Usher has revealed he almost quit his singing career to "pivot and become an actor"
The star, who is headlining the halftime performance at today's Super Bowl, admitted that a couple of years ago he wondered if singing was the right career trajectory for him.
"I hadn’t had a successful record as successful as (the 2004 album) ‘Confessions’, and there was this analysing (thought), like, ‘Man, should I continue to do this, or should I pivot and become an actor?’” he told The Hollywood Reporter.
The My Way singer had already appeared in a few movies, including The Faculty, Scary Movie 5, Hands Of Stone, Hustlers and Bad Hair.
However, an invitation to do a Las Vegas residency in 2021 cemented his love for music.
"I went to Las Vegas with no promise in a time when the world was not going anywhere because we were in a pandemic, and I had the hope that I could arouse people enough to come to Las Vegas and celebrate with me,” he said. “And it turned into, not only the most successful moments of Las Vegas history, but one of the most successful moments in my life."
The 45-year-old also spoke of the pride he felt when he was asked to perform at the Super Bowl.
"I've found my way into an incredible moment as a result of belief in myself and the fact that I didn’t let anything deter it, no matter what it looked like, no matter what the comparison to previous albums were,” he said. "The crescendo of that is the f**king Super Bowl. Man, I’m so happy and blessed.”
