Ah, yes, the Super Bowl, the 1 championship game that is so entertaining that nobody wants to take a food break or a bathroom break, in fear of missing something. Indeed, with the game itself, the halftime show and the commercials, all at their peak performance, the Super Bowl is so good that no one wants to leave their seat, in fear of missing out on something. I've already posted on my blog what I believe to be objective the top 4 Super Bowl games. Let's move on to the Super Bowl halftime show.
Before jumping into it, let's go over some grading criteria. I know that such grading criteria is less objective (at least I haven't discovered an objective method yet) and more subjective, so my grading criteria is my opinion on what makes a Super Bowl halftime good, and you may have a different opinion on what makes a Super Bowl halftime show good. Nevertheless, I figured it would be helpful to share some kind of grading criteria with you, so it doesn't look like I'm grading on a whim, and it does make some sense why one Super Bowl halftime show is higher than another. When it comes to grading Super Bowls, 2 factors stand out to me to make it entertaining, which I call the "S factors" because both factors start with the letter S. The 1st factor I call the "sing-along" factor. Songs should be recognizable to the general public, so recognizable that the audience can sing along with the songs performed. The more common knowledge the songs, the better. The 2nd factor I call the "spectacle" factor. Yeah, some Super Bowl halftime shows are outrageously outlandish that it's crazy, almost insane, but that's what makes it so good. The bigger, the wilder, the crazier the spectacle, the better. At minimum, the halftime show must look, sound and feel like the concert of the headlining musician/band.
Another thing I want to mention. Speaking of the letter S, for my grading, I will be utilizing the grading system that uses the S-rank. For those of you unfamiliar, the S-rank system began in Japan's education department, when their teachers wanted to recognize work that went above and beyond the requirements for an A. While the Japan's education department did not successfully pass on the S grade to the United States education department, Japanese video games did successfully pass on the S rank to North American video games. In the original Japanese context, the S probably meant subarashii (wonderful) and sugoi (great). In American English, the S stands for "Superior,” “Special,” or “Supreme.” Consider a couple examples. To stick with the theme of academics, a teacher might give all the students who answered all the exam questions correctly an A+, but the 1 student who got all the questions right in the fastest times earns an S grade. To switch our analogy from academics to athletics, if the Olympics continued to give gold medals to the champion of the sporting event, but it handed out platinum medals if the champion athlete won the event with a world record or an Olympic record, that would have the same equivalency of an S grade. Get it? Got it? Good! (Also, I will not be handing out + or - grades. Just straight letter grades).
One last thing to note. I will start with Super Bowl XXV, for a few reasons. First, Super Bowl halftime shows for the first 24 Super Bowls are hard to find, making it hard to grade them (a description just doesn't do the same justice). Second, for the first time in television history, television channels are actually trying to compete with the Super Bowl. As the Super Bowl became more and more popular within its first 24 years, television channels didn't even bother to compete, just throwing in some cheap filler. Now starting at Super Bowl XXV, television channels wanted to compete. At this point, the weak spot in the Super Bowl is the halftime show, which the NFL is just filling with marching bands. Therefore, if a TV channel wants to drive an audience away from the Super Bowl, the best time to do is during the Super Bowl halftime show is to show the best programming you got, so good that the newly-captured audience forgets the Super Bowl has a 2nd half. Thus, if the NFL wants to keep their audiences captivated, they really have to drive up the entertainment value of the Super Bowl halftime show, hence the Super Bowl ramping up the Super Bowl halftime show performance starting with Super Bowl XXV. Third, there's just so many nice round numbers here. The Super Bowl itself has a nice round number of XXV (25). Super Bowl XXV is the championship game for the 1990 NFL season, another nice round number.
Alright, without further ado, here is my subjective opinion and letter grade of every Super Bowl since Super Bowl XXV.
Super Bowl XXV - Small World: Tribute to 25 Years of the Super Bowl
For the Super Bowl's silver anniversary, the NFL hires Disney to produce the Super Bowl. Disney, being Disney, decided to make it a [mostly] kids Super Bowl halftime show. With that in mind, the opening number comes across as a little creepy. The opening number is a song telling quarterbacks to perform at their best to get whatever girl they want. As if playing football to get girls is not creepy enough, the creepy factor is enhanced by the fact it's being sung and danced to elementary-school-aged cheerleader girls. To make it even creepier, the girls then swarm Warren Moon as he enters the field, and Moon proceeds to hold a bunch. I don't know, perhaps nobody saw it this way or thought of it that way back in 1990. Maybe I am just a millennial judging 1990 by 2026 standards. I guess, in a way, it just did not age well. Going back to Warren, he's the only celebration of 25 years of the Super Bowl that I see. At this point in time, he's at the peak of his career, but again, the only celebration of 25 Super Bowls. In a milestone celebration of 25 years, I would have expected some more Super Bowl celebrities, like Bart Starr, Terry Bradshaw or Joe Montana, not Warren Moon, who never even went to a Super Bowl outsider this Super Bowl halftime show (to be fair, he did win 5 Grey Cups while in the CFL). Of course, this is a Disney Super Bowl halftime show, so we got so many Disney characters, like Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip, Dale and Roger Rabbit (Disney is still riding of the success of that movie 1 1/2 years later). The middle of the Super Bowl is interrupted by salute to the service men and women in the Persian Gulf War, including a word from then-President George H.W. Bush, Sr. This was almost a given. The United States of America finds themselves in another questionable war, but the government is determined that soldiers experiencing PTSD in a faraway land do not receive the same disrespect that they received coming home from Vietnam. The Grand Finale begins with It's A Small World After All, a song infamous for annoying people. The Grand Finale ends with the New Kids on the Block, which supposedly could be considered the headline of the show. They perform the song "Step By Step," their biggest hit. New Kids on the Block may be the saving grace of this halftime show. They are the biggest boy band of the 90's so far, and here they are, performing their biggest hit, on possibly 1 of the biggest stages to do so. The screams from all the girls on the field and in the stands are well deserved. Besides, the zany antics of Disney characters (especially that cover of MC Hammer's "U Can't Touch This"!) does not match well with a heartfelt tribute to soldiers putting their lives on the line for a questionable war.
Grade: D
Super Bowl XXVI - Winter Magic
Although Super Bowl XXVI is to determine the champion of the 1991 season, the Super Bowl takes place in 1992. The 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France are just 13 days away, so that's at the forefront of everybody's mind, especially including the Super Bowl halftime show. Therefore, it would only make sense (at least in the NFL's mind) to make this Super Bowl halftime show winter themed. Of course, the number 1 place to get winter-themed songs is Christmas songs. Therefore, "Winter Wonderland" and "Dance of Sugar Plum Fairy" are a part of opening act. These songs feel more like a month late for Christmas than winter songs. After that, there is some kind of rap/hip-hop song. Just listening to it becomes apparent that this rap/song was never written be actual rappers but by someone trying to figure out what the kids of the day thought sounded cool. It also doesn't help that the rap/song is about Frosty the Snowman, something else typically associated more with Christmas than just winter. Following that the University of Minnesota marching band takes the field, but this felt out of the date, even by that time. Next, Olympic figure skaters Brian Boitano and Dorothy Hamill take the field to perform. This would have been cool if the Super Bowl halftime show turned half, quarter, fifth or even tenth of the field into an ice-skating rink. Instead, the halftime show give them a single snowflake stage, no more than 5 yards in diameter. They are limited in what they can do, and it shows. Then, there is harmonious musical number covering "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen. Would have been cooler if Queen was actually there to perform their song. Finally, for the closing number, Gloria Estefan takes the field to perform 2 of her songs. You really can't call her a headliner; at most, just a grand finale. Every silver living I attempt to give this Super Bowl halftime just reminds me of all the dark clouds looming over it. I have no choice but to fail this Super Bowl halftime show. Well, most of America would agree with me, as somewhere between 11-22% of Super Bowl viewership left at halftime for a live episode of Living Color and never came back. Therefore, the NFL knew that they would have to crank the Super Bowl halftime show up to 11, and boy would they!
Grade: F
Super Bowl XXVII - Michael Jackson
Super Bowl XXVII begins with a bang. Michael Jackson appears on the jumbotron screen. He ascends upward off the screen to appear standing on top of the screen. Next, Jacksons appears on another jumbotron screen. There he too ascends upward off the screen to appear standing on top of the screen. Then, Michael is seen center stage at central field, right on top of the center field logo. He stands there absolutely still and absolutely silent, doing nothing for a whole 70 seconds, only to interrupt that by turning his head and standing still for another 20 seconds. He could have done that for the entire 12 minute 18 second duration of the Super Bowl halftime show, it still would have been better than the past 26 Super Bowl halftime shows. It's just who he is. He carries so much clout, that he could do nothing and still be entertaining. During his halftime show, Michael Jackson will sing a medley of "Jam," "Billie Jean," "Black or White," and "Heal the World," with bits of "Why You Wanna Trip on Me" and "Another Part of Me" mixed in there. Notice the careful choice of songs for the setlist. No "Smooth Criminal," a song about finding a dead body, no "Beat It," a song about gang fighting, and no "Thriller," a song with horror elements in it. As a result, the setlist stays family friendly. More importantly, notice the careful inclusion of "Black or White" and "Heal the World." Super Bowl XXVII took place in Pasadena, California, right outside of Los Angeles, California, which the past year had suffered under race riots. Maybe, just maybe, Michael Jackson's pleas for unity caused Los Angeles to have a better 1993 (and onward) than 1992. Jackson knew he had a platform, and he used it to his advantage. This halftime show alone proves why Michael Jackson deserved the title of King of Pop. The whole halftime show feels like a legitimate yet family-friendly Michael Jackson concert, and top of that, he uses his platform to communicate a powerful message. The audience responded accordingly. Michael Jackson's halftime show would stand uncontested as the most view halftime show for 32 years. It was the first time in history that the Super Bowl's 2nd half would be viewed more than its first half. Michael Jackson set the standard for what a Super Bowl halftime show should look like and what it needs to succeed.
Grade: S
Super Bowl XXVIII - Rockin' Country Sunday
As big of a cultural icon as Michael Jackson is, he is still a pop star, and you got to like (or at least tolerate) pop to like him and his halftime show. If Super Bowl XXVII is for the pop fans, then Super Bowl is for the country fans. The Super Bowl XXVIII halftime show is formally named "Rockin' Country Sunday," but I have nicknamed it "Country All-Stars." Indeed, it has all the biggest names in country as of 1994, including Clint Black, Tanya Tucker, Travis Tritt, Wynonna Judd and Naomi Judd. In fact, the grand finale is the mother and daughter doing a duet of "Love Can Build A Bridge." This Super Bowl halftime show is through and through country. Therefore, your feelings about this halftime comes down to your feelings about country. If you like country, you'll like this halftime show. If you dislike country, you'll dislike this halftime show. If you love country, you'll love this halftime show. If you hate country, you'll hate this halftime show. These all average out to a Super Bowl halftime show that's mediocre. Personally, the only emotion that his halftime show gave me was a chuckle when I saw the jumbotron flash "trouble" when Travis Tritt spelled out t-r-o-u-b-l-e, just in case he sang too fast.
Grade: C
Super Bowl XXIX - Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye
Disney World has a new Indiana Jones ride coming out at Disneyland in a few months. Since the Super Bowl is on ABC, Disney also is producing the Super Bowl halftime show. According to Disney, what a better way to promote the Indiana Jones ride with an Indiana Jones halftime show! The plot of the halftime show follows the standard Indiana Jones film plot, in which Indiana Jones has to retrieve an artifact from ancient temple and keep it out of the hands of the bad guys. Naturally, the artifact has to be the Lombardi Trophy (fake, of course). The live-action performance is less of a play and more of a musical. Therefore, it does have music. Singers include Patti LaBelle and Tonny Bennett. They sing familiar songs, but the highlight is the grand finale, in which the sing a duet of "Can You Feel The Love Tonight?", the hit single from Disney's The Lion King, which just came out 7 months ago (Disney keeping it relevant). Overall, this Super Bowl halftime show falls under the description of "good idea, poorly executed." I'm not objected to a musical as a halftime show, especially if it's relevant. It would have been cool if Super Bowl XLIX or Super Bowl 50 would have performed segments of Hamilton. This "musical" halftime show, however, misses the mark on many notes. First of all, Indiana Jones is not played by Harrison Ford. Yes, Harrison Ford is 52 years old at the time, but his last Indiana Jones movie was shot when he was 46 years old, and at the age of 52, he stars in Clear and Present Danger, another action movie. He can't be too old to perform the action scenes at a live halftime show. Tony Bennett, on the other hand, is too old. At the age of 68, he has limited movement, especially surrounded by all the action around him. Patti LaBelle is the same age as Harrison Ford, but I'm not sure she's relevant at the time. I wonder how this Super Bowl's viewership went from the 1st half to the 2nd half. I could not find any data, but I can't imagine it's good. At halftime, the 49ers are beating the Chargers 28 to 10, and the final score would be 49 to 26 in the 49ers' favor. On top of the lopsided score, the audience has to watch this halftime show. Once again, good idea, poorly executed. The good idea part prevents this Super Bowl halftime show from failing, but the poorly executed part prevents the halftime show from getting a good grade.
