When Eminem took his highly anticipated turn onstage at the 2022 Super Bowl Halftime Show on Sunday (Feb. 13), another familiar face was rocking out behind him.
During Em’s performance of “Lose Yourself,” Anderson .Paak surprised the crowd by playing the drums for the 2002 hit, and as usual, looked like he was having a blast while doing so.
.@AndersonPaak sighting! #PepsiHalftime pic.twitter.com/E4sRcUzKd9
— NFL (@NFL) February 14, 2022
Anderson hinted at his halftime show appearance before the Big Game, taking to Instagram just hours before to post a selfie with Em’s fellow headliner Kendrick Lamar, cryptically captioning the photo in all caps, “THANKS FOR THE RIDE FOOLIE! @drdre HERE I COME!!!”
Following his drum set, the Silk Sonic artist shared another Instagram post, this time showing off a T-shirt with his face on it that reads, “We’re with Eminem’s drummer.”
“WOW WHAT A RUSH CONGRATS TO EVERY SUPER HERO ON THAT STAGE!! BIG SHOUT OUT TO @drdre LOVE YOU BRO AND THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME BE APART OF HISTORY!!!” he captioned the post, oozing with gratitude, before asking his followers to “HIT MY LAND LINE FOR ALL DRUM ENQUIRES!”
And, because it’s Anderson .Paak, he threw in a joke to wrap up his thoughts: “Note: I ONLY PLAY CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES AND FOR DIAMOND SELLING ARTISTS. RATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE ON ANY GIVEN SUNDAY.”
Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” has had an award-winning run since it was released on Oct. 28, 2002, giving the Detroit rapper his first No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, his first and only Oscar so far for best original song in 2003, his 2003 MTV VMA for best video from a film, and his Grammy Award for best rap song and best male rap solo performance in 2004. Most recently, in February 2021, the song reached 1 billion listens on Spotify.
Held at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, the 2022 Super Bowl Halftime Show was headlined by Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Lamar. 50 Cent also made a surprise appearance to perform “In Da Club.”
