Usher is set to release his new album COMING HOME this Friday (Feb. 9), followed by his performance at the Super Bowl LVIII halftime show. Amid the major milestones, Apple Music launched a teaser featuring a fictional scenario where the R&B legend went missing today (Feb. 7).
The video starred Ludacris, Lil Jon, and Taraji P. Henson, who appeared to be outside a Las Vegas hotel. They later informed Apple CEO Tim Cook of Usher’s disappearance during a FaceTime call. He responded by hanging up and texting the group, “You will find him!”
A follow-up advertisement is slated to come out soon. However, Ludacris and Lil Jon’s cameos in the initial promo suggested that they’ll be taking part in a live rendition of Usher’s “Yeah!” at the halftime show. Watch the clip below.
The trailer also coincided with Usher’s Billboard cover story, which was published this morning. During their conversation, he spoke about the upcoming performance and how his Las Vegas residency prepared him for the moment. “It’s more about anticipation than jitters,” the singer said. “I’m so ready for it to happen. I just want to sing louder than I’ve ever sang; dance harder than I’ve ever danced. I want to celebrate the 30 years of this career where I’m very fortunate to have made songs and moments with people that they will remember forever.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Usher seemingly revealed that he won’t be performing any songs from COMING HOME. He explained, “It will definitely be an event. There are special guests. And I’ve considered new songs. But you know, it’s 12 to 15 minutes. So it’s really hard to determine what moment matters more than others, especially with a new song. But there’s the dance, the wardrobe, the lighting, how long you stay in a song, the fact that the audience may sing along… It’s a lot. So, I’m trying my hardest not to overthink it.”
The LP spans 20 tracks with contributions from Latto, Pheelz, 21 Savage, Summer Walker, H.E.R., Jung Kook, and The-Dream. Fans can catch the album live during the “USHER: PAST PRESENT FUTURE Tour” starting in August.