Grade: D
Super Bowl XXX - Diana Ross
This Super Bowl halftime also has its own name of "Take Me Higher: A Celebration of 30 Years of the Super Bowl." This name is a misnomer, for nothing about this Super Bowl halftime show celebrates the Super Bowl, or even the NFL for that matter. Heck, even the Super Bowl XXV halftime show at least gave us Warren Moon! This Super Bowl halftime show should have received the name "A Celebration of Motown" (Super Bowl XXXII will eventually get that title, but more on that later), for that is what it becomes. Only a third of her setlist is original Diana Ross songs. Another third of her songs are from The Supremes. Yes, I know her career began on The Supremes, but this isn't a reunion of The Supremes, like somebody else will do in the future (more on that later, too). These songs really miss out on the harmonization of 3 women singing. The last third consists of covers of other Motown songs, like "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" by Franky Lymon and the Teenagers, "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" by Marvin Gaye and "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor. Ross does just fine on these songs, but I would prefer the original singer singing them. The only spectacle I would call spectacular is the helicopter taking her away in the grand finale. The only other spectacle is the few costume changes and the insane number of dancers brought onto the field, but neither of these bring a huge wow factor. Diana attempts to use her platform to relay a powerful message, like Michael Jackson did, but she chooses "Follow your dreams." If a performer wants to use the Super Bowl halftime show as a platform for a message, choose something stronger than "Follow your dreams." My gosh, the woman started her career during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Surely, she could have used that for inspiration! The familiar songs to which anybody can sing along, the helicopter exit, and the feel of a Diana Ross concert prevents this halftime show from failing, but the lack of more original Diana Ross songs and the lack of a true celebration of the NFL hitting a milestone Super Bowl prevents this halftime show from getting a good grade.
Grade: D
Super Bowl XXXI - Blues Brothers (Bash)
The Blues Brothers are one of the Saturday Night Live skits that becomes their own thing, like Coneheads or McGruber. The Blues Brothers begin in 1978, but they arguably ended in 1982 with the death of co-founder John Belushi. I say arguably because The Blues Brothers got a reboot during the 1990s for the sequel movie Blues Brothers 2000, and The Blues Brother need promotion for said reboot and sequel, so why not the Super Bowl halftime show?! Substituting for the deceased John Belushi is his brother Jim Belushi. In addition to the original Dan Aykroyd and substitute Jim Belushi, The Blues Brothers added John Goodman. They do their hits "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" and "Soul Man," but you can only do so much with a fictional music duo. Therefore, the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show supplements The Blues Brothers with James Brown and ZZ Top. Both James Brown and ZZ Top each do 2 of their hits: "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" for James Brown and "Tush" and "Legs" for ZZ Top. For the grand finale, The Blues Brothers return for "Gimme Some Lovin'", a cover originally done by The Spencer Davis Group. I don't know, maybe it's just because I just watched, following Michael Jackson, an average Super Bowl halftime show, followed by 2 below average Super Bowl halftime shows, I would consider this an above average Super Bowl halftime show. Don't get me wrong. This Super Bowl halftime show by no means aced it. It would have been better for ZZ Top to headline a Super Bowl halftime show. Then, on top of "Tush" and "Legs," we could have head "Sharp Dressed Man," "Cheap Sunglasses" and "La Garange." At most, The Blues Brothers should have been a cameo. Still, The Blues Brothers, James Brown and ZZ Top mesh together. All songs absolutely are recognizable, definitely having that sing-along factor. I just would have preferred a switch-up of the headliner and the special guests.
Grade: B
Super Bowl XXXII - Salute to Motown's 40th Anniversary
2 years after Diana Ross's celebration of Motown, we get a true celebration of Motown. Formally named "Salute to Motown's 40th Anniversary, I have unofficially nicknamed it "Motown All-Stars." It's got the classic Motown artists, like The Temptations, Smokey Robinson, and Martha & the Vandellas. It's got modern Motown hits, like Boyz II Men. It's even got Queen Latifa, who herself is not Motown, but she's singing "Paper," her take on the Motown hit "I Heard It Through the Grapevine." On the positive side, most, if not all, of these songs are recognizable, absolutely hitting the "sing-along" mark. On the negative side, it still feels like it's lacking. See, here is where Diana Ross would have fit, with or without The Supremes. While all the songs are recognizable and able to sing along with, the older performers (not counting Boyz II Men and Queen Latifa) seems to struggle. Martha Reeves can't hit the same high notes she use to during the height of the Vandellas. I could have sworn at some points Smokey Robinson was lip syncing to his younger self. Even when they can hit the notes, classic Motown is slow, something somebody can slow dance to, which kind of lacks in the spectacle department for a Super Bowl halftime show. Not to mention the grand finale with the Grambling State University marching band, which makes the grand finale feel old fashion and out of date having a marching band in the halftime show. Ultimately, overall, forgive me for sounding like a broken record, but I will say the same thing for Motown All-Stars that I said for Country All-Stars. If you like Motown, you'll like this halftime show. If you dislike Motown, you'll dislike this halftime show. If you love Motown, you'll love this halftime show. If you hate Motown, you'll hate this halftime show. These all average out to a Super Bowl halftime show that's mediocre. Therefore, Motown All-Stars will receive the same grade as Country All-Stars.
Grade: C
Super Bowl XXXIII - Stevie Wonder & Gloria Estefan
Gloria Estefan gets the opportunity to redeem herself after the nightmare known as Super Bowl XXVI's Winter Magic halftime show with the Super Bowl XXXIII halftime show. In all fairness, though, Gloria Estefan's appearance in Super Bowl XXVI was less of a headliner and more a grand finale cameo. Here in Super Bowl XXXIII, however, Gloria Estefan equally shares co-headliner status with Stevie Wonder. Stevie Wonder takes the stage first, performing "Sir Duke," "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life" and "I Wish." Gloria Estefan follows in the 2nd half of the halftime show with "Oye!" and "Turn The Beat Around." As seen in so many of these Super Bowl halftime shows, when the halftime show contains multiple musical artists, the grand finale must have them come together for a duet. Here, Stevie Wonder and Gloria Estefan for a medley of 3 songs, 1 of which is a Gloria Estefan song and 2 of which are Stevie Wonder songs. The Super Bowl XXXIII halftime show does have the special guests of Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and Savion Glover, but they are so one and done that they barely qualify as special guests and feel more like cameos. Some songs have that sing-along aspect, but some are clearly missing. For example, I would have like to hear Stevie Wonder perform "Superstitious." The spectacle is limited to fireworks, lasers and lighted balloon balls, which barely qualify as spectacle. If anything, the biggest spectacle is how much mobility the blind Stevie Wonder has! It would seem as if the past few Super Bowl halftime shows have at least 1 outdated reference. For Super Bowl XXXIII, it's E.T. The Extra Terrestrial. Yes, the main character from a 1982 movie appears in a Super Bowl taking place in 1999, deciding the NFL champions for the 1998 season. Ultimately, the Super Bowl XXXIII halftime show celebrates the music genres of soul, salsa and swing. Just like with Super Bowl XXVIII's Rockin' Country Sunday and Super Bowl XXXII's Salute to Motown's 40th Anniversary, the enjoyment of the Super Bowl XXXIII will come down to the enjoyment of the music genres of soul, salsa and swing. Therefore, I have to give Super Bowl XXXIII's halftime show the same grade as Super Bowl XXVIII and Super Bowl XXIII. Hey, at least Gloria Estefan sang in Spanish without controversy.
Grade: C
Super Bowl XXXIV - Tapestry of Nations
ABC hosts another Super Bowl, so Disney gets to produce another Super Bowl halftime. Disney does as Disney does, so this Super Bowl halftime show is another giant Disney advertisement. This time, Disney advertises their Millennium Celebration at Disney World with the Tapestry of Nations, an Epcot parade. If I may share an anecdote, my childhood trip to Disney World was for the Millennium Celebration. I did get to see the Tapestry of Nations parade at Epcot. Let me tell you, they did successfully capture the parade inside the Georgia Dome. Mission accomplished on that front. I'm not here to see a parade, though. I'm here to watch a good football game, and I expect to see a spectacle to keep my attention while the players take a much-deserved break halfway through the game. Don't get me wrong, the music is good, but it's mainly instrumental. The Super Bowl XXXIV halftime has some strong pop star name power behind it, like Christina Aguilera, Enrique Iglesias and Toni Braxton. The only problem, however, is that they neither perform their biggest hits, nor do they sing any of Disney's biggest hits, like Patti LaBelle and Tony Bennet did for "Can You Feel The Love Tonight?" for Super Bowl XXIX. They sing original songs, original to the Tapestry of Nations parade. This doesn't really qualify as a sing-along at all. On top of that, it feels like a waste of money, for anybody could have sang these songs. Why bother to waste it on expensive pop stars, other than just name recognition? The only saving grace is that Phil Collins performs "Two Worlds," which is technically an original piece, but that too has Disney's grubby hands all over it, for Disney commissioned it for the soundtrack to their Tarzan movie, which came out 7 months earlier. The only thing I would qualify as spectacle is the enormous orchestra, the gigantic choir and the humungous puppets, but this is the norm for a parade, and again, the only thing spectacular about that is that they could fit it all into the Georgia Dome. Ultimately, the music is good, especially "Two Worlds" by Phil Collins, and that spares it from failing. The ever-present reminder that the halftime show is just a big commercial for Walt Disney World prevents it from getting a good grade. If somehow the viewer has forgotten this is a big Walt Disney World commercial, at the conclusion of the show, a voiceover announces, "That's just a taste of the entertainment you'll see at the Walt Disney World Millennium Celebration during the coming year," heavily implying "Come to Disney World and spend your money there!"
Grade: D
Super Bowl XXXV - Aerosmith & *NSYNC
This Super Bowl XXXV halftime show is formally titled "The Kings of Rock and Pop" and I have to say, the title is a bit of a misnomer. When I think of the King of Rock and the King of Pop, I think of Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson respectively. Elvis Presley, however, has been dead for 23 years at this point. Michael Jackson performed in the Super Bowl halftime show 8 years earlier, but after a series of a bunch of average and below-average Super Bowl halftime shows, with the exception of 1 slightly-above-average Blues Brothers (Bash) halftime show, inviting Michael Jackson back for an encore would feel welcomed. Instead, the Kings of Rock and the Kings of Pop mentioned here are Aerosmith and *NSYNC respectively. Calling *NSYNC the Kings of Pop is pushing it. Just in comparison to 90s boy bands alone, Backstreet Boys sold more albums nationally and had a bigger international fan base, Boyz II Men had more hit singles and won more Grammys, and even New Kids on the Block had more albums sold internationally. I'm starting to think Super Bowl XXXV couldn't get Backstreet Boys (since New Kids on the Block and Boyz II Men already performed in Super Bowl halftime shows), so they had to settle for *NSYNC (doubt it, considering MTV produced this halftime show). As for Aerosmith, if deducing the title down to "Kings of American Hard Rock," then yes, they absolutely deserve the title. In comparison to the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Led Zepplin, Pink Floyd and the Eagles, they definitely do not deserve the title of Kings of Rock. Enough about the title of this halftime show, though, let's get to the actual halftime show.
The Super Bowl XXXV halftime show begins with a pre-recorded sketch about the headlining bands warming up and practicing. If continuing the "kings" theme, then this sketch has the Kings of 90s Comedy, for it features Ben Stiller, Adam Sandler and Chris Rock. This is pure 90s comedy at its finest, and I am all for it. *NSYNC and Aerosmith alternate songs: "Bye, Bye, Bye" by *NSYNC, "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" by Aerosmith, "It's Gonna Be Me" by *NSYNC, "Jaded" by Aerosmith. *NSYNC has chosen the perfect setlist for the Super Bowl halftime show, picking their top 2 hits. For Aerosmith's choice of songs for its setlist, I have questions. They pick 2 modern hits. I get that Aerosmith agreed to do the Super Bowl halftime show to promote their latest album, so of course, they choose the single off the album to perform, but their presence alone should promote the album, aside from what songs they perform. I will give them kudos for having the insight to know that their modern hits will have lasting impact, for I still hear these songs in 2026, but most people go to an Aerosmith concert for their classic hits over their modern hits. Where is "Sweet Emotion"? It is probably 1 of their top 3 biggest hits! More importantly, where is "Dream On"? The NFL has reached 35 Super Bowls. At this Baltimore Ravens vs. New York Giants Super Bowl, only Ravens tackle Harry Swayne and Giants tackle Lomas Brown are older than the Super Bowl. Therefore, the rest of the players have grown up watching Super Bowl. Alongside playing football, they have dreamed of playing in the Super Bowl. They would have resonated with the line "Dream until your dream comes true." Come on, Miracle, the biopic about the 1980 U.S. hockey team, knew how to use it, so surely Aerosmith would have understood the powerful impact it would have on NFL players in the Super Bowl. You may have picked up that I left out mentioning their biggest hit: "Walk This Way." That's because Aerosmith does in fact perform "Walk This Way." As a matter of fact, it's the grand finale for this Super Bowl. As you may have picked up on already, grand finale have to have a duet between the 2 headliners or the headliner and the biggest guest star. That's right, "Walk This Way" is duet between Aerosmith and *NSYNC. Oh, it doesn't stop. More guest stars join in on singing, including Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige and Nelly. Imagine, if you will, you went to a concert of your favorite band. They have warm up act opening before them. The leader of this band takes the stage and says, "I know you are all here for [your favorite band], so we went to them before the concerts, asked them for their setlist, figured out their biggest hits that are not on the setlist, and we're going to perform for you!" Would you like that? No, probably not. You came to the concert to hear your favorite band perform your favorite songs, not some covers of your favorite songs. That's what the grand finale to the Super Bowl XXXV halftime show feels like. "Walk This Way" is Aerosmith's most famous song, so I want to hear them perform the song, not a partial cover of 90s pop stars, albeit an all-star cast of 90s pop stars. Heck, if Aerosmith really didn't mind a partial cover of their greatest hit, at least make Run-DMC the special guest!
