At the recent Super Bowl, the iconic tennis champion, Serena Williams, made quite an entrance during the halftime show. Sharing the stage with Kendrick Lamar, she couldn’t help but move to his music.
Her dance moves, which included the ‘Crip walk’, sparked some chatter. This dance style, initially made famous by Henry ‘Crip’ Heard, has connections to the Crips, a group of street gangs from California.
Serena previously showcased this dance back in 2012 at Wimbledon, where, although she secured Olympic gold, she faced a fair amount of criticism.
Reenacting the dance at the Super Bowl reignited conversations and critiques, especially with her choice to dance to ‘Not Like Us’, a track related to Drake.
There’s been a whirlwind of rumors about Serena and Drake having dated from 2011 to 2015, and Drake himself has mentioned Serena in his lyrics more than once.
Echoing her response to past comments, Serena humorously noted after the show, “Man, I did not crip walk like that at Wimbledon, I would’ve been fined.” Her husband, Alexis Ohanian, quickly rose to her defense, sharing snapshots of comments Serena received in the past.
Alexis highlighted how some individuals have consistently misunderstood Serena’s playful dance moves, drawing parallels to the backlash from her 2012 Wimbledon dance. He reminded everyone that these criticisms are about more than just the music or the steps involved.
Among the shared images were excerpts from sports analysts who claimed Serena’s past dance was as inappropriate as “cracking a tasteless, X-rated joke inside a church.” To contrast these opinions, Ohanian also posted a video snippet of Samuel L. Jackson’s exuberant moment during the halftime performance, playfully exclaiming ‘Oh no, no! Too loud! Too reckless! Too… ghetto’.
Undoubtedly, Alexis won’t entertain negativity about his wife’s celebratory performance during this high-profile event. In his posts, he championed her right to dance and express herself freely.
Some spectators were taken aback by Williams’ Super Bowl appearance, particularly noting Kendrick Lamar’s bold move to have her onstage dancing to a song referencing Drake.
While some appreciated the surprise featuring Serena, others had reservations about the implications. During his performance, Kendrick selectively omitted a provocative line about Drake, instead prompting the audience to join in on the lyric.
Drake, meanwhile, remains unaffected by the discussions surrounding the performance, keeping away from any direct confrontations regarding Serena or the dance.
In exploring the broader context, renowned sports commentator Stephen A. Smith has also weighed in on the event, providing his perspective on Serena’s dance choice and the ensuing controversy. His insights add another layer to the varied public opinions surrounding the event.
