This is unfamiliar territory for me, since I’m not a sports fan. As I recently told my father, the only way I know if there’s a big game coming up is if I’m at the grocery store and chips are on sale.
The Super Bowl Halftime Show headliner transcends fans, though. It’s meant to get other people to tune in. It’s more for the millions watching at home than the thousands in the stadium.
Still, when they announced Bad Bunny, I was only a little surprised. I only know of this guy through his appearances on Saturday Night Live. I hate most rap, so I’m not the target demographic for his music (or for the Super Bowl for that matter).
I’ve gone beyond questioning the decisions made in the entertainment industry. I automatically assume that most of them are bad. But this one made me think (for a change). I mean, besides him having a stupid name, I really don’t know if he’s that big of a star. Again, not my rodeo. Maybe he is.
It made me look up who were the entertainers brought out during halftime shows throughout Super Bowl history. This year isn’t the only weird choice.
The first shows were marching bands, like any football game at your local high school or college. This gave way to big band leaders and slowly pop stars started showing up. In 1972, there was a salute to Louis Armstrong which featured the likes of Ella Fitzgerald and Carol Channing (Channing returned in 1970, the first of many to do so).
I might be going out on a limb here, but I’d say the first big commercial half time was in 1977 when the Walt Disney Company produced it and had some of their songs in it. Imagine seeing “It’s A Small World” live. It sounds like a nightmare, honestly. Pretty big jump from three years earlier when the performers were the University of Texas Longhorn Band featuring Miss Texas ‘73 on the fiddle.
Two years later, Carnival Cruise Lines produced the “Salute To The Caribbean” which I’m sure was a big ad for traveling on their boats.
1987 saw another Disney-produced show with the theme being Hollywood’s 100th anniversary. This show featured George Burns and Mickey Rooney, which is pretty awesome, actually. The next year saw Chubby Checker and The Rockettes. 1990’s theme was a salute to Peanuts, which also sounds great.
Then in 1991, Disney produced again and we got the New Kids On The Block. What a time capsule. A salute to the 1992 Winter Olympics featured Brian Boitano and Dorothy Hamill. Gloria Estefan was also performing.
And then in 1993, arguably the biggest star in any of our lifetimes: Michael Jackson. I feel like this was a turning point. Sure, New Kids and Estefan were big in the early 90s, but they were no Michael Jackson. The halftime show has probably been chasing this high ever since.
The next year was Clint Black, Tanya Tucker, Travis Tritt and The Judds. I guess they were the big names. I know only a little more about country music than I do about rap.
I’m just reading off a big list so I have no idea what the 1995 Indiana Jones performance brought to you by Doritos is. But Patti LaBelle and Tony Bennett were there.
Anywho, another big name in lights for 1996: none other than Diana Ross. That’s an impressive pull.
1997 was a Blues Brothers Bash with Dan Aykroyd, John Goodman and Jim Belushi. James Brown and ZZ Top also performed. OK…
Then we go to Motown’s 40th anniversary with Smokey Robinson, Martha Reeves, The Temptations for pedigree and Boyz II Men and Queen Latifah for new fans.
The fact that I get to type out “Big Bad Voodoo Daddy” in my job is a wonder. Anyway, they were in 1999 with a celebration of soul, salsa and swing with Stevie Wonder (another great pull), Savion Glover, and oh, hey, Gloria Estefan’s back!
The big 2000 show was Phil Collins, Christina Aguilera, Enrique Iglesias and Toni Braxton. The 2001 show I remember watching: Aerosmith and NSYNC, with Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige, and Nelly. In 2002, it was after the attacks on September 11, 2001 so we needed something a little more thoughtful and U2 was the answer. 2003 had Shania Twain, No Doubt and Sting which don’t seem to fit but maybe that was the point.
Then we come to the infamous 2004 Janet Jackson/Jusin Timberlake show. You know what happened here, because it was talked about forever, and was very controversial. But also P. Diddy and Kid Rock were there? P. Diddy was later sentenced for sex trafficking, and Kid Rock later wrote a song about liking underage girls, and the controversy was the wardrobe malfunction? Jeez…oh, and Jessica Simpson was there, too.
Then we got spoiled. 2005: Paul McCartney. 2006: Rolling Stones. 2007: Prince. 2008: Tom Petty. 2009: Bruce Springsteen. 2010: The Who. What a run.
2011 was Black Eyed Peas featuring Usher which is another time capsule, honestly. I hate Madonna with the heat of a thousand suns but it makes sense for her to be a headliner, and she was in 2012. However, there were also LMFAO (lol), Nicki Minaj, MIA, and Cee Lo Green, who were all a little less timeless.
Beyonce and Destiny’s Child hit 2013. Valid. Bruno Mars the next year with Red Hot Chili Peppers. OK sure. Katy Perry in 2015 – again, big name, big stage presence, makes perfect sense. She was joined by Lenny Kravitz and Missy Elliott.
Coldplay was 2016. They were joined by Beyonce, Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson. Kind of a strange mix but fine. 2017 was Madonna again (Oh, I’m sorry, I meant Lady Gaga). 2018 Justin Timberlake returned. 2019: Maroon 5 with Travis Scott and Big Boi. Whatever.
Then in 2020 we saw Shakira and Jennifer Lopez featuring J. Balvin and Bad Bunny. Wait, what? This is his second time at the Super Bowl? How is that even possible?
Ladies and gentlemen, The Weeknd was in 2021. 2022 was Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar. Again, no fan of rap, but these are some of the most commercial rappers so it’s not a huge surprise to see them here. Rihanna headlined 2023.
Usher headlined 2024, his second appearance, despite being a despicable person. He was joined by Alicia Keys, Jermaine Dupri, H.E.R., will.i.am (second appearance for this Black Eyed Peas member), Lil Jon, and Ludacris. Last year was Kendrick Lamar again, with SZA.
A lot of these shows also had marching bands. The best named one was “the Sonic Boom of the South.”
Looking at this list puts things in perspective. Someone like Bad Bunny isn’t even the worst choice based on this history. Once they started getting superstars, the producers were always chasing the biggest names (even if they would be forgotten just a few short years later).
How many of this list are for football fans? Way less than half, I’d say. That’s why they face the cameras and not the stands. The point is to get non-football fans to tune in. To be eyes on the screen during the commercials and the ads in the stadium itself. It’s to get people like me, who don’t care about football or pop music, to talk about it, to hype it up, and to tune in or be left out of the conversation. So I guess I’ll stop talking about it now.
Chris Lundy
News Editor
*The opinions expressed in the above editorial are those of Micromedia’s news editor Chris Lundy and are not necessarily those of Micromedia Publications, Inc.
