The Best Super Bowl Halftime Shows Ever
The Super Bowl is one of America's greatest sporting events of the year, as the best football teams in the country face off to be crowned Super Bowl champions. But perhaps more appealing than the game itself is the halftime show. The musical performance, usually headlined by one of the top performers in the previous year, draws an average of 110 and 120 million viewers.
Let's examine some of the best and worst Super Bowl halftime shows ever.
Super Bowl XXXIV: The Disney Millenium Performance
One of the worst Super Bowl halftime shows in recent memory. The Disney Millenium performance is at the bottom of our list. It was an interesting premise: Phil Collins, Christina Aguilera, and Enrique Iglesias (but there would be no hero, baby), but it fell flat on its face. All the performers sang an original tune that didn't sit well with the audience. A gigantic Mickey Mouse even made an appearance. It was awful.
Super Bowl XXVIII: Country Mania
In 1994, the Super Bowl was decided between the Dallas Cowboys and the Buffalo Bills in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, with a halftime show starring Clint Black, Wynonna Judd, Travis Tritt, and Tanya Tucker. The main stadium lights were shut off for the first time, so nobody could see anything. Cell phone flashlights didn't exist, and other stadium lights weren't bright enough. What you saw on TV were hundreds of cowgirls and cowboys dancing around. Thankfully, the Dallas Cowboys won the Super Bowl that year.
Super Bowl LIII: Adam Levine & Almost Nobody Else
Super Bowl LIII did occur in 2019, one year before the world went into lockdown, but unfortunately, the largest spectacle in America all year was headlined by Maroon 5. A shirtless Adam Levine with a group of clamoring adoring fans, while Levine and Maroon 5 played much of their music that everybody already knew. Travis Scott also made a rather jarring appearance after the audience had heard Levine for too long.
Super Bowl XL: Three Songs & One Outrageous Stage
Super Bowl XL in 2006 was headlined by one of the greatest rock bands of all time: The Rolling Stones. Unfortunately for the Stones, they played three songs. Just three, that's it. The stage was shaped like the band's logo. Little else was memorable about this halftime show.
Super Bowl XXXI: What Was The Entertainment Here, Again?
We're not sure what was supposed to be more entertaining about Super Bowl XXXI: the performers, their song choices, or the dancers. Despite featuring James Brown, the Blues Brothers, and ZZ Top, the entertainment was enormously underwhelming and mostly focused on the dancer's legs.
Super Bowl XXXIII: A Good Celebration Of Soul, Salsa & Swing
The final Super Bowl of the 20th century, named "A Good Celebration of Soul, Salsa, and Swing," featured Stevie Wonder, Gloria Estefan, and the band "Big Bad VooDoo Daddy". With Stevie Wonder's performances of "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life" and "I Wish". Unfortunately, the sound mixing was off during the entire performance.
Super Bowl LII: Justin Timberlake & A Projection Of Prince
Super Bowl LII's halftime show featured Justin Timberlake performing in Minneapolis, with a projection of Prince on a sheet behind him. Perhaps organizers were attempting to pay homage to the hometown hero. Unfortunately, Prince (and Timberlake) were upstaged by the previous year's performance when Lady Gaga jumped off the roof for her entrance. A poorly planned and even worse execution of an homage to a great American musician.
Super Bowl XLVI: The... Who?
The Who's Super Bowl XLVI performance of "Baba O'Riley," "Pinball Wizard," "Who Are You?" and "Won't Get Fooled Again," along with a large laser show. It was generally an unforgettable performance.
History's most fascinating stories and darkest secrets, delivered to your inbox daily.
Super Bowl XXXVII: Shania Twain, Sting, And No Doubt
Shania Twain, Sting, and Gwen Stefani-led No Doubt headlined the halftime show in 2003, with Twain kicking off proceedings with "Man! I Feel Like A Woman," followed by Gwen Stefani's "Just A Girl". It was all capped off with Sting and Stefani performing "Message In A Bottle". It was uninspiring and unexciting, despite the "punk-rock" cheerleaders who jumped about on trampolines seven minutes into the performances.
Super Bowl XLII: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers are one of America's greatest musical acts. They headlined the Super Bowl in 2008 and played their best hits—including "American Girl" and "Free Fallin'". The only disappointing part of Petty's performance was the lack of dancers or other entertainers.
Super Bowl XXXIX: Paul McCartney
Super Bowl XXXIX was the safest Super Bowl performance in history. Just Paul McCartney and his guitar. While there's nothing inherently wrong with the legend performing by himself at the Super Bowl, it did feel like the organizers had tried to erase the events of the previous year—the infamous Janet Jackson incident.
Super Bowl: XLVIII: Bruno Mars & The Red Hot Chili Peppers
Bruno Mars's headlining over the Red Hot Chili Peppers seems wrong, but in 2014, the Super Bowl halftime show seemed intent on saturating the performance with "'Murica!" enthusiasm. From the children holding hands in front of the Star-Spangled Banner to soldiers dedicating "Just The Way You Are" to their families.