Listen, I really want to give Aerosmith an S grade. They are my 2nd favorite secular rock band, only falling short to the Beatles (more on them later). The problem with dual headliners, or even headliners with strong special guests, is that it robs a/the headliner of performing more of its hits. If the Super Bowl XXXV had Aerosmith alone, I'm sure we would have heard "Dream On" and "Sweet Emotion," which in turn would justify 1 song reserved for the single from the latest album (maybe substitute out "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" with "Train Kept A-Rollin"). Instead, sharing the stage for the Super Bowl XXXV halftime show, especially sharing it too much for the grand finale of "Walk This Way," knocks this halftime show off of S grade contention. True, Aerosmith lacks classic hits, but it does have songs that will become modern hits, thanks to their brilliant foresight. *NSYNC definitely does come with their 2 biggest hits, although, again, *NSYNC as the sole headline might have given them the opportunity to perform more of their hits, like "I Want You Back" and "Tearing Up My Heart." Therefore, the Super Bowl XXXV halftime show absolutely has the sing-along factor. On one hand, the show does not have much for spectacle, outside the many sparklers. On the other hand, it does genuinely feel like you're watching an Aerosmith concert and *NSYNC concert simultaneously. The transitions are so smooth. Better yet, I love the transitions where Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler sings the last line of "It's Gonna Be Me," and *NSYNC sings the last line of "Jaded." It makes seamless transitions even more seamless! Thus, I will ultimately say this halftime show has spectacle, even though it's not the flashy and shiny spectacle. This show was a much needed breath of fresh air. The party-like atmosphere created by combining rock and pop reflect the optimism going into the new millennium, without the cheesiness that Disney used for the same message. At that time, it would have been the best Super Bowl halftime show since Michael Jackson and the 2nd best of all halftime shows.
Grade: A
Super Bowl XXXVI - U2
Nothing ruins the optimism of a new millennium more than a terrorist attack. The NFL has already been affected. They had to push their schedule back a whole week, pushing the Super Bowl back into February, making Super Bowl XXXVI the first February Super Bowl. It just so happens that New England Patriots, the team with most American and nationalistic name, has somehow become the underdog to enter the Super Bowl (SPOILER ALERT!: They win it). Therefore, the Super Bowl halftime show, always willing to become relevant to the times, becomes a tribute those killed in the September 11 terrorist attacks. The one-and-only performers are U2, an Irish classic rock band. U2 does something different here. Most of musical artists play a medley of their songs. U2 elects to perform the songs in their entirety. With limited time, playing songs in their entirety allows for only 3 songs: "It's a Beautiful Day," "MLK" and "Where the Streets Have No Name." Playing songs in their entirety means some major omissions from the setlist. Neither "Desire" nor "Vertigo" receive any airtime. Just like with Michael Jackson, however, U2 has carefully chosen their setlist for the times. "Beautiful Day" is a song about having hope and joy, despite life falling apart around you. "MLK" functions as half lullaby and half prayer, begging for Martin Luther King Jr.'s prayer of rest, peace and justice to come true. "Where The Streets Have No Name" also speaks of similar ideas of freedom and unity. What the setlist lacks in quantity, it makes up in quality. The Super Bowl XXXVI halftime doesn't really have spectacle, but it does feel like a U2 concert, down to the stage, which is taken from their most recent tour. The closest thing to a spectacle is at the grand finale, in which U2 lead singer Bono opens up his jacket, revealing the American flag. Of course, the crowd goes nuts. Using a mere 3 songs, U2 has crafted a halftime show that thoughtfully memorializes September 11 victims with neither anger nor nationalism nor racism nor jingoism nor xenophobia. It just pours out love on the victims and their families. On top of that, it never felt cheesy. I'm not sure if you know this, but America is overall hated around the world, so when the Irish classic rock band shows some thoughtful support, it means a lot, to both Americans and the rest of the world. Since this Super Bowl halftime show has is so reminiscent to the Michael Jackson Super Bowl show, I have to give it the same grade.
Grade: S
Super Bowl XXXVII - Shania Twain (and No Doubt) [with Sting]
AT&T billed the Super Bowl XXXVII halftime show as Shania Twain and No Doubt co-headlining, with Sting as a special guest. The balance of each musical artist's song does not really accurately reflect this. Shania comes out to perform first. She performs "Man! I Feel Like A Woman!" and "Up!", with the last one to promote her newest album, which shares the same name. Just like I said with Aerosmith, I applaud Shania for recognizing her most recent single had the staying power to become a hit. Next, No Doubt takes the stage. They just perform "Just A Girl." Then, Sting appears. Before moving on, just to give a little background information, The Police have disbanded over a decade ago, so now Sting performs solo, but as co-writer of most of The Police's songs, he has permission to perform them. He does so here, performing "Message in a Bottle." That's his only song. Furthermore, No Doubt is the band playing the instruments, and Gwen Stefani joins into to "duet" with Sting, but this lacks the polish of the grand finale of past Super Bowl halftime shows. If anything, it's reminiscent of "Walk This Way" grand finale of 2 years earlier. That's why I say the billing doesn't fit. It feels more like Shania Twain headlining, No Doubt guest starring, and Sting making a cameo.
See, here, we see the problem of guest stars. It either robs the headliner of performing more hit songs, or it makes the audience wish the guest stars were really the headliner, and now the guest stars feel robbed of more songs. For me, the most ideal scenario would have been if Sting could have somehow created a reunion of the Police for Super Bowl XXXVII, just like somebody else would do in the future (more on that later). Then we could heard any combination of "Don't Stand So Close To Me," "Every Breath You Take," "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic," "Message in a Bottle," "Synchroncity II," "Next To You," "So Lonely," and "Roxanne." If not possible to reunite the Police, then No Doubt should have become the headliner. On top of "Just A Girl," we could have heard "It's My Life," "Hey Baby," "Bathwater," "Sunday Morning," "Hella Good," "New," "Underneath It All," "Excuse Me Mr.," "Running," "Spiderwebs," "Simple Kind of Life," "Don't Speak," "Ex-Girlfriend" or "Trapped In A Box." Heck, even if sticking with Shania Twain, let her perform solo! Then in addition to "Man! I Feel Like A Woman!" and "Up!," the setlist could include "That Don't Impress Me Much" and "You're Still The One." Instead, we got a sample platter of each musical artists, and it left us wanting more from each musical artist.
Don't get me wrong, the Super Bowl XXXVII halftime show definitely has the sing-along factor. All of these songs are instantly recognizable, to the point that, if anybody wanted to, they could join in singing. The limit of 4 songs can be explained by the fact that each performer played the song in its entirety, like U2 did last Super Bowl halftime show. Still, the sample platter from each musician made the setlist feel lacking. This Super Bowl halftime show also lacks the spectacle factor. Even the stage itself was quite modest. The most we got to spectacle was when a lift uplifted Shania Twain high above the stage and fireworks shot off behind her. This plain and lackluster Super Bowl halftime show gets a decent. It's not bad, but it's not good either.
Grade: C
Super Bowl XXXVIII - Choose or Lose
The Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show is hosted by CBS, which is owned by parent company Viacom, so Viacom has the Super Bowl halftime produced by MTV, which is also owned by Viacom. This is the same MTV that brought us the Grade-A Aerosmith & *NSYNC halftime show, so nothing can go wrong, right? MTV has always played an influential role in getting young voters out to vote, so since this Super Bowl takes place on February 1, 2004, 9 months away from a presidential election, MTV decided to make the theme Choose or Lose. The Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show begins with a montage of celebrities, like Beyoncé, Chris Rock, Elijah Wood, Jennifer Lopez, Jay‑Z, John Elway, Julia Roberts, Muhammad Ali, Tom Cruise, Tony Hawk, all encouraging young adults to vote. To transition out of this montage to the actual Super Bowl halftime show, Jessica Simpson makes a cameo (seriously, just a cameo, no songs) to announce "Houston, Choose to Party!" The first musical performance comes from a joint marching band formed together by the University of Houston and Texas Southern University. In 2004, for the 2003 NFL season, marching bands feel archaic. Janet Jackson starts the celebrity musicians with "All For You." Next is "Bad Boy For Life" by P. Diddy. The halftime show transitions from P. Diddy to Nelly with the tune of "Mickey," made famous by Toni Basil, except it begins using "Hey Diddy" and ends with "Hey Nelly." Then Nelly performs his hit "Hot in Herre," which looks like P. Diddy is singing along, too. The halftime show bounces back to P. Diddy's "Mo Money Mo Problems." Following P. Diddy's encore is Kid Rock, with his 2 songs "Bawitdaba" and "Cowboy." Janet Jackson reappears for her encore "Rhythm Nation." Of course, the grand finale of a Super Bowl needs a duet, and for the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show, it's a duet between Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake with "Rock Your Body." Looking at this setlist, this song kind of sort of has the sing-along factor. Some songs are definitely recognizable, but I'm not sure how easy they are to sing along with, especially "Bawitdaba."
Alright, let's get the elephant in the room out of the way, for that's the biggest spectacle. Supposedly, the plan was, as Justin Timberlake sang the last line of "Rock Your Body," which goes, "Bet I'll have you naked (pronounced nekkid) by the end of this song," he was supposed to rip off the top part of Janet Jackson's leather bustier over her breast, revealing a plain cloth bra underwear. Instead, the bra part comes off, too, revealing Jackson's breast, adorned with a nipple shield. CBS cut away as fast as possible, and both CBS and MTV apologized right after, but the damage had already been done. The FCC would issue $3,500,000 in fines against parent company Viacom. The FCC would also put into law that all live television would require a 5 second delay, in order to make cutting away easier in the future. Because of this Super Bowl halftime show, phrases like "nip slip" and "wardrobe malfunction" would enter the common vocabulary of the culture. Worse yet, sexism reared its ugly head. Janet Jackson was pretty much cancelled before cancel culture was a thing. Radios refused to play her songs, and MTV refused to show her music videos. She was uninvited from the Grammy's that year, and she was cut from a movie. Meanwhile, Justin Timberlake faced little to no ramification. As a matter of fact, the NFL, which was very critical of the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show, invited him back as the headliner of the Super Bowl LII halftime show (albeit under a different NFL commissioner)! In fact, Timberlake does an encore performance of "Rock Your Body," stopping just short of the line "Bet I'll have you naked (pronounced nekkid) by the end of this song," halting it with a "Hold up! Stop!" His smile reveals he definitely know what's he referring to and what he's doing (more on that later). In interviews over the controversy, both Janet and Justin claim that neither CBS nor MTV nor the NFL knew anything about the plan. As a matter of fact, their idea did not even come about until the final dress rehearsal. Despite their claims, I have my suspicions. I don't think they intended to purposely expose Jackson's breast, but the fact Janet chose to wear a nipple shield may reveal that they knew the risk. Even outside the controversy, this halftime show just feels oversexualized. The chorus of "Hot in Herre" by Nelly is about using the rising hot temperature as an excuse to strip, as demonstrated on stage by the dancers dressed as cheerleaders. Both of Kid Rock's songs objectify women (Also, apparently, some military members and other conservatives criticized Kid Rock for wearing the American flag like a poncho, but I guess that goes out the door when an alternative for Puerto Rican rapping and singing in Spanish). Even though we didn't know it at the time, P. Diddy is living out what these songs sing about with his sex trafficking, sexual assaults and other sexual misconduct. I have complimented past Super Bowls for keeping the halftime show family friendly, despite the musician's library of content meant for only adults, but MTV doesn't seem to care about that, even outside the controversy.
I hesitate to give the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show an F because the only other halftime show I gave an F is Super Bowl XXVI's Winter Magic. Comparing these 2 is like comparing apples to oranges, for they come from 2 different stylistic approaches to Super Bowl halftime shows, and their bad parts are negatives in different ways. While these 2 Super Bowl halftime shows may be bad in different ways, bad is still bad, and a negative is still a negative. Besides the introduction and conclusion, the theme of "Choose or Lose" gets lost in the halftime show (unless you really want to count Kid Rock wearing the American flag). Jessica Simpson in her life right now is famous for being famous, and this halftime show giving her a cameo is just further reinforcing famous for being famous, and that should never be reinforced. A marching band beginning the musical performances feels out of date for a 2004 halftime show for a game determining the 2003 season champion. The setlist does not mesh together the array of musical artists, as the headliners and special guests of past Super Bowls have done. In fact, it would seem as if MTV just brought together the hottest names, but that doesn't even check out, for many of these musicians had their heyday in the 1990s, not the early 2000s decade. To make it even more apparent that these musical performers don't mix well, the transitions feel abrupt, especially that cover (more like parody or spoof) of the 80's hit "Mickey." All of these performers contribute to the oversexualization of the halftime show, making it one of the least family-friendly halftime shows in NFL history. All the positives that I can think of, like the plethora of famous celebrities and the recognizable hits, are overshadowed by those bad negatives, especially the nip-slip/wardrobe-malfunction controversy, which is all anybody remembers anyway. I have to fail this halftime show. It's such a shame because Super Bowl XXXVIII is 1 of the top 4 objectively best games. If it makes you feel better, give Super Bowl XXXVIII's Choose or Lose an F+, and give Super Bowl XXVI's Winter Magic an F-. Otherwise... Choose or Lose? More like, Choose to Lose!
