Usher brought out a slew of surprise celebrity guests during his 15-minute Super Bowl halftime show, though many fans noticed a subtle tribute to Michael Jackson.
The 45-year-old singer brought out stars such as Alicia Keys, Jermaine Dupri, H.E.R., Will.i.am, Lil Jon and Ludacris during his star-studded show at the big game, which the Kansas City Chiefs won 25-22 over the San Francisco 49ers in overtime.
However, many fans pointed to a moment early on in the set where the singer seemingly paid tribute to the late great Michael Jackson.
Usher was performing with a singular white glove, honoring the King of Pop, who frequently performed with a sole glove himself during his heyday.
The singer also opened up about Jackson’s influence on his set, during a recent interview with the New York Post.
Usher brought out a slew of surprise celebrity guests during his 15-minute Super Bowl halftime show , though many fans noticed a subtle tribute to Michael Jackson
The 45-year-old singer brought out stars such as Alicia Keys , Jermaine Dupri, H.E.R., Will.i.am, Lil Jon and Ludacris during his star-studded show
However, many fans pointed to a moment early on in the set where the singer seemingly paid tribute to the late great Michael Jackson
Jackson performed at halftime of the Super Bowl in 1993, which many consider among the best of all time that completely changed how the halftime show was perceived.
‘He absolutely revolutionized the experience like no other. He changed how people perceived the halftime show,’ Usher said.
He added that before Jackson was brought on, ‘it was just kind of hiring, you know, local performers or whatever it might be. I really did respect that.’
Usher added The King of Pop’s 1993 performance, ‘became a great inspiration behind some of the things that I chose to do with this show.’
The solo glove became such an iconic part of Jackson’s persona that fans would ultimately shell out thousands of dollars for one of his gloves.
Back in 2010, an unspecified buyer shelled out a whopping $190,000 for one of the pop icon’s gloves.
Jackson was just 34 years old at the height of his career when he performed at halftime of Super Bowl XXVII on January 31, 1993.
The show would become one of the most watched events in American television history with a near unbelievable 133.4million viewers.
Sunday night Usher chose to incorporate some specific elements of Michael Jackson into his performance, including his use of a single glove, his fancy footwork, and a hint at the Jackson 5 song ‘Can You Feel It.’
‘He absolutely revolutionized the experience like no other. He changed how people perceived the halftime show,’ Usher said
The solo glove became such an iconic part of Jackson’s persona that fans would ultimately shell out thousands of dollars for one of his gloves
Usher added The King of Pop’s 1993 performance, ‘became a great inspiration behind some of the things that I chose to do with this show’
Usher released his ninth studio album Coming Home on Friday, with one song – Bop – featuring the singer referencing Jackson and other late pop icons
Usher also took his shirt off at one point, which may have been a tribute to Al Green, honoring his Greatest Hits album where Green was wearing a similar outfit
Usher also took his shirt off at one point, which may have been a tribute to Al Green, honoring his Greatest Hits album where Green was wearing a similar outfit.
Usher released his ninth studio album Coming Home on Friday, with one song – Bop – featuring the singer referencing Jackson and other late pop icons.
When asked about the conversations he had with Jackson before he passed away in 2009, Usher said there was, ‘an admiration of what I do as an entertainer.
‘He didn’t really say a lot. Whenever we had conversations, they were fairly brief, but what he did tell me is he appreciated the fact that I’m a song-and-dance man and the fact that that’s not an easy thing to do,’ Usher added.
‘It was almost as though he was telling me to keep it authentic. And I battle with it, because sometimes I absolutely want to have more support, so I add extra backgrounds and stuff like that, but it actually detaches me from the experience that I want to have with my fans and what I want to offer them,’ Usher added.