Music

Wow, The Internet Really Didn’t Enjoy Maroon 5’s Superbowl Halftime Show

"It's actually a 100 million dollar ad for white people."

by Jared Richards  4 February 2019
Maroon 5

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The Superbowl halftime show is a legacy gig for musicians, a 10 minute all-in spectacle where they have the chance to grab the whole world’s attention. When Maroon 5 was announced as this year’s act, the reaction was tepid — and unfortunately for Adam Levine and co., the internet, an ever cruel and harsh critic, was far from won over by their performance.

The band was joined by Big Boi and Travis Scott as they blazed through songs from Songs About Jane, and more recent hits, like ‘Moves Like Jagger’. People were not impressed — on Twitter, it was essentially a race to see who could make the funniest joke the quickest.

There was even a much-hyped cameo from Spongebob, as a tribute to the show’s creator Stephen Hillenburg, who passed away last November.

They introduced Scott with a clip from ‘Sweet Victory’, a 2001 episode where the sponge performs at the Bubble Bowl, Bikini Bottom’s version of the Super Bowl. The wider public was confused with Scott’s short performance, while Spongebob fans weren’t impressed with the shorter ‘Sweet Victory’ snippet.

Elsewhere, viewers questioned the relative lack of theatrics or style in Maroon 5’s performance.

This year’s Superbowl performance follows last year’s equally maligned show with Justin Timberlake. Timberlake previously performed in an infamous guest spot during Janet Jackson’s 2004 Superbowl show, where he intentionally revealed her nipple by tearing off part of her costume.

The incident essentially derailed Jackson’s career. Given that Adam Levine tore off his shirt during ‘Moves Like Jagger’, many online found it hypocritical.

To be fair, the odds were stacked against Maroon 5. This year’s Superbowl performance was always going to struggle, as it had been revealed that the band were far from the NFL’s first pick.

Pink, Rihanna and Cardi B all declined to perform, with the latter two doing so due to their support of footballer Colin Kaepernick. Kaepernick has filed a lawsuit agains the NFL, claiming that they tried to lock him out from league after he repeatedly kneeled during pre-game playings of the US national anthem as a protest against police brutality towards African Americans.