Nine-time Grammy-winner Rihanna’s Super Bowl halftime show has been met with universal acclaim, and its audio was provided by an L-Acoustics K2 system deployed by ATK Audiotek, a Clair Global brand.
The show, which featured her biggest hits such as Umbrella, Work, Diamonds and Run This Town, was accompanied by a cast of around 100 dancers, some of whom were suspended in the air. Rihanna rode a platform flown from the rigging of Glendale, Arizona’s State Farm Stadium.
This year's halftime sound system differed significantly from previous years. In the past, temporary music systems were loaded onto wheeled carts, which could be quickly moved into position as part of the overall halftime production staging. This process involved scores of local volunteers pushing all of the staging elements together in a matter of minutes just after the referee’s halftime whistle.
However, due to the location of this year’s Super Bowl at State Farm Stadium, the halftime production had to account for the venue's retractable grass field, which required careful preparation.
State Farm Stadium had a pre-existing L-Acoustics system, consisting of 122 K2 and 32 K1-SB enclosures, installed in 2016. To prepare for this year's halftime show, ATK added six identical arrays, each comprising 13 K2 over four K1-SB, which were suspended from the venue's Brunel truss system.
Additionally, there were four sideline hangs of KS28 subs, two 10-enclosure arrays of L-Acoustics K2, and a single sub hang of eight KS28 at each end zone. ATK used L-Acoustics LA12X amplified controllers to power their system, while LA8 amplified controllers drove the house system.