Grade: F
Super Bowl XXIX - Paul McCarnety
Thanks to Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake causing controversy at the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show, the NFL decided to play it safe for the next few years. The NFL "plays it safe" by choosing musical artists big in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, who are too old for any wild and crazy antics. As a result, Super Bowl viewers will watch a series of halftime shows that will appeal to the Baby Boomers and Gen X. Well, you can't get any older than former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney! True, back in their heyday during the 1960s, the Beatles would not have felt safe, with the way they made girls scream and faint, but by 2005, Beatles songs now appear among children's songs, even baby songs, so Beatles Paul McCartney feels safe and clean. McCartney has a setlist of 4 songs. The limited setlist can be explained by the fact Paul performs each song in its entirety. I excused it for U2, I excused it for Shania Twain (and No Doubt) [with Sting], so of course I have to excuse it for Sir Paul McCartney! Since McCartney wrote or co-wrote most, if not all, Beatles songs, he has access to most, if not all, the Beatles catalog. Indeed, 3 of the 4 songs Paul performs are Beatles songs: "Drive My Car," "Get Back" and "Hey Jude." The 1 song that is not a Beatles song is "Live and Let Die," probably his most famous Wings song. This setlist absolutely has the sing-along factor. You can hear the audience sing along with all these songs, especially with "Hey Jude" as the grand finale. The show does not have any wild and crazy spectacle, getting no crazier than fireworks. Come to think of it, though, the Beatles were never a rock band known for spectacle. They would just perform their music, and their fans went insane over it. Therefore, this feels like a Beatles concert, or as close to a Beatles concert one would expect in 2005 for a game determining the 2004 season champions. I don't expect Paul McCartney to host a Beatles reunion, as I would have liked with past performances. John Lennon has been deceased for over 24 years, and George Harrison died just a few years ago in 2001. It would have been nice, though, if he would have told his drummer to take the day off and let Ringo Starr fill in the spot. Speaking of which, no guest stars and no cameos allow for a full focus on McCartney and his songs. It probably also helps the NFL control the cleanliness of the show. The Super Bowl XXIX halftime show may not have the same high energy has past Super Bowl halftime shows, but come, it's freakin' Paul McCartney from the freakin' Beatles. If Michael Jackson has enough clout to stand perfectly still for 70 to 90 seconds and still wild and crazy cheers from fans, then former Beatle Paul McCartney has enough clout to just stand there and play bass or sit there and play piano, singing along with both, and still have a super special halftime show.
Grade: S
Super Bowl XL - The Rolling Stones
Continuing the theme of Super Bowl halftime shows that appeal to Baby Boomers, since we've already had our basic Beatle, now it's time for our standard Stones. At least the Rolling Stones has 3 original members alive and active together in the band, compared to the Beatles, which has just 2 surviving members, making music separately. The NFL has reached their 40th Super Bowl season, and they want to celebrate it, not just at the Super Bowl, but throughout the year as well. The celebration began at the NFL kickoff, which also had the Rolling Stones performing 2 songs: "Start Me Up" and "Rough Justice." Now to make the 40th Super Bowl season come full circle to a completion, the Rolling Stones came back for the Super Bowl halftime show. Clearly, the NFL wanted to go the clean and safe route again, but the NFL still faced controversy. To begin with, host city Detroit felt offended and upset that the NFL did not choose something more local than a British band. The NFL had a couple conflicts with the band themselves, too. The band wanted to perform all songs from their newest album. After all, they in part agreed to help the NFL celebrate 40 Super Bowl seasons in order to promote their latest album. The NFL, however, wanted only their classic hits. The two would compromise with 2 classic hits and the single from their newest album. To the dismay of the NFL, however, the new single and 1 of the classic hits The Rolling Stones chose had sexually explicit lyrics. The NFL wanted new songs chosen, but The Rolling Stone insisted these were they songs they had chosen, and they would not change them for anybody. Again, the two compromised that The Rolling Stones would perform those songs, but the NFL would censor the songs with the help the FCC's 5 second delay.
The setlist of 3 ended up being "Start Me Up," "Rough Justice" and "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction." Considering that the Rolling Stones performed "Start Me Up" and "Rough Justice" at the NFL kickoff concert, this halftime show feels more like an encore performance of the kickoff show, with which within itself has an encore of "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction." Again, just like I said with U2, Shania Twain (and No Doubt) [with Sting] and Paul McCartney, the fact that they play the songs in the entirety excuses the low amount of songs, although 3 songs for The Rolling Stones does seem very low, in comparison to the 4 songs of Paul McCartney and Shania Twain (and No Doubt) [with Sting]. Then again, U2 had only 2 songs, and the middle was actually only part of a song. Forgive me for sounding like a corporate shill, but I agree with the NFL on this one. Nobody is excited to hear "Rough Justice" except The Rolling Stones, especially Mick Jagger. Seriously, you can hear the crowd sing along with the classic hits before and after it, but you don't hear the same singing along for "Rough Justice," and I would even saw the crowd's energy dies down a bit. It's funny that after "Rough Justice," Jagger introduces "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" by saying "Here's one we could have done at Super Bowl I." It's like he's taking 1 last jab at the NFL saying, "These songs are old and out-of-date. Let us play our new songs!" Sorry, Mick, nobody is siding with you on this one. Everybody is siding with the NFL. Personally, I can't help but think of all the songs that could have gone in its place. "Can't You Hear Me Knockin'," "Paint It Black," "Sympathy for the Devil," "Honky Tonk Women," "Stray Cat Blues," "Under My Thumb," "Gimme Shelter," "Beast of Burden" or "Brown Sugar" would have all been welcomed substitutes. Still, "Rough Justice" sounds like a Rolling Stones song, so it fits right in the middle with the other 2 songs.
As far as spectacle, I'm honestly surprised that the NFL considered The Rolling Stones as going the safe route. The Rolling Stones had a history of throwing concerts that were dangerous, sexual and unpredictable. They were never as calm as the Beatles. My best guess is that the NFL figured that The Rolling Stones members were too old and tired to perform those antics. If so, for the most part, they were right. The most charismatic was Mick Jagger, but even that is limited to prancing around the stage. The least charismatic was drummer Charlie Watts. I'm not picking on him. I've seen this a lot with older members of classic rock bands. Like so many of them, playing drums is just Charlie's job. He has no enthusiasm at all, to the point he's very rigid in his drumming. Another thing worth noting as spectacle is how the stage is the iconic lips and tongue logo, and the tongue is a cloth that rolls up into the mouth. That was cool. While not the most enthusiastic or charismatic performance, this is what I would except to see at a concert of a classic rock band with all its members in their 60s.
When all is said and done, The Rolling Stone has enough clout to justify all their shortcomings, from the short setlist to the less than charismatic and enthusiastic spectacle. All in all, The Rolling Stones perform 2 of their classic hits, which are easily recognizable and easy to sing along with, and even their newest single sounds very much like a Rolling Stones song. While the spectacle piece does not have any wild and crazy antics, it very much looks and feel like what I would expect at a Rolling Stones concert, especially with all their members in their 60s. Even though Mick Jagger's line "Here's one we could have done at Super Bowl I" meant to ridicule the NFL for demanding the older songs over their newer songs, it has the opposite effect, which in turn makes The Rolling Stones the perfect band for the NFL celebrating a milestone Super Bowl season. I'm obligated to give them the highest grade.
Grade: S
Super Bowl XLI - Prince
After 2 years of playing it safe with bands that would appeal to Baby Boomers, the NFL gets a little riskier with bands that Gen X would like. The first of these artists would be Prince. Prince performs 8 songs. Of these 8 songs, 4 of them are covers: "We Will Rock You" by Queen, "Proud Mary" by Creedance Clearwater Revival, "All Along the Watchtower" by Bob Dylan, and "Best of You" by the Foo Fighters. I thought it went without saying, but I guess have to say it. Covers, in a way, shouldn't really count. Not once did I think Prince's cover was in any way superior to the original. If anything, I wished the original artist was there performing the song. That's when guest stars make sense! The only guest star for his Super Bowl halftime show is the Florida A&M marching again. I will say it again: marching bands look archaic in any Super Bowl halftime show past Super Bowl XXV. Prince kind of sort of has spectacle. The stage looks like his logo. He also manages to perform well in a downpour of rain, which makes his grand finale of "Purple Rain" rain super surreal, but then again, Prince did not cause the rain, so he only gets some credit for that. Probably the most impressive part of his halftime show is that he shows off what he can do with a guitar through his several solos, which even left me impressed at his guitar skills. Prince loses points for a setlist half taken up by covers instead of featuring his own songs, but he gains points back for his impressive guitar playing and making his halftime show really look and feel like a Prince concert.
Grade: B
Super Bowl XLII - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Continuing the theme of bands that appeal to Gen X, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers takes the stage for Super Bowl XLII. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers agreed to do to promote their 2008 world tour. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers perform 4 songs: "American Girl," "I Won't Back Down," "Free Fallin'" and "Runnin' Down A Dream." Once again, the limit of 4 songs on the setlist can be explained by the fact they perform all 4 songs in their entirety. More importantly, the band picked 4 classic hits, and it shows. You can hear the crowd sing along with "I Won't Back Down." You can hear the audience get excited by merely hearing the intro to "Free Fallin'". Everybody sings along to the "woohoo" outro in "Runnin' Down A Dream." This Super Bowl halftime show meets the bare minimum requirement for spectacle. It looks and feels like a Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers concert, down to the fact that Tom Petty thanks the crowd after every song. Outside that, the most spectacle happens at the beginning, when it looks like an arrow-shaped-guitar stage strikes through the heart stage, with fireworks to accompany it. Like I said, bare minimum requirements for spectacle in a halftime that has the sing-along aspect carrying the weight. While not as big as The Beatles or The Rolling Stones, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers are still up there, deserving the highest grade.
Grade: S
Super Bowl XLIII - Bruce Springstein and the E Street Band
Still continuing the theme of bands that appeal to Gen X, next up are Bruce Springstein and the E Street Band. Listen, I really want to give Bruce Springsteing and the E Street Band the S grade. I really do. There's a problem with that, though. See, there's this joke that goes "I went to a concert, and halfway through the setlist, there was an intermission, and a football game broke out!" The joke is supposed to convey the ridiculousness of pausing the most important football game of the year halfway through to have a mini concert. Nevertheless, we like the entertainment while the players take a well-earned break, so we play along with the absurdity. Bruce Springstein is also aware of the absurdity, and he too plays along with it...too much. In his intro, he talks directly the audience watching on their television at home, commanding them to put down the chicken fingers and guacamole dip. In his conclusion, he tells his guitarist that they might go into overtime and delay the game, evening bringing on stage a fake referee to flag him. Apparently, Super Bowl halftime shows do have a 4th wall, and Springstein has somehow managed to break it. In light of Bruce breaking the 4th wall of the halftime show, all his antics on stages feel like more buying into the absurdity and more breaking the 4th wall, ruining the spectacle. It's a shame, too, for the musical performance really carries it. The setlist is somewhere between fine and OK. It's another short 4 songs. This time, however, it's a little less excusable and a little more inexcusable because all 4 songs have a verse cut to make them fit. If cutting down the songs, cut them down even further to fit in more songs! "Born to Run" and "Glory Days" are welcomed inclusions, but not so much for "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" and "Working on a Dream." Personally, I would have liked the inclusion of everyone's favorite protest songs mistaken as a patriotic song "Born in the USA." No guest stars outside every rock band's favorite brass band when wanting to include horns The Miami Horns. Thank goodness, for The Miami Horns adds to Bruce Springstein and the E Street Band, not take away from it, as so many guest stars do. Don't get me wrong, it's a good Super Bowl halftime show, but I wouldn't call it special, super or spectacular. It really does lose points due to Bruce's 4th wall breaking antics.
Grade: B
Super Bowl XLIV - The Who
For one last time to appease Gen X, the Super Bowl XLIV halftime show has The Who. No, seriously, The Who had to be chosen solely for the reason of appeasing Gen X, for The Who last toured 28 years ago in 1982, and they released their most recent album 4 years earlier in 2006. The setlist consists of a medley of 5 songs: "Pinball Wizard," "Baby O'Reily," "Who Are You," "See Me, Feel Me" and "Won't Get Fooled Again." Doing a medley, instead of performing the songs in full, like so many of the classic rock acts before them, may have come out of necessity. The Who songs are notorious for crossing the 5-minute mark in length, especially "Won't Get Fooled Again." If The Who played songs in their entirety, they could have only performed 2 songs. A medley makes sense, and it's a strong medley at that. Not only can you hear the crowd sing along, you can hear them get excited when they recognize the intro to their favorite songs. The only weak point in the medley is "See Me, Feel Me," which is so short, I wonder if it was meant to merely serve as a transition. If not, better choices would have been selections "I Can See For Miles," "Eminence Front," "My Generation," "Behind Blue Eyes" or "The Seeker." Other than that weak point, it really is a solid setlist. The setlist is so solid, Harmonix's Rock Band would eventually turn the medley into DLC! As for spectacle, once again, I will say that the spectacle is seeing a famous classic rock band alive and kicking. The spectacle reaches the bare minimum of looking and feeling like what The Who would look like playing a concert in the 21st century. The show has the usual light show and fireworks. The most impressive spectacle is the modular stage, featuring a 26‑piece main platform encircled by 14 radial video modules that form an outer ring. The video part of the stage will show everything from lyrics to The Who logo. Pete Townshed still has it, doing arm circles when strumming. Replacing Keith Moon (and all the drummers following him is) Zak Starkey, the son of Beatles drummer Ring Starr and godson to Keith Moon himself, which I guess can be considered spectacle. Once again, with so many of these classic rock bands performing at the Super Bowl halftime, the sing-along factor does most of the carrying, and the spectacle is reduced down to looking and feeling like going to the band's concert apart from the Super Bowl. The Who definitely hit both marks, so I am obliged to give them the highest grade.
