The first thing I noticed when Kendrick Lamar squatted on top of the black Buick GNX at the start of the Super Bowl halftime show were his boot cut jeans spilling over his black-and-white high-tops.

But with the Eagles leading Kansas City 24-0, I thought it was just my fashion brain working overtime.

I was wrong.

Lamar's stonewashed Celine jeans — that fit snug through his quads and flared just above his ankles — are getting more love than Samuel L. Jackson's appearance as Uncle Sam (clever) and Serena Williams' Crip Walk to Lamar's now famous diss track about her ex-man Drake (Oh, the shade).

It's been a while since flare jeans have been the center of the fashion zeitgeist — most recently they were early aught must-haves. In those days, the jeans rode low and women paired them with heels and sparkly tops à la Britney Spears.

The last man I saw wear flare jeans well, I mean really well, was the Bee Gees' Barry Gibb. But flare jeans on men in hip-hop? That's a new thing. Lamar's choice of silhouette is the latest in androgyny in hip-hop that's been a part of the genre's fashion scene since Kanye performed in a kilt in his 2011 Rock the Throne tour.

It's too early to say if other men will catch on, and honestly, I'm not sure if they should. But Lamar's matter-of-fact take on the vintage style has us all talking (and shopping) and that means his stylists did their job.

The jeans were unexpectedly hot. But they weren't the only visual talking point. The 37-year-old rapper glided across a stage replete with symbolism in Nike Air DT Max '96 for the 13-minute performance. In some places the stage's pattern echoed the PlayStation 5 controllers and Netflix's Squid Game, a commentary on the rich exploiting the poor within this big American social experiment. There were also references to a prison yard, a reminder of the American prison industrial complex's impact on culture.

Wearing a $68,000 Rahminov brooch on his hat, Lamar screamed into the mic "The revolution will be televised, you picked the right time, but the wrong guy." His dancers formed into the American flag; noticeably there were no stars.

Lamar's leather jacket reminded me of an old school 8-Ball bombers. It read "GLORIA," a reference to his new song with SZA of the same name was emblazoned across the front. Many noticed "PGLang" across the back, the name of the entertainment firm Lamar and record producer David Free started.

Lamar's skill as an emcee lies in his simplicity, just like his outfit that at its core were simply a pair of jeans, a black T-shirt and a leather jacket; the most all American look ever.

But with Lamar there is always that detail, something that makes you nod your head and say, "Oh Snap!" In "Not Like Us," it's Lamar's deft use of A minor in the song's last bar, nodding to Drake's alleged proclivity to date younger women. Based on that line and others, Drake has sued Lamar and the label that released "Not Like Us" for defamation. That line was omitted during the Super Bowl performance and replaced with the sound of an explosion. But fans didn't hesitate to belt it out. And they definitely noticed the diamond-studded small A pendant hanging from his neck.

We see you and love you Jalen Hurts, but Lamar's subtle boot cut denim may have been the real MVP last night.

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