Miley Cyrus says she’s “scared” to be back on stage again after a year of Covid uncertainties limited touring for most of 2021. The singer performed at the Bud Light Super Bowl Music Festival over the weekend in Los Angeles, stopping her set halfway through to have an “honest moment” with the crowd.
“Standing up here right now, it doesn’t feel the same as if you would have come to see me three or four years ago,” she admitted before 15,000 or so fans at Crypto.com Arena. “I’m just finding my feet along this platform again.”
“I know that all of us are going through that same experience,” she continued, “just trying to integrate back into a reality that was moving so fast, so naturally. And now, something that should just be like breathing is suddenly difficult and anxiety-inducing and scary. I just want you to know,” Cyrus said, “that even though I’m up here with all of you, I’m just as scared as everybody else about where the world is going [and] what the future holds. But the good news is, we’re not alone,” she declared. “We’re all in this together.”
Watch: @MileyCyrus’ live debut of “Never Be Me” at this weekend’s @SBMusicFest in LA pic.twitter.com/DRpl1umFDt
— Tim Chan (@mrtimchan) February 14, 2022
Cyrus performed a full setlist of songs for the Super Bowl event, including the live debut of her song, “Never Be Me,” off her 2020 album, Plastic Hearts. Sporting a Gucci Love Parade crop top and leggings, the singer belted her way through the Mark Ronson-produced ballad, which Cyrus wrote about not wanting to be boxed in or having to fit a specific mold (Sample lyric: “If you’re looking for someone to be all that you need, that’ll never be me”).
Cyrus’ Bud Light-sponsored concert was just one of a number of star-studded events for the Super Bowl. Saweetie teamed up with Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey Saturday for a pre-game brunch celebrating her new single “Closer” with H.E.R.; Megan Thee Stallion; Lil Baby and Doja Cat were among the performers at the Fanatics Super Bowl Party, a private event hosted by Michael Rubin the founder and CEO of Fanatics.com; the Chainsmokers played their new single, “High,” on Friday night at the DIRECTV Presents the Maxim Big Game Weekend in downtown L.A.; and Cameo hosted an exclusive event at their Beverly Hills “Cameo Villa” with JXDN (a.k.a. Jaden Hossler), to help the singer and Tik Tok superstar ring in his 21st birthday.
Perhaps the buzziest event of Super Bowl weekend was the “Homecoming Weekend” party, hosted by the h.wood Group & Revolve, and presented by Places.co and Flow.com. Produced by Uncommon Entertainment, the two-day affair featured performances from Drake, Marshmello, and Justin Bieber atop a custom stage built outside the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood.
Bieber ran through a tight setlist of songs at Friday night’s event, playing “Yummy,” “Intentions,” “Peaches,” and his latest single, “Ghost” before a celeb-heavy crowd that included Leonardo DiCaprio, Shawn Mendes, and Niall Horan.
Drake, meantime, took the stage Saturday night, running through hits like “No Friends in the Industry,” “Look Alive,” “Controlla,” and “God’s Plan,” and surprising the crowd with an appearance from Future. The two performed “Way 2 Sexy,” “Where Ya At,” and “Commas” in front of VIP guests like Cardi B, Offset, Lizzo, and Adele.
Rolling Stone also hosted a Super Bowl party this year: The Rolling Stone Live: Los Angeles event was presented by Coinbase and featured performances from Kid Laroi, Kaskade, Tinashe, Iann Dior, and a DJ set from Lil’ Jon.
The event wasn’t without some drama — Kodak Black was among three people shot at an afterparty for Bieber’s show on Friday. The rapper was taken to a nearby hospital with non-life-threatening gunshot wounds, and the two other individuals are expected to recover as well.
From Rolling Stone US