Grade: S
Super Bowl XLV - The Black Eyed Peas
Super Bowl XLV takes place on February 6, 2011, to determine the champion of the 2010 NFL season. It's the 2010s. The target audience is no longer neither the Baby Boomers nor Gen X. The target demographic is now the Millennials. Old classic rock bands will not appeal to Millennials. Only the modern will appease the Millennials. It's been 7 years since Nipplegate, so the NFL will chance doing something riskier. To open this new phase of Super Bowl halftime shows, The Black Eyes Peas take the stage for the Super Bowl XLV halftime show. The Black Eyed Peas a have strong setlist, containing many of their big hits, like "I Got A Feeling," "Boom Boom Pow," "Pump It," "Let's Get It Started," "Where is the Love?" and "The Time (Dirty Bit)." In fact, I appreciate the last song also had some of the first song reprised in it, making the whole show feel like it is coming full circle. The weak points of the setlist is the special guests. The one special guest is Slash. Let me clarify that it is just Slash, not Guns N' Roses. He plays the famous guitar part of "Sweet Child O' Mine," and Fergie sings along. At no point did I feel like this cover was better, or even equal to, the original. If anything, it made me wish this was a Guns N' Roses halftime show! Come on, Fergie, if you really wanted a solo, do "Fergalicious" or "Glamorous." The other special guest is Usher, who performs "O.M.G." This special guest is a little bit more excusable, as this is an Usher song featuring will.i.a.m. On the flip side, once again, if will.i.am wanted to do a solo, he should have picked something from his solo career. Then again, even better, fill both of those spots with more Black Eyed Peas songs, like "Imma Be" and "My Humps" (although that one might be too sexual for the NFL)! As for the spectacle, the stage comes together to form the word love, which is kind of cool. It forms during their performance of "Where Is The Love?", a song about replacing fear, hate, injustice, racism, terrorism and war with compassion, love, unity and understanding. You can tell this is supposed to be their message piece. It hits harder than Diana Ross's "follow your dreams" but not as hard as Michael Jackson's plea to stop the race riots. The costumes are pretty neat. Each member of the band got to create their own costume, yet they made sure they went together well. Although I will admit that the LED lights inserted in their costumes, as well as the dancers, are really a reflection of the 2010s decade, and they will not age well into the 2020s decade. I guess you have to add to the spectacle that the Black Eyed Peas are actually singing aloud, not lip syncing to a previous recording, a rarity in Super Bowl shows by now. Of course, that comes with its own headaches. See, the Black Eyed Peas are famous for adding auto-tune to their songs, although they do not rely on it, as so many of their contemporaries do. Auto-tune sounds better when mixed in a studio. It does not sound as good when trying to use it live. It would also seem as if the sound guy missed his mark a couple times. Overall, the Super Bowl XLV halftime looks, sounds and feels like a Black Eyed Peas concert, fulfilling the minimum required for spectacle, but it does nothing extravagant worth remembering. Therefore, the Super Bowl XLV halftime show featuring the Black Eyed Peas is above average or better than average, but the Black Eyed Peas nowhere near aced it.
Grade: B
Super Bowl XLVI - Madonna
Despite the fact I didn't mind The Black Eyed Pease performing in Super Bowl XLV, The Black Eyed Peas did not get good ratings and reviews from their halftime show. The NFL must have feared that they swung the pendulum too far away from the old and aging classic rock bands. Therefore, the NFL compromises with a middle-aged 80s pop star Madonna. The Super Bowl XLVI halftime begins with Roman gladiators parading out Maddona, who is dressed like an Egyptian queen. I think she's going for a Cleopatra look. She performs her hit song "Vogue" in front of LCD screens, which display Vogue magazine covers, which themselves animate. LMFAO joins her on stage for her song "Magic," followed by a remix of their 2 hit songs "Party Rock Anthem" and "Sexy and I Know It." LMFAO exit, and Nicki Minaj & MIA enter to perform "Give Me All Your Luvin." Nicki Minaj & MIA exit and Ceelo Green enters with a drumline comprised of 3 local high school marching bands. Together they perform a remix of "Open Your Heart" and "Express Yourself." Madonna closes her hit "Like A Prayer," which not only also features Ceelo Green, but it also features a choir of 200 local Indianapolis singers. All of this takes a little under 13 minutes.
When conversing about the setlist, the discussion of the special guests will naturally come up, so let's talk about the special guests, going from making the most sense to making the least sense. The special guest that makes the most sense is Nicki Minaj and MIA. The master recording of the song "Give Me All Your Luvin" originally features Nicki Minaj and MIA. Therefore, they are simply reuniting to perform this song live, which makes a lot of sense. In the middle, we have LMFAO. The remix of their 2 hit songs "Party Rock Anthem" and "Sexy and I Know It" smoothly transitions out of "Magic," and Madonna does perform well alongside them. Still, these are not Madonna songs. These songs would not have been missed if not performed in this Madonna Super Bowl halftime show, and if anything, they are getting in the way of performing more Madonna songs. I wonder if they were brought on just to appeal to a Millennial audience. The special guest that makes the least sense is Ceelo Green. None of Madonna songs he appears for features Ceelo Green in the master recording. Neither does Ceelo Green perform one of his hits, like "Forget You." He's just there to sing along with Madonna. I think he was brought on just to appease the Millennial audience. Overall, though, Madonna has a seriously solid setlist. She opens with her hit "Vogue" and closes with her hit "Like A Prayer." All her songs in between span over the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s decade, proving that, while her fame came from the 80s, she still makes music relevant to the music tastes at the time, yet still sound and feel like Madonna songs. At the same time, however this setlist has some seriously glaring absences. Where is "Like A Virgin"? Where is "Material Girl"? Where is "Holiday"? These have got to be Madonna's top 3 greatest hits, and yet she omitted them all from the setlist. Madonna loses some serious points from her setlist choice.
What Madonna loses in her setlist, she gains back in her spectacle. Her Cleopatra-like entry just screams Madonna. The screens turning into animated Vogue magazine covers and a radio light up the stage. Madonna has teamed up for Cirque du Soleil for the choreography, and it shows, especially in that tight rope walker bouncing on the tight rope. The choir of 200 sounds like Madonna found the best choir in the world, yet they are local. My only complaint is the drum line. I don't care how cool you make it look, marching bands still look archaic for any Super Bowl halftime show in the 21st century. Although, I will admit, Ceelo Green looks funny dressed like a drum major, so I guess that could be considered a humor element. As the saying goes, Madonna understood the assignment.
If Madonna, the queen of pop, would have performed in Super Bowl XXVIII, to follow up Michael Jackson, the king of pop, performing in Super Bowl XXVII, Madonna would have received a perfect S grade. Of course, the setlist and special guests would have looked different. Then again, maybe that's the point I'm making. Despite the fact that Madonna can still perform with all the spectacle at age 53, she's still dependent on relevancy of more recent pop stars, like LMFAO, Nicki Minaj, MIA and Ceelo Green. The modern-day pop stars distract from what made her famous in the 1980s, as evident in the absences from her setlist. Madonna could have carried herself alone in the Super Bowl halftime show, as so many of the classic rock acts before her did, but fear of become irrelevant to the Millennial audience forced her to rely on more relevant pop stars. Despite all these flaws, Madonna gets a perfect score on spectacle, and she overall has a good setlist. While I can't give Madonna the highest grade, I can easily give her the next highest grade.
Grade: A
Super Bowl XLVII - Beyonce
Returning to an artist more relevant to Millennials, Beyonce takes the stage at the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show. Before Beyonce takes the stage, a voiceover plays over the loudspeakers of Vince Lombardi talking about excellent, which is a nice way to tie the musical performance of the halftime show with the rest of the game. The first 5 songs are "Run the World (Girls)," "Love on Top," "Crazy in Love," "End of Time" and "Baby Boy." Personally the only one I recognize is "Crazy in Love." Then Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams shoot up on stage Michael-Jackson-style to reunite Destiny's Child for the first time in about 7 or 8 years. Together, they perform Destiny Child's hits "Bootylicious" and "Independent Women," followed by Beyonce's hit "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)." Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams exits the stage, so Beyonce can perform solo her hit "Halo" for the grand finale.
Let's converse about the biggest spectacle of the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show - the Destiny's Child reunion. Yes, Beyonce has reunited Destiny's Child in 2013, reuniting them for the first time since 2005 or 2006, depending how you look at it (2006 was just for the national anthem at the NBA All-Star game; 2005 was the last official Destiny's Child concert). Diana Ross did not reunite The Supremes, Sting did not reunite The Police, and heck, Paul McCartney did not reunited with Ringo Starr, but Beyonce reunited Destiny's Child. Up to this point, I would fact check with a few AIs to see if a reunion could feasibly happen (i.e. no hard feelings, no contractual preventions, etc.). Each time, the AIs would agree that a reunion could feasibly happen, but it also questioned if a Super Bowl halftime show was really the right venue to do so. I have to agree with all the AIs. If a band reunites together after several years of indefinite hiatus, it calls for a full blown concert. At a Super Bowl halftime show, the musical group has only enough time to do either a few songs in full or a medley of a bunch of songs. Only a few songs or only a medley of a bunch of songs makes the reunion feel like it came up short. That's how the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show feels.
With that in mind, let's switch over to our discussion of the setlist. I'm glad Destiny's Child performed "Bootylicious" and "Independent Women," two of their big hits, but the glaring omission is "Survivor," possibly their greatest hit. Even more egregious, "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)," a Beyonce solo song, fills a potential slot for this song, for Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams joins in on singing this song. Because Rowland and Williams singing a Beyonce song, not a Destiny's Child song, the correct crediting is technically Beyonce featuring Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams, not Destiny's Child. On the flip side, with the Super Bowl XLVII hosting a Destiny's Child reunion, in order to make space for Destiny's Child songs, some Beyonce songs don't make the cut for the setlist. A big absence is "Irreplaceable" (unless that song is not energetic enough for a Super Bowl halftime show). Overall, it's a good setlist, especially considering that the setlist intensifies with the hits as it progresses, but I would not describe the setlist as amazing, awesome, special, super or spectacular. Beyonce gets in the way of Destiny's Child, and Destiny's Child gets in the way of Beyonce.
Let's go back to talking about the spectacle. Outside the Destiny's Child reunion, Beyonce's halftime show does have other spectacles, but each spectacle has a dark cloud looming over it. Beyonce dressed herself in black leather-and-lace bodysuit, a big black coat and boots that go up to her thighs. I think she was going for more feminine Black Panther look, but she ends up looking like She-Hulk. Just like Madonna, Beyonce has a stage consisting of LCD screens, but this feels more like a continuation of what Madonna did, and less an original Beyonce idea. Speaking of these LCD screens, Beyonce uses them to duplicate herself, and to further duplicate herself, a lot of the backup dancers look and dress like her. That's kind of cool how they pull it off so well, but I'm not sure what she's going for by doing this. Maybe that's why she didn't sing "Irreplaceable" - it's hard to argue you're irreplaceable when there are so many clones of you. Beyonce sings live instead of lip syncing, but she spends too much time convincing people to clap along or wave their songs. If your concert has enough energy to get people clapping along or waving their hands, the audience will be doing that on their own, not with the prompting of the singer! The spectacle is good, but I would say it's amazing, awesome, special, super or spectacular. The spectacle has too many dark blotches to receive those adjectives.
Sorry, BeyHive, but your Queen Bey put in a Super Bowl halftime show that's just good, not one that I would call amazing, awesome, special, super or spectacular.
Grade: B
Super Bowl XLVIII - Bruno Mars
For the Super Bowl XLVIII halftime show, I think it necessary to cut Bruno Mars some slack. This is early Bruno Mars, prior to Uptown Funk. It would seem that Bruno Mars somehow found himself the opportunity to perform in the Super Bowl, and he took it. Boy, let me tell you, he took advantage of it! His setlist consists of 6 songs, 7 if you count the children's choir performing "Billionaire" by Travis McCoy at the beginning (and it should, for "Billionaire" features Bruno Mars). Before Bruno Mars sings any songs, he performs a drum solo. So far, we've seen the lead performer play guitar solos, but never drum solos, especially from someone not known for drum solos. Mars begins his singing with "Locked Out of Heaven," "Treasure" and "Runaway Baby." Of course, being so new to the music, Bruno needs to supplement his songs with songs from other bands. Therefore, Mars invites the Red Hot Chili Peppers on stage to perform "Give It Away." For me, this is one of the examples of the special guest overshadowing the headliner. Now I wish I had a Red Hot Chili Peppers halftime show instead of a Bruno Mars halftime show. Before the grand finale, the jumbotron has members of the military dedicate the concluding song to family, friends and other loved ones. This tribute to the soldiers seems a little late. Super Bowl XXV salutes the soldiers smack dab in the middle of the Persian Gulf War. By February 2, 2014, the U.S. military has already withdrawn from Iraq, and they were slowly withdrawing from Afghanistan. This tribute seems to be patriotic for the sense of being patriotic. The closing song is "Just The Way You Are," possibly Bruno's greatest hit at the time. For what little Mars has so early in his career, he makes it work. I just wish he had enough foresight to know how big he would become. Then he would hold off a Super Bowl halftime show until he got bigger and better. Then again, maybe Super Bowl XLVIII is why he did become so big.
Grade: B
Super Bowl XLIX - Katy Perry
Continuing our pattern of artists appealing to Millennials, next up is Katy Perry. Katy Perry is another one of those performers who just understands the assignment. Perry gets that a good halftime show needs both sing-along songs and spectacle. Katy absolutely comprehends a setlist of songs that anybody can sing-along. The audience is barraged with hit after hit consecutively. Seriously, every song performed was at one point No. 1 on Billboard. At one point, she even pauses to let the crowd sing a line, and they do so perfectly. Pretty good for a singer meant to appease Millennials! Katy definitely understands the balance between concert and spectacle. I've always said the spectacle at least needs to look, sound and feel like the artist's concerts. This halftime show looks, sounds and feels like Katy Perry's concerts, her music videos, her albums (including the album covers), and the whole Katy Perry aesthetic! Not only that, but the aesthetic also matches the song she sings every time. Katy Perry rides in on animatronic tiger singing "Roar." Perry has knight chess pieces (which look like horses) singing "Dark Horse." Both "California Gurls" and "Teenage Dream" take place on a stage that looks like a California beach, starring Left Shark, which was apparently planned (yes, apparently, the chorographer told the dancers to improv their dance moves based off what they knew about Katy Perry). It all ends nicely with Katy flying on a metallic shooting star while fireworks shoot off during, you guessed it "Firework." The only weak point of this halftime show is the special gusts. The lesser offense is Lenny Kravitz. He's mainly there to play the guitar part of "I Kissed A Girl," but he also duets the song with her. I wanted to hear Katy Perry sing the song, not the song to a duet of Katy Perry and Lenny Kravitz! The more offensive special guest is Missy Elliot. Her performance of "Get Your Freak On" and "Lose Control" at least continue the pattern of only No. 1 on Billboard songs. Still, not only do they sound like they do not belong in a Katy Perry setlist, Missy Elliot's aesthetic takes the audience out of the Katy Perry aesthetic, which has played out perfectly to this point. As I always say, these special guest rob the listener of more of Katy Perry's songs. The 2 Missy Elliot songs could have easily been replaced by "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" and "Hot N Cold" (the latter's absence can be excused if the setlist was meant to be only No. 1 Billboard hits, for "Hot N Cold" never went higher than No. 3). I know the special guests exist in part to take the attention off of Katy Perry, so she can costume change, but it really does put a damper on this Super Bowl halftime show. Therefore, I can't give Katy Perry the highest grade, but I would absolutely still call her halftime show either amazing or awesome.
