​Serena Williams Addresses Whether Or Not Her Super Bowl Appearance Was Meant To Spite Drake

This past February, Serena Williams delivered her Super Bowl crip walk seen around the world. The brief appearance during Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show shocked viewers because of her tangled relationship with the fellow Compton native and his foe Drake, who is also her ex. Williams has finally addressed the lore behind her cameo, claiming it didn’t have anything to do with the Toronto rapper.

In an new TIME Magazine cover story, she provided some context about how the opportunity came together. The 23x Grand Slam champ said she and K. Dot have already been “trying to do something together for ages.” She was shocked the GNX rapper asked her to contribute, adding, “I’m not Taylor Swift, let’s be honest. I would have a better chance to be quarterback at the Super Bowl than dance.”

However, in addition to Serena’s Compton roots, her being a part of the show did make sense because Kendrick name-drops her in “Not Like Us” (“From Alondra down to Central, n**ga better not speak on Serena.”) Although Hip-Hop fans who were up-to-date on the rap beef assumed she joined to help Kendrick spite Drake, the mother of two says “absolutely not” when asked it if was shade towards him.

She continued, “I would never do that. And that was sad, that anyone would ever think that. I respect how they could. Obviously I can see how someone would think that. But absolutely not. I have never had negative feelings towards him. We’ve known him for so many years.”

Elsewhere in conversation, the retired tennis star revealed she took a couple of tequila shots to calm her pre-show nerves. Overall, she was proud to represent her hometown on the world’s biggest stage. “Who would have thought that a tennis player from Compton would be regarded as one of the best tennis players of all time?” she said. “It was just putting an exclamation on it.”

Although Williams can say her conscience is clear of any ulterior Drizzy-related motives, the DAMN. creator did not hide the fact that he was alluding to the Toronto hitmaker during his set. He referenced the ongoing UMG lawsuit and even looked towards the camera and said his name live on air. Read Serena Williams’ full TIME interview here and check out VIBE’s list of easter eggs from Kendrick’s Super Bowl halftime performance here.