Rihanna Teases Super Bowl LVII Halftime Performance at Press Conference

Before she hits the stage for the Super Bowl LVII Apple Music Halftime Show in Arizona on Sunday, Rihanna dished on what to expect in a press conference Thursday, moderated by Nadeska.

Rihanna hasn’t really been sleeping since she’s been at the venue “prepping.”

She shared, “Today is a really big rehearsal.”

Showing her appreciation to the crew, who are putting together the set, she added, “There’s a lot of moving parts.”

When asked how she feels to be performing, Rihanna said, “It feels like it could only have been now.”

RiRi noted that her role as a mom makes it an “exhilarating” challenge since she hasn’t been performing onstage for six years.

As for the songs she’ll be performing, Rihanna said, “The setlist was the biggest challenge… deciding how to maximize 13 minutes, but also celebrate. It’s going to be a celebration of my catalogue… I think we did a pretty job of narrowing it down.”

She admitted, “There are 39 versions of the setlist right now.”

Rihanna isn’t afraid to be “bossy.” She stressed, “A lot is riding on me… At the end of the day, if it flops or it flies, my name has to stand by that.”

Of the physical prepping of the performance, Rihanna commented, “I haven’t done this in a minute… You’re just running around for 13 minutes, trying to put like a two-hour set in 13 minutes... From the time it starts, it never ends… It’s a jam-packed show. It takes a toll on your body — it does.”

Rihanna is planning to incorporate some Caribbean culture into the performance. She said, “That is a big part of why this is important for me to do the show. Representation. Representing my country Barbados… representing for black women everywhere. I think that is key for people to see the possibilities. I’m honored to be doing this this year.”

RiRi admitted that work life balance is “different” now since becoming a mom. She explained, “The balance is almost impossible. Work is always going to rob you of time with your child. That’s the currency. That’s where it goes, the magnitude of how much it weighs when you make decisions.”

Rihanna also opened up about her time off. She said, “The pandemic, in a weird way, forced me to slow down. When you have all these boundaries… you have to stay home, you get creative with ways to stayed entertained… road-tripping was one of those things… I got to feel the things I love about tour without the commitment of the show…. I really enjoyed it.”

Rihanna also dished on her new music, saying, she’s “open” to creating new material that isn’t the norm.

Despite all the fame and fortune, Rihanna stressed that her “core values” haven’t changed!

Babyface, Chris Stapleton and Sheryl Lee Ralph, who will also be performing before the game, also took part in the press conference.

Stapleton is scheduled to showcase his vocals with the “The Star Spangled Banner,” while Babyface will sing “America the Beautiful.”

Ralph will take the field to sing “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”