This year’s halftime show was a nod to old-school LA hip-hop with unreal performances by Dr.Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar and surprise guest, 50 Cent. For the first time ever, rap and hip-hop dominated the halftime show, and it has garnered a lot of respect and praise over the past 24 hours.
OMG!!!!!!!!! WOW WOW WOW!!!!!!!! THE GREATEST HALFTIME SHOW IVE EVER SEEN!!!
— LeBron James (@KingJames) February 14, 2022
However, this applause comes with no shortage of controversy and critique. Most notably, Eminem kneeling during his performance as a nod to former San Fransisco quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, who took a knee during the national anthem to protest police brutality in 2016.
The N.F.L. has stated that they knew of Eminem’s plans to kneel at the end of his performance of “Lose Yourself.”
Eminem taking a knee for Kaepernick? pic.twitter.com/T4p3vOHBUC
— The Recount (@therecount) February 14, 2022
The N.F.L. partnered with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, in 2019 to revive the hype surrounding the halftime show. When announcing this deal the league expressed their efforts “to amplify the league’s social justice efforts.”
Eminem’s kneeling statement is up for speculation as to whether it was a calculated move by the N.F.L., to mitigate their public scandals. Most recently, Brian Flores and his allegations of racial discrimination within the league.
The Puck reporting that the NFL didn’t want Eminem to kneel, made others believe that Eminem was, in fact, sticking it to the football league and that the N.F.L. is now trying to cover their tracks by claiming to have “watched it during rehearsals this week.” and that they supported his position.
Either way, this widespread cultural controversy divides America, and while some celebrate the history-making performance, others are not impressed by the political statement. Claiming it was not suitable for “family entertainment.”
Where I stand on the matter
I loved the halftime show, I agree with Lebron, it was the best halftime show ever!!!!! I think it’s unreasonable to argue that it’s not family-friendly when in previous years there have been the same levels of provactive-ness, whether it be in Shakira’s dancing or J-Lo’s lyrics (which I also have no problem with, but it’s unfair to throw a stink about the 2022 line-up and not compare past years.)
You can’t be ‘pick and choosy’ as to what is “family-friendly” especially when a lot of viewers (men) have no problem objectifying women and seeing their nudity as a suitable form of entertainment, yet hip-hop is “tasteless.” The halftime show wasn’t vulgar, violent or distasteful. If you think that a group of African-American performers is inherently inappropriate, you have some deeper-rooted issues to deal with.