Super Bowl XLVII will not be easily forgotten. Sure, there was football. And oh yeah, the power went out for a bit. But for thousands of people, the focus was on the halftime show, featuring none other than the fabulous Mrs. Beyoncé Knowles-Carter.
Despite recent criticism regarding her lip-syncing performance at the presidential inauguration in January, Beyoncé pulled off arguably one of the best halftime shows in recent years. With the help of plentiful pyrotechnics, impeccable choreography, and flashing lights, Beyoncé delighted millions of viewers with her iconic vocals and bold stage presence.
The performance began when she emerged in a leather and lace outfit, although it’s not totally clear whether the garment qualifies as a dress or just a leotard with a piece of lace attached to the bottom. Either way, she looked nothing short of (Sasha) fierce.
Opening with an a cappella “Love on Top,” Queen Bey quickly moved on to “Crazy in Love,” which included some of the most fabulous strutting the world has ever seen. “Baby Boy” and “End of Time” rounded out her solo songs.
If viewers weren’t already expressing their mad love for the halftime show, the “surprise” arrival of Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams sent the excitement into overdrive. The trio reunited to perform their hits “Bootylicious” and “Independent Woman,” although Kelly and Michelle were noticeably less miked than Beyoncé.
Social media sites such as Twitter played a large role in the buzz of this year’s Super Bowl. According to Twitter, the Super Bowl generated 24.1 million tweets, with 5.5 million of those tweets resulting from Beyoncé’s performance alone. By the conclusion of her show, the social media site peaked at a rate of 268,000 tweets per minute. In comparison, last year’s Super Bowl produced a meager 13.7 million tweets.
Fellow celebrities did not shy away from expressing their admiration for Beyoncé’s performance. Mindy Kaling expressed her respect for Beyoncé to her followers, tweeting, “My heart has stopped #Beyonce.” Solange Knowles, tweeted “Beyoncé Bowl” in support of her sister. Even First Lady Michelle Obama took notice, tweeting “Watching the #SuperBowl with family & friends. @Beyonce was phenomenal! I am so proud of her! –mo”
It’s pretty safe to say that Beyoncé recovered from her minor lip-syncing scandal. The shameless, bountiful love that she has received via social media demonstrates the virtually universal admiration that surrounds her. Oprah Winfrey summed up the nation’s excitement when she tweeted simply, “BEYONCE!!!!!!!!!!!!” Our sentiments exactly, Oprah.