Let's be real: This is what you came for.
After the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs finished playing the first half of Super Bowl LVII on Feb. 12, the evening's real performer took center stage. Rihanna headed onto the field at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona for the halftime show. And yes, she was shining bright like a diamond.
Dressed in a red-hot ensemble, Rihanna emerged on a suspended platform and performed a medley of her hits, including "Bitch Better Have My Money," "Where Have You Been," "Only Girl (In the World)," "We Found Love," and "Rude Boy." She then moved on to even more fan favorites like "Work," "Wild Thoughts," and "Pour It Up" followed by songs like "All of the Lights" and "Run This Town," with the transitions from one tune to the next being smoother than a limousine.
But that wasn't all. The nine-time Grammy winner also belted out tracks like "Umbrella" and "Diamonds." Still, the songs weren't the only showstopping moments. Rihanna also revealed she's expecting her second child with A$AP Rock, baring her baby bump and her rep confirming the pregnancy to E! News.
Of course, her epic performance should come as no surprise to anyone. After all, Rihanna had put in the work, work, work, work, work, work to deliver a truly unforgettable show.
"You're trying to cram 17 years of work into 13 minutes, so it's difficult," she told Nadeska during an Apple Music Halftime Show press conference on Feb. 9. "Some songs we had to lose because of that, and that's going to be OK. But I think we did a pretty good job of narrowing it down….There's probably about 39 versions of the set list right now."
After that incredible performance, fans might ask Rihanna where have you been? But to be fair, the 34-year-old has been rather busy. In addition to growing her Fenty empire, RiRi welcomed her first child with A$AP Rocky last spring.
Still, Rihanna felt like now was the perfect time to return to the stage.
"It feels like it could have only been now," she said at the press conference about performing at the Super Bowl. "I mean, when I first got the call to do it again this year, I was like, 'You sure? Like, I'm three months postpartum. Like, should I be making major decisions like this right now? Like, I might regret this.' But when you become a mom, there's something that just happens where you feel like you can take on the world, you can do anything."
She added, "The Super Bowl is one of the biggest stages in the world. So, as scary as that was, because I haven't been on stage in seven years, there's something exhilarating about the challenge of it all. And it's important for me to do this this year. It's important for representation. It's important for my son to see that."
While Rihanna just released two tracks for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, fans are asking her to please don't stop the music. So how is she feeling these days?
"Musically, I'm feeling open," she continued. "I'm feeling open to exploring, discovering, creating things that are new, things that are different, things that are off, weird, might not, ever make sense to my fans, the people that know the music that I put out. But I just wanna play, I wanna have fun. I want to have fun with music."
Still have love on the brain from Rihanna's Super Bowl halftime show? No need to send an SOS. Just grab your umbrella and pour over these photos from her performance.