Rihanna has a seemingly endless list of hit songs, including many famous collaborations. From her first big duet with Sean Paul, "Break It Off," to hits like Eminem's "Love the Way You Lie" and Jay-Z and Kanye West's "Run This Town," RiRi The sound has become a defining component of major musicals. Popular in all genres, even if they are not her own songs. That just means the guest possibilities are endless during the Super Bowl halftime show on February 12, and speculation has been rampant about who she might have on stage.
Considering the Halftime Show marks her first performance in over five years, Rihanna is likely choosing to keep the focus on herself and her own hits, and could be a sign of a series to come in the near future. A new album or tour. However, the singer and the NFL are keeping mum on whether she plans to bring in guests, which means there's a chance her many collaborators will make surprise appearances on the Super Bowl stage.
To help solve the mystery, we ranked Rihanna's most famous collaborators by how likely they were to appear on her halftime show, taking into account the actual size of the songs, how often Rihanna performed them, and Her place among these artists today. There's a potential guest more likely than most — and it's not her boyfriend A$AP Rocky.
24. Kanye West ("All of the Lights", "Famous", "Run This Town", "FourFiveSeconds")
Rihanna has been involved in some of Kanye's biggest and most controversial hits, but it's unlikely Ye will perform with her at the Super Bowl. That said, don't be surprised if you hear her infamous chorus of "All of the Lights" without his participation, even if it's just for a few seconds.
23. Paul McCartney ("Four Five Seconds")
Given that the Beatle only played guitar on his 2015 collaboration with Rihanna and West, don't expect to see him on stage at the Super Bowl.
22. Britney Spears (“S&M Remix”)
Unlike many collaborations on this list, Rihanna and Spears actually performed together at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards, which ended with an iconic pillow fight. But considering Spears, like RiRi, hasn't performed since 2018, it's unlikely she'll use another artist's halftime show to make a comeback -- even if she's the most popular guest according to this VegasInsider poll.
21. Maroon 5 (“If I never see your face again”)
Maroon 5's 2019 halftime show was poorly received by critics and audiences, frontman Adam Levine had just welcomed a baby, and all parties involved had probably forgotten the song existed (even if it was a low-key slap in the face). It is impossible to consider this possibility.
20. Shakira (“I can’t remember to forget you”)
Shakira and Rihanna have never performed their 2014 collaboration together, even though Sharkey rocked the 2020 Super Bowl halftime show with Jennifer Lopez. Don't expect RiRi's halftime show to be this place.
19. Kendrick Lamar (“Loyal.”)
Lamar's collaboration with Rihanna is considered a highlight of his 2017 album "DAMN." , the song wasn't as popular as her other collaborations, and he just played the Super Bowl in 2022, so don't expect her to use her precious 13 minutes of halftime show time on this song.
18. David Guetta (“Who’s That Chick,” “Now”)
Rihanna has quite a few Guetta-produced dance songs in her arsenal, but she's never performed any of them, so why would she start with the Super Bowl?
17. Sean Paul ("Breaking")
Rihanna likely won't include a song she has barely performed since its 2006 release during her 13-minute halftime show. But admit it, seeing Paul and RiRi break it down to "Break It Off" is going to be nostalgic.
16. Slash (“Rockstar 101”)
Like McCartney, it would have been difficult for Slash to pop up and play guitar on his and Rihanna's 2009 hit "Rockstar 101." But over the years, she occasionally snuck it into her playlists. That said, it's unlikely she neglected the hits to squeeze in this one.
15. Jeezy (“hard”)
"Hard" definitely lives up to its name, and "Rihanna's reign won't let up" is an iconic lyric worthy of inclusion in her Super Bowl entrance. But Jeezy's lyrics were so long that he didn't have time to perform them during the halftime show anyway.
14. Ne-Yo (“Hate I Love You”)
RiRi and Ne-Yo have played their 2007 hit together several times, but not in the past decade. Considering she has a bigger ballad to perform at the Super Bowl, she'll likely skip this one (even if fans are just hoping for Ne-Yo's appearance for nostalgia's sake).
13. Coldplay ("Chinese Princess")
Coldplay headlined the 2016 Halftime Show, but they didn't include the Rihanna collaboration. In fact, they've only performed together once, making it unlikely that it would appear on her own show. That being said, doesn't this sound low-key, designed for a lavish Super Bowl performance?
