It was announced that Jay-Z will be the halftime performance at the next Super Bowl in 2027. Jay-Z is a rapper, producer, songwriter, business mogul, and a billionaire. Jay-Z is married to Beyonce’ - who is a singer, songwriter, actress, businesswoman, and a billionaire. Together - Jay-Z and Beyonce’ are one of the top - if not the top - “power couple” in America.
Jay-Z is talented and his incredible success proves that and he has a relatively diverse audience. However - the selection of Jay-Z shows that the NFL is moving away from diversity when it comes to the annual celebrated halftime show.
Jay-Z will be the halftime show at the upcoming Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles in 2027. Last year - Bad Bunny created a wave of controversy as the halftime show at the Super Bowl. The year before that it was Kendrick Lamar - then Usher - then Rihanna - then Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, and Eminem - then The Weekend - Shakira.
For the last 7 years - the NFL has chosen rap, hip-hop-related minorities as the Super Bowl halftime show. I respect and appreciate the diversity of the American audience all of the aforementioned artists represent. They are all mass appeal. However - while there are differences - the overall genre of the past 7 Super Bowl halftime shows have specifically related to one aspect of the NFL audience. Please don’t misunderstand me - I respect and appreciate the music of all of the artists of the past 7 years - but those artists do not reflect my taste in music and I know I speak for millions of NFL fans.
In 2019 - Maroon 5 was the last Super Bowl halftime show that represented a significantly different NFL demographic. I am not complaining about ANY of the last 7 Super Bowl halftime shows - but I wonder where the NFL’s diversity is?
Here is a breakdown of the demographics of who watches full NFL games:
- 45% of the audience Boomers
- 33% are Gen X
- 21% are Millennials
The artists in the past 7 years of Super Bowl halftime shows do attract members of Gen X, Millennials, and Zoomers (Gen Z) - where are the artists that reflect the largest portion of the NFL audience - Boomers and Gen X?
I’m just going to mention a few names that more cater to Boomers and Gen X:
Green Day - AC/DC - Guns N Roses - Elton John - Metallica - Miley Cyrus - Cher - Alice Cooper.
Those are just a few huge rock names that could have broken the 7-year stretch of artists that represent a somewhat common demographic. Before she died - Dolly Parton would have been a great halftime show.
Once again - I want to be clear about the fact that I’m NOT criticizing ANY of the mega-performers at the Super Bowl halftime shows over the past 7 years - but I am criticizing the NFL for not being more cognizant of artists that more reflect their largest audience. Diversity in the artists that perform at the Super Bowl halftime show is a good thing.
Who would you like to see perform at the Super Bowl halftime show?