Grade: A
Super Bowl 50 - Coldplay
The NFL has reached 50 Super Bowl seasons, the gold anniversary of the Super Bowl. We've had past Super Bowl halftime shows acknowledge a milestone anniversary, but they have all done so poorly. Super Bowl XXV had star quarterback Warren Moon take the field for the opening song, but that's about it, and sadly, that's the most a Super Bowl halftime show has done for a milestone anniversary. Super Bowl XXX had the subtitle of "A Celebration of 30 Years of the Super Bowl," but that's all in the title, for the show itself had nothing to do with the Super Bowl, or even the NFL for that matter. Super Bowl XL has a band old that they could have performed at Super Bowl I, but that's about it, and it begs the question if that really counts. Now the question remains if the NFL can deliver on a milestone as big as the golden 50th.
The honor of headlining the Super Bowl 50 halftime show goes to Coldplay. Coldplay is yet again another one of those Super Bowl halftime shows that rides on its setlist. From the onset, Coldplay hits the audience time after time with their hits, one after another. The hits on their setlist include "Yellow," "Vida La Vida," "Paradise," "Adventure of a Lifetime" and "Fix You." Heck, this is medley after all, and the listener can even hear bits and pieces of "Clocks" and "Midnight" remixed in there. The setlist is absolutely there, for I recognize these songs from pop culture, and I can sing along. For the spectacle, on the other hands, I have concerns. It seems like Coldplay went for a color aesthetic for their theme. That's only a problem because Super Bowl 50 takes place at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California on the west coast. In the Pacific time zone, that's a 3:30 p.m. kickoff time, and 5:30 p.m. halftime show. On February 7, 2016 in Santa Clara, California, the sun set at 5:39 p.m. Most, if not all, of the Super Bowl 50 halftime show took place in sunlight. These colors would have popped under the stadium lights, especially the colorful LCD screens on stage. That would have been no problem on an east coast stadium, but for west coast Levi's Stadium, it definitely is. The colors end up looking washed out. The setlist is top tier, but the spectacle is bottom team, so we average out to a mid-tier Coldplay.
Coldplay also suffers from overshadowing of the special guests. To answer the rhetorical question posed in the concluding sentence of the introductory paragraph for the Super Bowl 50 halftime show, this Super Bowl halftime show does the best job of acknowledging the milestone anniversary. Well, it doesn't acknowledge 50 years of Super Bowls as much as it acknowledges 50 years of Super Bowl halftime shows, even if the early ones simply consisted of marching bands, a remnant of college football. The washed-out LCD screen shows a montage of past Super Bowl performers. They even brought back 2 past performers: Beyonce and Bruno Mars! Bruno Mars has finally hit the peak of his career, so we finally got "Uptown Funk." His band still has the same energy they had 2 years ago. Beyonce performs "Formation" off of very recent album Lemonade, but I still would have preferred "Irreplaceable" (maybe not energetic enough for a Super Bowl halftime show). Both of them dress in black and gold, which looks like they are going for more stylish Black Panther look, which contrasts Coldplay's colorful look, in a bad way. As I say many time over, and I will say it again, special guests rob the headliner from more of its hits. Beyonce and Bruno Mars rob Coldplay from more of their hits. We could have heard "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall," "In My Place," "The Scientist" or "Shiver" in place of those 2 songs. Don't get me wrong, "Uptown Funk" and "Formation" ultimately fit into the sing-along setlist, but once again, I go to a concert to hear the headliner, and I don't want the opening bands taking up the headliner's time.
Actually, I'm going to 1-up the Super Bowl for its golden anniversary. Up to this point, I have proposed minor tweaks the Super Bowl could have done to improve the halftime show. For Super Bowl 50, I will suggest a total overhaul of the halftime show that would have made the show a better celebration of 50 years of Super Bowl [halftime shows]. Since Super Bowl halftime shows typically last 12 to 15 minutes, and considering losing some time for transitions, let's have the last 11 halftime performers take the field for 1 of their songs. The Rolling Stones will perform "Paint It Black." Prince will play "When Doves Cry." Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers would perform "Mary Jane's Last Dance" (unless that's too close to drug related in the NFL's opinion). Bruce Springstein and the E Street Band would play "Born in the U.S.A." The Who comes on for "I Can See For Miles." The Black Eyed Peas take the field for "Imma Be." Madonna follows with "Like A Virgin." Beyonce changes her song to "Irreplaceable." Bruno Mars still sings "Uptown Funk." Katy Perry now sings "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)." To conclude the show, Paul McCartney takes center field with all the performers, so they can all sing in unison "Hey Jude." Don't know if such a medley is musically possible. Not sure if the NFL could afford it. Quite possibly, the NFL would ban "Mary Jane's Last Dance" for possible drug references, "Like A Virgin" for oversexualization and "Born in the U.S.A." for its political protest. Nonetheless, this would have been a better celebration of 50 years of Super Bowl [halftime shows].
If Coldplay would have performed in a Super Bowl halftime show not during a milestone Super Bowl (especially a big milestone like 50), if Coldplay would have played solo without any special guests, and if Coldplay would have performed in an east coast Stadium, a Coldplay Super Bowl halftime show would easily get a S or an A grade. Unfortunately, with a poor choice of aesthetic for an afternoon game in an outdoor stadium, for having special guests that overshadow the headliner, and considering the Super Bowl's milestone anniversary also overshadowing the headliner, the viewer is left with a Super Bowl halftime show that is somewhere between average and mediocre, especially for one on the NFL's golden anniversary.
Grade: C
Super Bowl LI - Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga begins the Super Bowl halftime show on top of NRG Stadium. Her opening is a remix of God Bless America and This Land Is Your Land, with drone in the background forming an American flag, possibly in a desperate attempt to appease to the conservatives who think Lady Gaga is too liberal, and she will appeal to them later. From there, she "jumps" off of NRG Stadium and descends to field via cables, and that' s when the real halftime show starts. The next song is "Poker Face," with "Dance in the Dark," "Just Dance," "Love Game, "Paparazzi" and "The Edge of Glory" remixed into "Poker Face." All this time, Lady Gaga still wears the harness from "jumping" off the stadium, so she can perform some extra high "jumps." From there, she plays a medley of her hits, including "Born This Way," "Telephone," "Just Dance," "Million Reasons" and "Bad Romance." This setlist absolutely has the sing-along factor, for all these songs were hits. I especially appreciate how she opened and closed with probably her 2 greatest hits. Lady Gaga definitely gets the spectacle aspect, too. As already mentioned above, she begins with spectacle, with drones doing a light show, and then jumping off of the stadium. Her "jumps" while wearing the cables are best described as acrobatic. The cheering fans in the crowd hold these flashlights/torches, which can make pictures. Lady Gaga plays both a keytar solo and a piano solo, proving her musical talent is not limited to singing. And of course, you can't have a Super Bowl halftime show grand finale without fireworks, but on top of that Lady Gaga adds flamethrowers, a mic drop, and the 1st reception of the 2nd half. I've always that the spectacle needs the bare minimum of looking, sounding and feeling like the performer's concerts. The Super Bowl LI halftime totally looks, sounds and feels like a Lady Gaga concert. She's clearly not lip syncing, for she talks to "Houston," even pumping them up. At one point, when singing in the crowd, she actually goes up a fan and hugs her. Any criticisms I can think of are grasping at straws, and they really are nitpicking. I would have loved to hear more "Love Game," "Paparazzi" and "The Edge of Glory," more than just the little remixes in "Poker Face." I know Lady Gaga wanted to step away from the outlandish clothing (the meat suit sticks out in my mind), but it is in part what made her famous, and both of her outfits for her Super Bowl halftime show were too simple. Like I said, this is somewhere between grasping at straws and nitpicking. Indeed, Lady Gaga hits both the sing-along and the spectacle, without resorting to wild and crazy antics, and without the need of a special guest, which, as already discussed many times, either distract or take away from the headliner. In my ranking of The 4 Objectively Best Super Bowls, I ranked Super Bowl LI the best Super Bowl football game. Therefore, in my subjective grading of 36 Super Bowl halftime shows, I grade Super Bowl LI halftime show the highest grade I can give it. I said it before, and I will say it again, Lady Gaga's halftime show is the icing to this Super Bowl cake; it's the cherry to this Super Bowl Sundae/Sunday.
Grade: S
Super Bowl LII - Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake makes his 3rd appearance in the Super Bowl halftime show, but this time, he headlines, and he does so solo, with no special guests. Most, if not all, of the setlist is recognizable, so it has the sing-along aspect. If this setlist has committed any offense, it is the encore performance of "Rock Your Body." Yes, Timberlake does an encore performance of "Rock Your Body," stopping just short of the line "Bet I'll have you naked (pronounced nekkid) by the end of this song," halting it with a "Hold up! Stop!" His smile reveals he definitely know what's he referring to and what he's doing. Remember, it is this song in the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show that will ruin Janet Jackson's career so badly that it will never recover. Speaking of which, if Justin ever did consider special guests, it would have been nice to invite Janet Jackson to give her a chance to redeem herself. Also speaking of which, the American public still has that memory fresh in their minds. The Parents Television Council petitioned Justin Timberlake to keep the halftime show family friend. It wouldn't surprise me if that was less Timberlake's decision and more of the NFL's decision. The spectacle can best be described as conservative, reserved and tame. A stage made up of LCD screens has become the norm at these halftime shows recently, but Super Bowl LII's halftime show, the LCD screens come propped up on the stage. For several years, fireworks set off sometime during the halftime show, but for the first time in years, fireworks remain absent. This Super Bowl's halftime show is so conservative, reserved and tame that it can't even get fireworks! Again, I have to say that a marching band in any Super Bowl past Super Bowl XXV feels archaic, even if dressed up in tuxedos. Justin Timberlake plays piano, a nice, friendly reminder that Justin is a real, true musician, not just a singer. Timberlake takes "Super Bowl selfies" (his words, not mine) at the end, which is relevant, but it comes across as cheesy. The biggest spectacle is the Prince tribute, with everything from Prince in his Super Bowl performance projected on a large sheet to turning the stadium and its nearby buildings purple with the Prince cymbal. As cool as this was, especially in Prince's hometown of Minneapolis, Prince has been dead for 1 1/2 years, so it's less relevant and more out-of-date. Also, depending on how you interpret Prince's words just before he died, Prince himself may not have approved of his inclusion in this halftime show, although his family did give permission and approval. The Super Bowl LII halftime gains all its points in the sing-along setlist, but it loses all its points in the spectacle. Timberlake's performance has improved since Super Bowl XXXVIII, but Justin did not perform as well as he did with *NSYNC at Super Bowl XXXV. All this averages out to a mediocre Super Bowl halftime show, not worth remembering.
Grade: C
Super Bowl LIII - Maroon 5
The Super Bowl LIII halftime show has been universally panned as one of the worst, if not the worst of the modern Super Bowl halftime shows. Listen, I am going through every criticism, and none of them hold any weight. From the onset, Maroon 5 gets a bad rep for agreeing to put on the Super Bowl LIII when so many other musical artists turned it turn as a metaphorical kneeling with Colin Kaepernick's kneel against racism. What was the NFL supposed to do? Cancel the halftime show for Super Bowl LIII? I suppose they could have reverse their call on national anthem kneeling, created their own public statement against racism and funded some anti-racism charities and non-profit organizations. I feel like Kaepernick and his supporters, however, would only feel satisfied if Colin received the starting quarterback position on an NFL team, and that would set a precedent that becoming a social justice warrior guarantees players a starting spot on a roster, which in turn would cause questions, or even outright doubts, that the NFL was really a competition of athleticism. Maroon 5 had the opportunity to take one of the biggest stages for a musical performance, and they took it. Maroon 5 should not get blamed for this. SpongeBob SquarePants fans petitioned for the Sweet Victory scene from the SpongeBob SquarePants episode "Band Geeks" during the halftime show, in memory of the recent deceased creator Stephen Hillenburg, only to get a part of it. Listen, I get how iconic the scene has become, but it is still a satire, which has no place in the actual thing. Fans should just be glad that the NFL even acknowledged it. Again, Maroon 5 should not be blamed for this. Adam Levine specifically receives criticism for making mistakes and being lazy overall, but this proves that Levine is actually singing into the microphone over the loudspeakers, not lip syncing to the master recording from his studio albums. If anything, even Maroon 5 fans admit this is very true to Maroon 5's actual concerts, so that gives him points for making the Super Bowl LIII halftime show feel like a real Maroon 5 concert. Adam has also received criticism from stripping off his shirt to perform the grand finale shirtless because Janet Jackson got cancelled on her partial nudity. Listen, we live in a culture when men can be shirtless and women cannot. It's just the way it is. It's not Adam Levine stripped off his pants or become bare naked. That would deserve the criticism. Once again, this is unwarranted criticism against Maroon 5. I have even heard one critic claim the setlist was lackluster. I think Maroon 5 played all their greatest hits, including but not limited to "This Love," "She Will Be Loved" and "Moves Like Jagger"! The only song I noticed absent was "Payphone."
