It was the most-watched Super Bowl halftime performance in history.
And, let’s be clear, it was AWESOME.
Usher took of his shirt, danced on roller skates and brought out numerous special guests at halftime of the big game on Sunday, February 11.
But many fans still took notice of who did not take to the stage in Las Vegas.
Where was Justin Bieber?!?
To be clear, he was in attendance at the Super Bowl, kissing wife Hailey in an attempt to squash rumors of their impending divorce.
But why didn’t he join good friend Usher, as had been speculated about for weeks?
“Things did [not] work out with Justin. I honor and recognize that my brother,” Usher simply said during a Friday appearance on The Breakfast Club.
Continued Usher:
“I think it might have been the fact that he was wanting to tell a different story right now, and I understand that.
“But we did have a brief conversation and we’re gonna do something else in the future. No love lost or anything like that.”
Usher went on to say he thinks Bieber will headline a Super Bowl halftime show of his own someday.
“It’s a lot of pressure for the Super Bowl, obviously for me to put together a show. So, I reached out to everybody,” Usher added, referencing Lil John, Alicia Keys and others who blew viewers away.
“Justin wasn’t the only person that I actually spoke to about doing the Super Bowl. But the moment was maybe for later.
“He’s gonna play the Super Bowl. I’ll go ahead and give you that for the future. I profess that over his life and over his time, because he has a career that deserves it…
“It just didn’t happen. That doesn’t mean it’s not going to.”
Lil John echoed his friend’s sentiment when speaking last week to TMZ.
“We wanted to put Justin in the show,” the rapper told this celebrity gossip site.
“So, we had the idea of doing a version of the show with Justin in it. But I think Justin wasn’t really ready to — that’s a lot of rehearsal, a lot of responsibility, a lot of time, and a lot of eyeballs.
“And I don’t know if he was ready to do all that.
“But he was definitely there supporting Usher, and they’re really good friends and he definitely was supporting him, regardless.”
Indeed, after the show, Bieber showed love for Usher on social media.
“LOVE YOU MY BROTHER. NOONE CAN SING AND DANCE THE WAY YOU DO,” he wrote on Instagran.
“LOVE YOU FROM THE DEPTHS OF MY HEART. BROUGHT THE ‘A’ TO THE WORLD, ONLY YOU BABYYYYY.”