“I’m just trying to pull myself together again”: Lil Wayne talks about the Super Bowl cancellation

For decades, Lil Wayne has presented himself to the world as an incomprehensible Martian and unstoppable money-maker, but he also has feelings.

The rapper dropped the facade on Instagram this week, saying that the NFL's choice of Kendrick Lamar to headline the halftime show at the upcoming Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans “broke” him.

“That hurt like hell,” Wayne said in a video posted on the social media site on Friday.

As the Crescent City's most famous rapper (and one of its most famous entertainers ever), Wayne was a foregone conclusion that he would perform at the 2025 Super Bowl.

“I blame myself for not being mentally prepared for disappointment and automatically putting myself in this position mentally,” he said. “I thought there was nothing better than this place on this stage, on this platform in my city.”

The “A Milli” rapper said he has spent the week since the NFL announced Lamar's performance recovering, saying he “had to get enough strength to [respond] without breaking.”

“I'm just trying to pull myself together again,” he said.

Nicki Minaj, who has been signed to Lil Wayne's label Young Money since 2008, immediately offered Wayne her support on social media.

“This too shall pass – but what you have done for hip hop culture will remain. It will stand the test of time,” Minaj wrote to Wayne on Instagram.

In his video, Wayne thanked the fans who had pledged their support after the halftime announcement.

“I will thank you for every voice, every opinion, all the care, all the love and support out there,” he said. “Your words became arms and held me up when I tried to fall behind.”