Now there are indeed legitimate criticisms, and to nobody's surprise, it's the special guests. Why are we even bothering to have Travis Scott on stage if the FCC has to censor every other word in every sentence? Besides, it's clear he depends too much on autotune, for with autotune turned off, he sounds awful. Big Boi is not as bad with the censoring and the sound, but he sounds so out of place next to Maroon 5. Perhaps the NFL feared that the Millennials were stepping away from rock and stepping closer to rap, so they threw in some rappers for good measure? This mistake could have been easily rectified with special guests who have collaborated with Maroon 5 in the past. Wiz Kalifa could be a special guest, and he could sing "Payphone" with Wiz Khalifa. Christina Aguilera should have been a special guest for the grand finale of "Moves Like Jagger," but Maroon 5 cuts it short, before Christina's part. Heck, if the setlist was still short, Christina could have done "Genie in a Bottle." It would have been the perfect redemption from her Super Bowl XXXIV performance. Then again, perhaps Wiz Khalifa and Christina Aguilera were also holding out as a metaphorical way to kneel alongside Colin Kaepernick.
I'll be honest here. Perhaps I liked the Super Bowl LIII halftime show in its relation to the Super Bowl LIII game. The Super Bowl LIII game could be considered one of the worst, if not the worst, Super Bowl games. The Super Bowl LIII game was scoreless in the 1st quarter, it had a long field goal as the only 2nd quarter score, and a single field goal as the only 3rd quarter score. It wasn't until the 4th quarter that the game actually had 2 scores in 1 quarter, including the game's first touchdown, a pass from a 6th round pick to a 7th round pick, which will ruin the hype of the draft, especially Thursday and Friday, which consists of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd round of picks. Some people will argue it was a battle of defenses, but I remember watching 2 offenses that couldn't perform. Tom Brady was showing his age, and Jared Goff was showing his inexperience. I know this is hindsight, but if watching the whole Super Bowl LIII in its entirety (game, halftime show, commercials) again, I'm spending the whole 1st half looking forward to the Maroon 5 concert, and I'm thinking the whole 2nd half "Can Maroon 5 come back on the field again?" The Super Bowl LIII halftime show loses points because of Travis Scott and Big Boi, but I cannot find any proof their inclusion was Maroon 5's idea, so I can't dock them too much on it. Maroon 5 itself has a solid playlist, and Maroon 5 looks, sounds and feels like they are performing a Maroon 5 concert, down to the M-shaped stage that looks like their logo.
Grade: A
Super Bowl LIV - Jennifer Lopez & Shakira
When the NFL first announced Jennifer Lopez & Shikira as the halftime show for Super Bowl LIV back on September 26, 2019, I felt somewhere between shocked and surprised. I thought Shikira was a one hit wonder, and I even forgot that Jennifer Lopez had a music career! I will admit that the halftime show starts slow with the unrecognizable songs, but it absolutely picks up as the songs become more and more recognizable. I found myself constantly saying, "Oh, I didn't know that was a Jennifer Lopez/Shakira song." It's not recognizable in the sense that I can sing along, so it loses points in that aspect, but the tune is recognizable, so it earns back points in that regard. Speaking of the setlist, the setlist has 17 songs in the medley, which is the most songs in a Super Bowl halftime show to date, but in order to fit that many songs in a 14-minute halftime show, some of these songs got only a verse, or even a bit of a verse. I would have liked to hear more of the songs, even if it meant cutting some songs out of the setlist. As always, the weak point is the special guests, who would have been unknown to English-speaking Americans, but at least they fit in with the mood, and they don't make the usual special guest mistake of either getting in the way or hogging the spotlight. The spectacle Jennifer Lopez and Shakira are going for is Hispanic, for this halftime show looks, sounds and feels like a celebration of their respective ethnicities. Seriously, it could rival a fiesta, or even Carnaval for that matter. My conservative Christian friends watching this halftime felt it was too sexualized, like something from a Miami strip club. I tried my best to defend it as something ingrained in their Hispanic culture, which is foreign to whites of European descent, but when Jennifer Lopez comes out on a stripper pole, it gets harder to defend that. Still, I stand behind my statement. As sexualized as it, the sexuality is related to their Hispanic culture, unlike Super Bowl XXXVIII, which was sexual for the sake of being sexual. Yes, I would prefer it toned down, but again, it's not as hyped up as Super Bowl XXXVIII. Also, I recognize the sexism behind the fact men can get sexual, and nobody bats an eye, but women get sexual, and everybody loses their mind, and I will not be a part of that. If you don't believe me, Shakira and Jennifer Lopez received 1,300 FCC complains, in comparison to the 55 complaints the FCC received the prior year over Adam Levine taking off his shirt. Besides that, Shakira plays guitar, piano and strings, proving she's an all-around musician, and not just a singer. Jennifer Lopez dances to a lot of traditional Hispanic dances, making her both a singer and a dancer. And all when Jennifer Lopez is 50 years old, and Shikra is celebrating her 43rd birthday! Normally here I would tell you that your appreciation of this Super Bowl halftime show comes down your appreciation of Hispanic music, which would normally make me mark it with an average grade, but between Shakira's instrumental performance and Jennifer Lopez's perfect combination of singing and dancing, especially for someone better known for acting in movies and television, I have to bump it up to an above average Super Bowl halftime show, but not by much.
Grade: B
Super Bowl LV - The Weeknd
Ladies and gentlemen, it's The Weeknd. Let's set the scene. The NFL somehow managed to get through the Super Bowl LIV season unaffected by COVID-19. The Super Bowl LV season did not get so lucky. The draft was virtually a public video call. The preseason was cancelled. The regular season had to be accommodating, so accommodating that this season, an NFL game took place on every day of the week, including Wednesday. On top of that 3/5 of the season was performed in empty stadiums, and for the other 2/5 having fan capacity capped at a quarter of what the stadium could hold. Although the Super Bowl for the 2020 season took place in 2021, COVID-19 was still an ever-present reality, so Super Bowl LV received no exceptions. The NFL capped fans in attendance to 22,000 (1/3 of which was doctors and nurses to thank them), requiring all fans to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The Super Bowl halftime itself had no exemptions either. For the safety of everybody, the NFL required that most of the halftime show take place on a stage built on the concourse of the stadium, which is on the edge of the stadium. Special guest remained absent, in order to cut down on the number of people on the sage. The Weeknd does have a live orchestra and live dancers, but by just watching the halftime show, you can tell they had to sit and stand the appropriate 6-foot social distance protocol. There is a scene is where dancers swarm of The Weeknd, but they are wearing masks. Despite these restrictions, The Weeknd makes it work. Just like the last Super Bowl halftime show, this halftime show had me saying a lot, "Oh, that song is The Weeknd? I didn't know that song was The Weeknd." Indeed, 8 of the 9 songs in his medley peaked in Billboards top 4 for at least 1 week ("House of Ballons" being the exception, which never made the top 100), and half of those peaked at No. 1. for at least 1 week. The Weeknd actually sings the songs, instead of lip syncing to a pre-recording, as evident by his constant call out to "TAMPA!" The spectacle is there, too. It almost feels like a live music video. The spectacle does make some questionable decisions, though. One of the scenes looks like The Weeknd is running through a giant walk-in microwave. I understand the dancers had to wear masks, but the masks did not have to look like the dancers wore cloth diapers on their face. The Weeknd's Super Bowl halftime show reminds me a lot of Bruno Mars's halftime show. He took whatever little fame he had (most likely propelled by his big hit of 2020 "Blinding Lights"), used it to get one of the biggest stages for a musician to take, and puts his all into it to put on his best performance, which propels his career forward even further after the Super Bowl. Therefore, I'm obligated to give him the same grade as Bruno Mars.
Grade: B
Super Bowl LVI - Rap All-Stars
I invented the nickname for the heading. Officially, the Super Bowl LVI halftime show is billed as Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem and Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar as the headliners, with 50 Cent and Anderson Paak as the special guests. Honestly, the only thing seeming to separate a headliner from a special guest is who was announced prior to the halftime show performance and who was a surprise. Besides that, everybody shares the spotlight an equal amount time, so it almost feels like 7 headliners and 0 special guests or 0 headliners and 7 special guests. Indeed, all 7 rap artists do feel like an all-star group, but it does need a clarification of Millennial Rap All-Stars. Yes, there is nobody modern here. All these stars hit their prime 10 to 20 years before this Super Bowl halftime show. This is one of those modern halftime shows in which it becomes very apparent that the NFL targets a Millennial audience. Nonetheless, it is still an all-star group, and each one comes on stage to belt out their greatest hit. No surprise about the rap belonging to a certain rap artist; you know that rap artist for that rap. On top of all that, to my surprise, the all-star casts of rappers kept it clean. I worried that this halftime show was going to be a repeat of Travis Scott, bleeping out every other word of every line. Instead, I can only recall 1 censoring bleep. This setlist absolutely hits the sing-along factor. My only complaint is that this all-star cast makes the viewer wish that each one would have performed would have performed the Super Bowl halftime show individually, in order to hear more raps, with the exception of 1 (more on that later). The spectacle does not carry that all-star feel. The Super Bowl LVI halftime show goes for a white aesthetic. I know I criticized Coldplay for using a color aesthetic for a Super Bowl in California, but the Super Bowl LVI halftime seems to have swung the pendulum too far in the opposite direction. The white just looks bland. A majority of the rap artists decided to contrast their outfit, wearing black, with the exception of Mary J. Blige, who decided to match with white, and Snoop Dogg, who is not hiding which team he is rooting for to win the Super Bowl. With the exception of Snoop Dogg, everybody's outfit is bland. The fireworks and pyrotechnics, a staple spectacle for Super Bowls, was toned down a bit. This Super Bowl halftime show also has it fair share of questionable moves. I don't really know why 50 Cent is hanging upside down. My best guess is that studies show that the human mind has a hard time processing how things look upside down, and 50 Cent did not want to make it obvious how much he aged. At least Anderson Paak looks like he's having the time of his life with the honor of playing drums for Eminem's "Lose Yourself." I'm not sure if this counts as spectacle, but considering this halftime show was supposed to be an ode to rap, it was a nice touch to put in some sample of Tupac Shakur. Ultimately, since this is one of those halftime shows themed around a certain musical genre, you appreciate for it will be dependent on your appreciation of the music genre, in this case, rap, or even more specifically, Millennial rap. Forgive me for sounding like a broken record, but I will say the same thing as I did for Motown All-Stars and for Country All-Stars. If you like rap, you'll like this halftime show. If you dislike rap, you'll dislike this halftime show. If you love rap, you'll love this halftime show. If you hate rap, you'll hate this halftime show. These all average out to a Super Bowl halftime show that's mediocre. Therefore, Rap All-Stars will receive the same grade as Country All-Stars and Motown All-Stars.
Grade: C
Super Bowl LVII - Rihanna
The most Googled thing after the Super Bowl LVII halftime show was "Is Rihanna pregnant?" I did some math here. Rihanna gave birth to Riot Rose Mayers on August 1, 2023. Rihanna most likely conceived Riot Rose sometime during November 2022. Now the NFL announced Rihanna would perform at halftime on September 25, 2025. Someone could criticize Rihanna for not accurately planning. From the best of my research, it would seem the Rihanna neither planned nor prevented the pregnancy. Despite her limitations, Rihanna puts on quite the halftime show. Because of her pregnancy limitations, just like Rihanna carrying baby Riot Rose, the setlist has to carry the halftime show. Indeed, carry it does. The setlist consists of 14 consecutive Rihanna. It is truly like listening to a live album of Rihanna's greatest hits. Rihanna does not have any special guests, which prevents the common pitfalls of having special guests, but as mentioned above, some good special guests would have been those that Rihanna has duet in the past for her master recordings. The obvious example I can think of is Eminem. They could have done together "Monster" or "Love The Way You Lie." Yes, Eminem did make an appearance last year, but that didn't stop Justin Timberlake from making THREE appearances! (It also would have made Eminem the first to make consecutive Super Bowl appearances). Now nobody can deny Rihanna's pregnancy limitations, and it feels like the halftime show spectacle has to suffer a result. The 280 (280!) dancers are toned down in their dancing to make sure it does not look like they are not outdancing Rihanna. The hazmat-looking suits for the dancers are also a questionable fashion choice. Since Rihanna cannot move much, the stage has to do the moving for her, which ends like looking like a Super Smash Bros. stage. While pretty cool from an engineering standpoint, the coolness factor dies down it becomes apparent its purpose is to cover up Rihanna's lack of mobility. Shooting off fireworks for the grand finale of "Diamonds" was a nice touch, though. Despite the fact that Rihanna had quasi-retired from her music career to pursue other creative interests, Rihanna used the Super Bowl LVII halftime show to prove that she can still perform. While I can excuse the lack of spectacle due to her pregnancy to an extent, I can't give her a full pass, in fairness to non-pregnant performers, who have done both better and worse. Still, Rihanna lets the setlist carry the halftime show, and whatever little spectacle she can do, she shines. I think 1 YouTube comment put it best, "Rihanna hadn't given birth yet, yet she delivers."
