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Before\u00a0<\/span>Usher<\/a>\u00a0became the kind of musical superstar who is slated to take the\u00a0<\/span>Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show<\/a>\u00a0stage by storm on Feb. 11, he was an aspirational R&B star watching over another soon-to-be superstar when they were younger.<\/span><\/p>\n The “Good Good” singer was a guest on Shannon Sharpe’s\u00a0<\/span>Club Shay Shay<\/em><\/a>\u00a0YouTube show\u00a0and podcast, where he addressed the rumor that he used to be <\/span>Beyonc\u00e9<\/a>‘s nanny. As Usher explains, nanny would be an exaggeration of his role when they were younger; he was more like a “chaperone.”<\/span><\/p>\n “Daryl Simmons had a group by the name of The Dolls, and they came to Atlanta for the first time. This is before Destiny’s Child became Destiny’s Child,” he tells Sharpe. “I think I looked over them while they [were] doing something in the house; I had to watch over ’cause I was like the, you know, the authority ’cause I guess I was the teenager at the time.”<\/span><\/p>\n But no, Usher asserts that he wasn’t a nanny or a “manny.” “[I was] making certain that they didn’t, you know, get in no trouble in the house at the time.”<\/span><\/p>\n This isn’t the first time Usher has recalled his longtime connection to the former girl group member. During an appearance\u00a0on the UK radio show\u00a0<\/span>Capital Breakfast With Roman Kemp<\/em><\/a>\u00a0last year, he recalled his first encounter with\u00a0Beyonc\u00e9\u00a0when she was a child.<\/span><\/p>\n “Fun fact, I knew Beyonc\u00e9 when she was 12 years old, 11 years old,” he said at the time. “She used to be in a group by the name of The Dolls. I don’t know if I could consider myself their babysitter, but I had a time where I had to watch The Dolls.”<\/span><\/p>\n Speaking with Sharpe, he says that he “knew there was something very special about all of them,” noting that the members of Destiny’s Child — Beyonc\u00e9, Kelly Rowland, Michelle Williams,\u00a0LeToya Luckett and\u00a0LaTavia Roberson — have all gone on to have successful careers.\u00a0“They all thrive, even still to this day. When you see them and you see them together, they all thrive. They all are an incredible unit,” Usher adds with reverence for the iconic girl group.<\/span><\/p>\n Of course, the father of four couldn’t help but gush a bit about Beyonc\u00e9, who he has maintained a friendship with and collaborated with over the years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n “Beyonce had a talent and also to a brilliance and a brightness that was much different. It was actually Frank Gaton who helped me see it, he worked with me at the time as my choreographer, and then he started working with them. And he always told me, ‘Man, she’s really special, you need to keep your eye on her,'” Usher recalled. “[It’s] really great for my sister, to see that she’s done so amazing and continue to thrive and just get bigger and better.<\/span><\/p>\n Usher has always kept close to the\u00a0<\/span>Renaissance\u00a0<\/span><\/i>artist’s husband,\u00a0<\/span>JAY-Z<\/a>, whom the Atlanta-based\u00a0singer shares was the one to call him about headlining the Super Bowl halftime show.<\/span><\/p>\n The “My Way” singer was confirmed as the\u00a02024 Super Bowl halftime show headliner back in September 2023, and will perform inside Allegiant Stadium in Nevada on Feb. 11.<\/span><\/p>\n He admits he assumed JAY-Z was calling about their ongoing Spades competition until\u00a0<\/span>The Blueprint<\/span><\/em>\u00a0rapper revealed he was calling to give him his “Michael moment.”<\/span><\/p>\n “I was a bit in denial… but it was a beautiful moment,” he shares, smiling.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n JAY-Z’s Roc Nation\u00a0<\/span>partnered up with the NFL<\/a>\u00a0in 2019, signing on to produce their Super Bowl halftime shows. After helping spearhead performers like\u00a0<\/span>Jennifer Lopez and Shakira<\/a>\u00a0in 2020,\u00a0<\/span>The Weeknd<\/a>\u00a0in 2021,\u00a0<\/span>Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem<\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar<\/a>\u00a0in 2022, and\u00a0<\/span>Rihanna<\/a>\u00a0in 2023, the long-term partnership came together for this year’s big show with\u00a0Usher\u00a0as the headliner.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n “I think that he’s going to take his rightful place,” the iconic rapper and businessman <\/span>previously told ET of the choice<\/a> while attending the red carpet\u00a0<\/span>premiere of\u00a0The Book of Clarence<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0“He’s one of the greatest performers we’ve seen in our time and I think he’ll take his rightful place.”<\/span><\/p>\n