffy, bright red jumpsuit with tight, rubbery garb underneath as she stood on a transparent rectangular platform that raised and lowered as she belted out the lyrics to “Bitch Better Have My Money” over the turf where the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs were battling moments earlier.
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Dancers wearing white ski-style suits and shaded goggles had their own suspended platforms that moved in concert with hers.
She and the dancers were lowered to a long stage that matched her outfit as she sped through hits including "Work," “Where Have You Been,” and “Only Girl,” belting out “Want you to make me feel like I’m the only girl in the world.”
There were none of the instant costume changes, scene shifts or surprise guest appearances that have been a constant at other Super Bowl halftimes. (Her set included songs that were studio collaborations with Drake and Ye, but neither suddenly showed up.)
The theme — and the colour scheme — stayed the same throughout the 13-minute show, with red lights bathing the stage at times and golden fireworks exploding in the air above her.
The long stage allowed for extended pull-away shots as she stared down the camera and overhead tracking shots of Rihanna and her dancers.
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At one point she powdered her face and checked it in a mirror before getting back on the mic.
Lights sparkled from the stands as she was hoisted alone back into the air and sang “Diamonds” — with its refrain of “shine bright like a diamond” — as the set closed.
Rihanna's performance was her first live event in years, and her first since becoming a mother nine months ago.