Grade: A
Super Bowl LVIII - Usher
The Super Bowl LVIII halftime show is one of those 21st century halftime shows that feels like it was purposely geared towards Millennials. It's not just the headliner Usher; it's also the special guests Alicia Keys, Ludacris, H.E.R. and Lil Jon. Aside from making an appearance to appease to Millennials, most, if not all, of the special guests have collaborate with Usher in the past, so the special guests never fall in the typical special guest pitfall of distracting from the headliner or taking up the headliner's spotlight. I'm not sure if this was done on purpose, but it was also nice that the NFL is giving racial minorities the spotlight in their biggest game of the year, and they do without tokenizing. The NFL has sure come a long way from its debauched handling of racism with the Super Bowl LIII season. Usher is one of those Super Bowl halftime show artists who understood the assignment in terms of spectacle. Alicia Keys has a cape the size of the stage. H.E.R. performs a guitar solo. Usher not only dances, but he also roller skates. It was also nice to see all the backup dancers had unique costumes, after 2 of the past Super Bowls had the backup dancers all wearing the same costume, and that feat becomes even more impressive considering Usher had over 100 backup dancers. The only weak point of the spectacle is the marching, which I will say again, feels archaic in a 21st century Super Bowl halftime show. While Usher gains most of his points in regard to the spectacle, regarding the setlist, he loses points. He starts off strong with "Caught Up," but music dies down after that, and the songs don't pick up "OMG" and "Yeah" at the end (and technically "Turn Down for What" by Lil Jon, but if you ask me, that's the weakest point for the special guests). It makes the middle feel like dead space or wasted space. This dead space or wasted space becomes even more tragic when noticing that "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" and "Scream" both don't make the cut for this setlist. These would have fit perfectly in the middle to keep the energy and the pacing going. Unfortunately, the setlist absences and pacing prevent Super Bowl LVIII halftime show from receiving the highest grade, but Super Bowl LVIII definitely has one of the better halftime shows in Super Bowl halftime show history.
Grade: A
Super Bowl LIX - Kendrick Lamar
Back with the Rap All-Stars of the Super Bowl LVI halftime show, I said that the halftime show made me wish that each rapper would have performed the Super Bowl halftime show as the headliner solo, with the exception of 1. That 1 was Kendrick Lamar. Yet here we are, with a whole Super Bowl halftime show headlining Kendrick Lamar. Yes, our first solo rapper to headline is Kendrick Lamar. Would not have been my first choice. My first choice would be Eminem, but then again, the issue with him is the Travis Scott problem, having bleep out every other word of every line. Kendrick Lamar raps 11 raps. I will have to admit that I did not recognize any of them, but maybe I'm not alone there, not even for the pop rap fan, for most of the raps are from his latest album, so the listener really has to be into the rap scene to follow along. Naturally, the Super Bowl LVI halftime show fails in terms of sing along. At least Lamar doesn't fall into the typical special guest pitfall of distracting from the headliner or taking up the headliner's spotlight. Both SZA and Mustard have collaborated with Kendrick for the master recordings, so it only makes sense that they share the Super Bowl stage for a duet. The one surprising thing is that his grand finale of "TV Off" has a recording of a marching band over the loudspeakers instead of a live marching band. I guess my complaining about the archaic feel of marching bands at a Super Bowl halftime show was heard.
As far spectacle, Kendrick Lamar has spectacle, yet he doesn't have spectacle. At times, Kendrick Lamar's halftime show feels like it has absolutely no spectacle. His halftime show definitely lacks any big show. No bungie jumping into the stadium, no helicopter ride to exit the stadium, no mechanical animal to ride in on, no suspended platforms to ascend & descend on, no impersonators appearing all over the stadium, and no large puppets. Heck, this halftime show even seems to lack the small things, like fireworks, pyrotechnics and the LCD screens on the stage. At the same time, Kendrick Lamar's halftime show definitely has spectacle. Of course, Kendrick Lamar being Kendrick Lamar, he has to make a statement. We can't criticize him too harshly on that. Super Bowl halftime shows in the past have made statements. Michael Jackson said, "Can't we all get along instead of having race riots?" Diana Ross said, "Follow Your Dreams." U2 said, "The world grieves your tragic loss, USA" to Choose or Lose said, "Vote!" Black Eyed Peas said, "Let's replace fear, hate, injustice, racism, terrorism and war with compassion, love, unity and understanding." Justin Timberlake said, "We miss you, Prince." Jennifer Lopez and Shakira said, "We're proud to be Puerto Rican/Columbian" (respectively). And of course, we can't forget that we had 2 Super Bowl salute the troops. Kendrick Lamar's statement says a lot. He comments on what it means to be an African American in the 2020s United States of America, what it means to be a rapper in 2020s United States of America (when and where rapping is still a minority music genre), and who controls the history and the culture of the United States of America. All the aesthetic and spectacle of this halftime show contribute to that message. The back up dancers are dressed in either all-red (1 backup dancer goes so far out to dye his hair red), all-white and all-blue, so they can come together to form the American flag. The GNX car not only nods to Lamar's album GNX, but it's car popular in Compton culture, which symbolizes his African American identity. My favorite part of the spectacle is Samuel L. Jackson dressed as Uncle Sam "narrating" (for lack of a better term) between Kendrick rapping. Uncle Sam, who is traditionally white, is now being played by a black man, yet he spouts what white Uncle Sam expects of the black community, which means to get the audience thinking about those critiques. Oh, and Serena Williams is one of dancers (my best research says she is dancing because they are both from Compton, and she has danced for one of his music videos). So while Lamar does not have spectacle in regard to wild and crazy antics, Kendrick does have spectacle regarding how the aesthetic matches his message. This is exactly how I expect things to look, sound and feel if I attended a Kendrick Lamar concert.
All in all, Kendrick Lamar here performs no better or no worse than he did as part of the Rap All-Stars back in Super Bowl LVI. Therefore, I am giving him the same grade he received as part of Rap All-Stars in Super Bowl LVI. (I will also admit that, as a Philadelphia Eagles fan, my Eagles are beating down the Kansas City Chiefs, who are trying to be the first NFL team to three-peat Super Bowl championships, shutting them out 24 to nothing, so I want to just get back to the game, which is also not helping my opinion of this halftime show).
Grade: C
Super Bowl LX - Bad Bunny
We started our journey way back in Super Bowl XXV, a Super Bowl that determined the NFL champion of the 1990 season. Now we have finally reached our 36th Super Bowl, Super Bowl LX, determining the NFL champion of the 2025 season. The Super Bowl itself has a nice round number of LX (60). Super Bowl LX is the championship game for the 2025 NFL season, another nice round number. Therefore, we are about to have another Super Bowl halftime shift. Ever since the debauched halftime show of Super Bowl XXXVIII, the NFL has attempted to appeal to a certain generational audience to win over fans of that generation. The halftime shows of Super Bowl XXXIX and XL brought out Beatles' bassist Paul McCartney and the Rolling Stones for the Baby Boomers. Super Bowls XLI to XLIV appeased to Gen X with the likes of Prince, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Bruce Springstein & The E Street Band and The Who. Ever since Super Bowl XLV, which took place in 2011 to determine the 2010 NFL champion, to Super Bowl LIX, which took place in 2025 to determine the 2024 NFL champion, the target market has been Millennials. Now here with Super Bowl LX, to determine the 2025 NFL champion, the NFL will now reach out to Gen Z, as evident by choosing the first headliner whose music career launched in 2013. That headliner would be Bad Bunny.
Now I will admit that, while my introduction said I evaluate Super Bowl halftime shows evenly by sing-along factor and spectacle factor, I put more weight on the sing-along factor. That's what Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Who, U2, Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga have all received the S grade, especially those first 5, whose only spectacle was making the halftime show look, sound and feel like their concert. I do not know any Bad Bunny songs, and I did not recognize them, so that alone already knocks him down in my Super Bowl halftime show ranking. While I understand he's a Latino rapper/singer, rapping/singing in his native tongue, not having English subtitles did not help either. Before anyone accuses me of racism, though, I did not like Kendrick Lamar's halftime show last year for the same reason - I did not know his songs and I had a hard time understanding him. Then again, Kendrick Lamar is also a racial minority, so maybe I'm digging my own grave deeper here. But just because I do put more weight on sing-along over spectacle, that does not mean I totally disregard spectacle. I do acknowledge good spectacle, and I have even said some Super Bowl halftime shows redeem their setlist because of the spectacle. Let me tell you, Bad Bunny definitely had that. That transition from the pre-recorded plantation workers to making the field on Levi Stadium look like a plantation was seamless. That was a legitimately legal wedding happening on the field during the halftime show. The bodega recreation was so real that someone could have sworn somebody actually lived in it. Was not expecting Ricky Martin or Lady Gaga there (surprised Lady Gaga did not sing in French). Bad Bunny showing off his Grammy reminded everybody that he deserved to be there, and it was my even more heartfelt when gives the Grammy to his "younger self," reminding his younger self not to give up on his dreams. Finally, as another touching moment, Bad Bunny says in clear English, "God bless America" but then lets everybody know he means America to mean the continents of North America and South America by listing off a bunch of their countries. Compare this to the last Super Bowl halftime performs at Levi Stadium - Coldplay. Coldplay decided to do a colorful lights spectacle, which would have worked in a dome stadium or an east coast stadium, but it did not work on west coast Levi Stadium, when the sun had not even set. Bad Bunny understood that, for he dropped any colorful lights out of his performance. Heck, if anything, Bad Bunny's aesthetic seems to be block fiesta, celebrating on a Friday evening after a long and hard work week, and the lighting play into that aesthetic well. Speaking of aesthetic, just like The Weeknd, Bad Bunny's aesthetic also seems to be live music video, and he delivers on that too, for not only does he rap/sing to the audience in the stadium, he raps/sings to the audience at home. It would not surprise me if the live music video is the approach for the near future of Super Bowl halftime shows. The greatest feat here is that Bad Bunny is well aware that not everyone watching in America will understand his rapping/singing (77% of people living in the United States of America speak only English), so he uses his spectacle to communicate what he raps/sings. Bad Bunny follows the mantra "Show, don't tell." On top of all of that, all the spectacle fits in with the aesthetic. No wild or crazy antics needed.
Unfortunately, I still give more weight to the sing-along aspect, and not even the greatest and the best spectacle cannot dig a Super Bowl halftime show out of the bad sing-along hole. I do think, however, that the spectacle does enough to do more than break even. It's more than an average halftime show; it is an above average halftime show. I just wouldn't describe the halftime show at special, super spectacular, amazing or awesome. It's just good.
Grade: B
Originally, I planned to conclude by synthesizing all my evaluations to create the perfect Super Bowl halftime show. The only conclusions I reaped from my observations, however, were to totally avoid marching bands and to invite special guests only if they collaborated with the headliner for the master tracks. Instead, I will conclude with the top 3 bands I would like to see perform at the Super Bowl halftime show-
3) AC/DC - Yes, I know this will be another one of those dragging a classic rock band out of the nursing home. Is it really, though? AC/DC still is actively touring in 2026. Yes, they have to get fill-in replacements when an original member becomes ill or injured, and they have gotten some big names to fill in for them. This is one of those classic rock band that everyone will know the songs and sing along with them. Also, even for an aging rock band, they put on a quite a show. Angus Young still prances around during guitar solos, Brian Johnson still screams his lungs out. Although not as charsmatic at Angus Young and Brian Johnson, Malcolm Young and Cliff Williams still have fun on stage. The only one that has toned down is drummer Phil Rudd, and that's excusable considering how much energy is necessary to just play the drums. Yes, they would have tone down the Satanic aesthetic, so no "Hells Bells," "Hell Ain't A Bad Place To Be" or "Highway to Hell." Still, there is (takes deep breath), "Back in Black," "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," "Fire Your Guns," "For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)," "Let There Be Rock," "Girl's Got Rhythm," "Heatseeker," "High Voltage," "Money Talks," "Shoot to Thrill," "The Jack," "Thunderstruck," "TNT," "Whole Lotta Rosie," "You Shook Me All Along" and so much more! There's plenty for AC/DC to without what sounds like devil worship.
2) Green Day - Green Day actually performed in the Super Bowl LX pregame show. Immediately, people clamored on social media, "Why weren't they the Super Bowl LX halftime show?" I hate to say it, but I agree with them. Arguably, Green Day is the Millennials' equivalent of The Beatles. They defined a generation. They have their own video game, their own musical, and soon, their own comedy movie. The Super Bowl halftime show would be the icing on their career's cake and the cherry on top of their career's Sundae. I know it looks like the NFL moved on from Millennials to Gen Z as the target market, but for one last hurrah to send out the Millennials, Green Day would be the perfect choice.
1) Metallica - Even within the musical genre of Rock n Roll, the subgenre of Metal is hard one for the casual listener to enter. That's why there really hasn't been one in Super Bowl history. Metallica is the perfect entry-level metal band for the casual listener, and that would also make the perfect entry-level metal band for a Super Bowl halftime show. Unlike heavy metal and death metal bands, who have a habit of wailing on their instruments while the vocalist screams into the microphone, Metallica has carefully constructed the melody of rhythm of their songs. Even their more mellow metal songs, like "The Unforgiven," "Nothing Else Matters" and "King Nothing" follow this pattern, which make them perfect for the setlist for a Super Bowl halftime show. Of course, real, true fans would be disappointed if Metallica didn't rock out for the sake of the casual listener, so they would have to include excerpts from "Enter Sandman," "Battery," "Master of Puppets" and "One." Together, they would combine to make one rocking Super Bowl halftime show!
One last note for the conclusion, which will comment on the future of Super Bowl halftime shows. In recent interviews with Yahoo Entertainment and Billboard, Weird Al Yankovic stated he has stepped away from parodies. According to Weird Al, the world lacks a "monoculture" in which not everyone is watching the same MTV or VH1. While he appreciates that streaming services have allowed niche music genres to build up a big fanbase, without that "monoculture," it makes it hard to create parodies that everybody will recognize. This lack of a "monoculture" when it comes to music will become the NFL's struggle in the next year when it comes time to select the Super Bowl halftime. As musical tastes become more and more niche, thanks to streaming services, the NFL will struggle to find a musical act that everyone will like. We may see more "variety show" halftime shows in order to reach a bigger audience. Only time will tell, but perhaps my suggestions will work, as it will reach back to a time where music had more of a monoculture, and everyone will recognize the music, even if it is just what their dad and mom listened to when they were young.
