Search icon

Music

13th Jan 2019

Maroon 5 finally recruit support acts for their Super Bowl half time show

Dave Hanratty

Maroon 5 Super Bowl Travis Scott Big Boi

Took them long enough…

The Super Bowl half time show is, for many, as important an event as the big game itself.

NFL fans might scoff at that but surely we can all accept that the Super Bowl is now a multimedia spectacular.

Sure, the actual showdown on the field is of huge importance but there are people who only tune in for the reveal of big movie trailers and, of course, the half time show.

Previous shows of lore boast turns from Bruce Springsteen, U2, Prince, Beyoncé and many, many more throughout the competition’s history.

Justin Timberlake gave it a go last year, only that wasn’t very good at all.

Bigger and bigger things are expected every time the Super Bowl rolls around, and this time out it falls to Maroon 5 to give the stadium a good shake.

Their participation has been met with quite a lot of scepticism, and given that they were responsible for the absolute worst song of 2018, you can understand why.

Anyone who was glued to the coverage of the World Cup last summer will also have some difficult flashbacks of Maroon 5’s cod-reggae heroics that greeted every ad break, so maybe this isn’t the best union of music and sport imaginable.

A big part of the Super Bowl half time show has often been the art of collaboration. Sure, we’ve got the main event, but what special guests will appear to really send this thing skyward?

Much like this year’s Academy Awards, it has proven difficult to land the appropriate star power for the pigskin classic, with the likes of Cardi B, Rihanna, Pink, Adele and JAY-Z all reportedly turning down the chance to bop about with Maroon 5 on 3 February.

Well, fear not, everyone. It’s all sorted now.

Travis Scott and Outkast’s Big Boi will join Maroon 5 at Super Bowl LIII, according to Billboard.

Their report includes an intriguing detail with Scott apparently only agreeing to show up if the NFL joined him in making a $500,000 donation to the Dream Corps, an organisation that champions social justice initiatives.

“I back anyone who takes a stand for what they believe in,” Scott said in a statement.

“I know being an artist that it’s in my power to inspire. So before confirming the Super Bowl Halftime performance, I made sure to partner with the NFL on this important donation.

“I am proud to support Dream Corps and the work they do that will hopefully inspire and promote change.”

So, at least someone is getting something positive out of this.