Serena Williams says her crip walk during Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime performance was not directed at her ex Drake.

In a new interview with Time, Williams, 43, was asked about her intention behind her surprise appearance with Lamar, 37, as the rapper performed “Not Like Us” — his hit song that also serves as a Drake diss track.

Many viewers assumed the cameo from Williams, who briefly dated Drake around 2011, was intended to shade the “Hotline Bling” rapper, but Williams told Time it wasn’t.

“Absolutely not,” she said, adding that she would “never do that.”

Serena Williams performs during the Apple Music Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show at Caesars Superdome on February 09, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana.  Kevin Mazur/Getty

The tennis star said it was “sad that anyone would ever think that” she was mocking her ex. “I respect how they could. Obviously I can see how someone would think that, but absolutely not.”

Williams added, “I have never had negative feelings towards him. We’ve known him for so many years.”

After Lamar’s performance, the Federal Communications Commission received 125 complaints, according to Time, with one that accused Williams of “promoting gang affiliation” with her cameo.

Williams’ crip walk at the Super Bowl was a nod to the controversy that erupted in 2012 when she did the same moves after she beat Maria Sharapova to win at the London Olympics, held at Wimbledon. Critics similarly claimed at the time that crip walking is associated with gangs.

“First of all. It was just a dance,” she told reporters in 2012, per The Guardian. “I didn’t know that’s what it was called. Second, why are you asking me that? If anything, you should be trying to ask me questions to lift me up not bring such things … I’m done with that question,” she added.

Serena Williams during Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show.  FOX

Looking back on her Super Bowl cameo now, Williams said she’s not sure if she’s glad she did it. “I don’t know if I regret it or not,” she told Time. “I don’t know the answer to that.”

Also in her interview, Williams revealed that she took two shots of tequila before joining Lamar at the halftime show — which also saw appearances by SZA and Samuel L. Jackson.

Williams and Lamar are both from Compton, Calif. and have been longtime friends. Before his halftime performance, the rapper said that fans can expect “storytelling” with his show before bringing out Williams. “I think I’ve always been very open about storytelling through, through all my catalog and my history of music, and I’ve always had a passion about bringing that on whatever stage I’m on.”