12. Nicki Minaj ("Up", "Rain Man")
Rihanna and Minaj have two songs that are iconic to fans but strangely didn't become hits, which means they likely won't be on the Super Bowl setlist. But their friendship remains strong, so don't be surprised if Minaj is in the audience cheering RiRi on.
11. Future (" Loveeeeeee Song ", "Selfish")
"Loveeeeeee Song" was a low-key hit in 2013 and led to Future and RiRi collaborating again in 2017, which means he has a better chance of appearing in the Super Bowl than many. But are they big enough to actually make it into her playlist? Probably not.
10. Mickey Ek ("Stay")
"Stay," Rihanna and Ekko's melancholy duet, is a Super Bowl playlist contender because of how often she performs the song live. It's less likely that Rihanna will give the song enough time for Ekko to sing his part, but considering the song's popularity, it's always a possibility.
9. Nerd (“Lemon”)
NERD had a surprise hit when they tapped Rihanna to produce their comeback single in 2017, but they've yet to actually perform the song together. While "Lemon" may not be an obvious choice for a Super Bowl playlist, it's a recent hit, which means the chances of it appearing are higher than you might think.
8. Drake ("What's My Name?", "Work", "Take Care", "Great")
On the surface, Drake might seem like the most obvious guest for Rihanna's halftime show, as they've written a number of genre-defining hits together and have pure chemistry when performing on stage. However, unless they've managed to patch things up since she revealed to Vogue in 2018 that she and Drake are no longer close, Rihanna will be singing one or two of the hits solo.
7. SZA (“Consideration”)
Rihanna collaborated with SZA before most people knew about her. In fact, "Consideration" was originally written for SZA's debut album Ctrl , and she later gave it to RiRi and performed with her at the 2016 BRIT Awards. While no singles were released for the song, SZA's star has continued to rise since then, making her an ideal Super Bowl guest star.
6. TI ("Live your life")
It's been years since T.I. and Rihanna performed their 2008 highlight reel together, but she still plays her part in almost every show. The Super Bowl might be no exception, with or without him.
5. Calvin Harris (“We Found Love,” “Where Have You Been,” “This Is What You Came From”)
If anyone was going to be on the DJ booth during Bruno Mars' 2016 Super Bowl performance of "Uptown Funk," it was Harris. "We Found Love" will almost certainly be included in her halftime show, and she regularly includes "Where Have You Been" on her setlist, even during Harris' 2016 Coachella headlining performance. Performed on "This Is What You", co-written by Taylor Swift. coming. ” It’s no surprise that EDM producers have played with her on all of their hits.
4. DJ Khaled (“Wild Thoughts”)
Rihanna's last performance was at the 2018 Grammy Awards, when she performed her song "Wild Thoughts" alongside DJ Khaled himself. If she incorporates the hit song into her Super Bowl playlist, don't be surprised to hear him scream "We're the best" and "The other one" throughout.
3. Eminem ("Love the Way You Lie", "Love the Way You Lie (Part 2)", "Numb", "Monster")
Like Lamar, Eminem just performed at the Super Bowl last year. But unlike him, he's had multiple iconic collaborations with Rihanna, enough so that they went on a stadium tour together in 2014. If anyone is willing to win a Super Bowl just for RiRihan two years in a row, it's him.
2. A$AP Rocky (“Cockiness Remix”)
RiRi and Rocky have only collaborated once, a remix of her 2012 single "Cockiness (Love It)," which the NFL might not even allow on her playlist given its cheeky nature. However, they have been dating for over three years and welcomed their first child in May 2022. If she wants guests, there's probably no one she'll feel more comfortable performing with - even if there's a more logical option.
1. Jay-Z ("Umbrella," "Run This Town," "Talk That Talk")
In 2005, Jay-Z signed with Def Jam Records and sang lead vocals on Rihanna's first hit single, "Umbrella." Since then, Jay-Z has become more deeply embedded in Rihanna's history than any other musician. He's also never appeared at a Super Bowl, not even during his wife Beyoncé's 2013 halftime show, when she reunited with her Destiny's Child bandmates. But in 2019, his company Roc Nation partnered with the NFL to advise on bookings for the halftime show, which Rihanna may even have agreed to attend after refusing to play in 2018 in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick An important reason for the competition. There may be no better reason or opportunity for Jay-Z to finally grace the Super Bowl — unless he now resolves to do it alone within a year.
