Rihanna Reacts As Super Bowl Halftime Performance Earns Five Nominations At 2023 Emmys

Rihanna is getting her first-ever Emmy nomination and could not be any prouder!

The record-breaking musician has been awarded five nods for her phenomenal February 12 performance at the Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show. She could not hold back her delight in announcing the terrific news while also ensuring to appreciate everyone involved in the show's success.  

As a first-time Emmy nominee, earning multiple nominations is certainly a major feat for Rihanna. In celebration, she took to her Instagram feed with a carousel featuring a heartfelt message to millions of fans. 

"Pull up breed up 2 d bashment," the Grammy Award winner proclaimed. "5 EMMY NOMZ is craaaaazzzyyy!!! I'm so grateful for everyone involved in creating these memories!"

The attached carousel featured four photos from the show and behind the scenes. In the first slide, her famous red outfit worn for her performance was seen hanging with the flag of her native land, Barbados.

The following image showed her in a dressing room, rocking the ensemble, and in the third slide, she was photographed onstage with a serious expression. The final shot then showed the entire stage, including herself and her dancers. Parts of the crowded stadium could also be seen, with people holding their phones.

Unsurprisingly, Rihanna's update gained over a million reactions, with many commenters praising and congratulating her for such an achievement. "Only Rihanna can get five nominations without releasing a new album," a fan claimed, followed by another who gushed, "The performance was GENIUS!!!!!!"

"Favorite Super Bowl ever ever ever!!! RiRi forever!??," A third commenter noted, while a fourth user wrote, "Well deserved! I had TikTok SPINNIN! Weeks and the world were still recreating the dances?." 

Hours before the announcement, the Emmys released the list of the nominations, with Riri's Super Bowl performance snagging nominations in the categories "Outstanding Production Design For A Variety Special, Outstanding Directing For A Variety Special, Outstanding Music Direction, Outstanding Variety Special (Live), and Outstanding Technical Direction and Camerawork For A Special." 

Several other music-related shows were nominated alongside the Apple Music Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show for the 75th annual Primetime Emmy Awards. For the category of Outstanding Variety Special, Rihanna's performance (Fox) is competing with the Tonys (CBS), the Oscars (ABC), Elton John Live: Farewell From Dodger Stadium (Disney+), and Chris Rock: Selective Outrage (Netflix). 

Fans may recall that in 2022, the Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show featuring Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, and 50 Cent was the first Super Bowl halftime show to win a "top program Emmy."

Meanwhile, not only does this mark the "Umbrella" songstress' first Primetime Emmy nomination, but also the same for Elton John. However, if John wins, he will become an EGOT icon. The highly-anticipated award ceremony will take place on Monday, September 18.

Rihanna's performance at the 75th Super Bowl is no stranger to achieving extraordinary ratings. Just days after the Barbadian beauty took breaths away on the stage, it was confirmed that her performance garnered an average ranking of 118.7 million viewers, 5.7 million more than the 113 million who watched the playoffs.

As a result, it was the second most-watched Super Bowl Halftime performance since Katy Perry's record of 114.4 million viewers in 2015. In addition, the viewership ratings implied that the 35-year-old's performance earned a 15% increase from the average of 103.4 million that viewed the 2022 Halftime show featuring Dr. Dre. 

Of Fox's 113 million audiences, an estimated 106 million watched the main broadcast on the network and a Spanish-language feed on Fox Deportes, with the rest bingeing it on NFL and Fox digital platforms. The ratings make the Super Bowl LVII the third-biggest TV program ever.

Despite the pregnant celeb's accomplishment, her performance was slammed by several critics, approximately 103, who complained to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The complaints alleged that the "Diamonds" singer's music and choreography were "highly sexualized and inappropriate for young viewers."

A California critic stressed that kids and adults should not be exposed to such a performance as they believed it was indecent and disrespectful. Similarly, another viewer from Utah whined, "This year, the halftime show was so indecent I had to turn off the TV because of the pornographic content."