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Usher Addresses Alicia Keys Super Bowl Embrace

Author Autumn Hawkins
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - FEBRUARY 11: (L-R) Usher and Alicia Keys perform onstage during the Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show at Allegiant Stadium on February 11, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

One of the viral moments during the Super Bowl LVIII Halftime show came when Usher hugged Alicia Keys while they performed their 2004 hit song “My Boo.” As Keys got up from the piano and sang their song together, Usher embraced Keys from behind, where she was seen smiling and laughing. Usher spoke about the moment in a new interview.

“In no way anything done there should have been viewed as bad or in any way perverted or anything like that,” Usher said per Entertainment Tonight.

“No, it was literally about having fun because of a song that me and Alicia made many years ago,” Usher explained. He added that he meant “no disrespect to anybody.”

The moment garnered responses from fans and Swizz Beatz, Keys’ husband. Usher said that he spoke to Keys and the producer, and they are all on good terms despite the backlash from social media. “We’ve laughed about it… it’s all love.”

Swizz Beatz Responds To Usher and Alicia Keys Moment

Keys is married to producer Swizz Beatz, and while the internet seemed to make this viral moment negative, he just brushed it off.

“Y’all talking about the wrong d— thing !!! y’all don’t see that amazing dress covering the entire stadium,” Swizz Beatz wrote on Instagram with photos of his wife’s performance. “Tonight’s performance was nothing but amazing with 2 amazing Giants ! Congrats @usher and my love @aliciakeys that song is a classic. We don’t do negative vibes on this side we make history.”

Fans React To Usher and Alicia Keys’ Viral Moment

While Swizz Beatz didn’t think much of the moment, fans had a more aggressive response to Usher’s embrace.

“@USHER ENOUGH IS ENOUGH BRO!! U NEED TO APOLOGIZE TO SWISS,” he wrote on Instagram. “SHE MARRIED MY N—- I KNOW THAT WASNT PLANNED.”

“It’s wrong to hold someone’s wife life this. I don’t care if Swiss Beatz is okay with it,” another fan wrote.

“Don’t take it personal…I think u talking about the wrong d— thing [laughing emoji], but carry on tho,” a fan wrote in Swizz Beatz’s comment section.

Others had a similar reaction to Swizz Beatz.

“Usher put his arm around Alicia keys & the insecure brothers of America had a fit,” one fan wrote.

“I’m loving the jokes and memes, but some of y’all are REALLY mad about Usher and Alicia Keys?! Wow,” a fan responded on X (formerly known as Twitter).

Regardless of what the internet thinks, Usher, Beatz, and Keys are all good.

Usher: 7 Sexiest Instagram Posts

  • 7.

    Paris Fashion Week never looked this good. The Confessions creator attended the luxury designer event earlier this year and he did not come to play. Usher wore several outfits over the course of the week including a black and blue blazer, a tan leather suit, and even switched up his hair color to an orange during his time overseas.

  • 6.

    It’s the confidence for us. One of Usher’s greatest traits is that he knows how to put a fit on. He wore leather joggers with a loose oversized white tank and a matching jacket. But, it was truly the accessories that made the outfit even sexier. The white shoes, diamond chains, and oversized sunglasses brought the outfit to the next level.

  • 5.

    We love a shirtless moment. This photo is from his annual Lovers and Friends Festival which is hosted in Vegas every year. If Usher has more moments like this on stage next year, we are ready to pack our bags and head over to Sin City.

  • 4.

    There’s something about Usher on this motorcycle that does something for us! The Grammy-winner was the cover star for Zeit Magazin, which is a Germany-based publication. In this Instagram post, Usher also showed more shots from the photoshoot, such as a shirtless photo with him in dress pants, him in an all-black outfit standing next to a car, and a playful shot of him sticking his tongue out. (Don’t mind us just hopping on a flight to Germany to pick up a copy).

  • 3.

    Usher recreated his “Nice & Slow” single cover in honor of its 25th anniversary and we can’t tell the 1997 version from this 2022 photo. In both photos he is wearing his iconic “U” chain as he poses shirtless (thank you for that, Usher). And to answer his question in the caption, at 7 pm on the dot, Usher was in his “drop top, cruising the streets.”

  • 2.

    If one thing Usher still has its his “IT” factor. He performed one of his latest songs “GLU” at the Dreamville festival back in April when he so conveniently took off his shirt before performing. Let’s just say we have suddenly forgotten all the words.

  • 1.

    What is the sexiest photo on his Instagram? Easy: this shirtless photo of him standing in a warehouse. His glaring focus into the camera, the sun outlining his body, and now we are all so suddenly jealous of the towel hung on his neck. No caption needed *mic drop*.

Autumn Hawkins is the National Hip-Hop and R&B writer for Beasley Media, currently residing in New Jersey. Prior to working at Beasley Media, she was in broadcast news as an entertainment producer. When she's not impatiently waiting for Beyoncé to drop new music, she is reading, shopping, or planning a vacation.

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