Even Rihanna gets pre-show jitters.
The nine-time Grammy Award winner, 34, admitted she’s starting to feel the nerves after being named to headline next year’s Super Bowl halftime show in Glendale, Ariz.
Rihanna finally confirmed an end to her music hiatus by posting a photo of herself holding a football on Instagram and Twitter.
Asked about how she’s feeling ahead of her hotly-anticipated performance, the new mom-of-one told TMZ, “I’m nervous…but I’m excited.”
Rihanna remained tight-lipped on what fans could expect from the performance, but it’s expected that she’ll be joined by a couple of famous faces onstage.
In 2018, the “Kiss It Better” hitmaker was previously approached to perform the halftime show for Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta.
However, she turned it down at the time amid controversy surrounding the NFL’s treatment of Colin Kaepernick. The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback was both praised and criticized for taking a knee during the national anthem in protest of police brutality and social injustice.
“I couldn’t dare do that. For what? Who gains from that? Not my people. I just couldn’t be a sellout. I couldn’t be an enabler,” she told Vogue in 2019.
“There’s things within that organization that I do not agree with at all, and I was not about to go and be of service to them in any way.”
The show was ultimately headlined by Adam Levine’s pop rock band, Maroon 5, with special guests Big Boi and Travis Scott.
February’s halftime show proved to be a major success after over 120 million viewers watched the show, according to NFL. Performers included Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, 50 Cent, and Kendrick Lamar.
The unforgettable performance featured a medley of their iconic hits “In Da Club,” “Family Affair,” “California Love,” and more.
The last 10 years saw a star-studded array of performers take to the stage, including Beyonce, Coldplay, Bruno Mars, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Maroon 5, Shakira, Jennifer Lopez, and The Weeknd.
Rihanna’s headlining gig will be the first to be sponsored by Apple Music, which is taking over the reins from Pepsi.