Super Bowl XXXVI: U2 Isn't What America Needed
This was one of the first major sporting events in the country after the September 11 attacks, and who should take center stage but Bono and U2? While the subdued, almost melancholy affair was fitting for the context, perhaps the country needed some Bruce Springsteen-esque inspiration. Bono didn't exactly provide that, especially against the backdrop of the names of the victims behind him.
Super Bowl LV: The Weeknd's Post-COVID Performance
The Weeknd's post-COVID performance was muted, to say the least. Complete with just one outfit change that swapped one bright red-lather diamond-encrusted jacket for another, one under-stage song that saw him walk through a glittery maze, and he was joined on the field after 10 long minutes by dancers. Everyone seemed to be observing COVID protocols, but it didn't make for a particularly exciting Super Bowl halftime show.
Super Bowl XLIII: Bruce Springsteen's Unimaginative Halftime Show
Bruce Springsteen is one of the greatest rockers America has ever produced. And while his 2009 show did include greats like "Working On A Dream," "10th Avenue Freeze Out," and "Born To Run," his solo act with a guitar was something you'd also have seen at one of his concerts. Seeing The Boss pull out something new, different, and memorable.
Super Bowl LVIII: An Underwhelming Usher
Usher was a great choice to headline the 2024 Super Bowl halftime show. However, the organizers, Apple Music, executed the show poorly. Usher starred alongside Alicia Keys, Lil Jon, and Ludacris but couldn't be outshone as he appeared shirtless onstage (to fans' thunderous applause). Unfortunately, other than Usher's appeal, not much else was memorable.
Super Bowl XXXII: Smokey Robinson, Martha Reeves & The Temptations, BoyzIIMen
Thankfully, BoyzIIMen and Queen Latifah gave the older genre of music, personified in this Super Bowl halftime show by Smokey Robinson and Martha Reeves, a fresh injection of youth. Although the show was very family-friendly, it needed something to boost the energy.
Super Bowl LVII: Rihanna Steals The Show, Even While Pregnant
Rihanna didn't have to do much while performing at the halftime show in 2023. Not that she could, as the singer was pregnant at the time—she nevertheless delivered a stellar performance without doing much moving and shaking.
Super Bowl XXIX: The Most Eccentric Super Bowl Halftime Show?
It can be said that Super Bowl XXIX was the most eccentric Super Bowl halftime show one could imagine. Including a Satanic ritual involving the Super Bowl Trophy, Patti LaBelle's attire of a sequin-crusted demonic goddess, a flaming ninja—oh, and Indiana Jones flying in on a parachute. You know, for good measure. It is one of the wildest Super Bowl halftime shows ever.
Super Bowl XLV: Missing The "V"
The Black-Eyed Peas descended from the Super Bowl XLV rafters before it was cool to do so! They sang all their usual hits in a pop-filled mania. Unfortunately, on "Where Is The Love?" the "LOVE" onstage was supposed to be illuminated with lightbulbs, but a view from above showed that a prong of the "V" was missing. This left a mark on an otherwise good performance.
Super Bowl LIV: Shakira & J-Lo's Nod To Immigrants
One couldn't help but notice the heavy political undertones in Shakira and Jennifer Lopez's 2020 halftime show performance. While the political climate in the US meant that you could hardly escape it, the nod to immigrants couldn't be louder than when J-Lo and her daughter Emme appeared together onstage, with the latter performing "Born In The USA". Bravo, ladies. Bravo.
Super Bowl LI: Lady Gaga's Emmy-Nominated Halftime Show
One of the greatest halftime shows was also the most technologically advanced. It featured a formation of drones, Gaga's dive off the stadium roof, and an army of dancers throwing spears resembling Star-Trek-inspired direct-energy weapons. The performance was so good that it was nominated for a record-setting six Emmys, winning one: a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lighting.
Super Bowl XXVII: Michael Jackson At The Rose Bowl
Despite having 13 years of practice, network TV still hadn't figured out how to air the Super Bowl properly. There was three-minute applause for Jackson before he even played a note. Then, there was a commercial break in the middle of it. Jackson played "We Are The World" and then "Heal The World", between moonwalks, but didn't reach into any of his back catalog that the audience was hoping for. More was expected from The King of Pop.
Super Bowl 50: Coldplay, Beyonce & Bruno Mars
The 50th anniversary of the Super Bowl saw Coldplay, Beyonce, and Bruno Mars (for their second appearances). At the same time, Coldplay's performance was forgettable, but Bruno Mars made up for it with "Uptown Funk". Then, Beyonce came into her own and saved Coldplay's abysmal performance.
Super Bowl XXX: Diana Ross
Diana Ross was the perfect person to play at the 30th edition of the Super Bowl halftime show, starring in a 13-and-a-half minute show that NBC tried to shorten to 12. Ross played many of her greatest hits, including "Stop! In The Name Of Love," "Baby Love," "You Keep Me Hangin' On," and ended with "Take Me Higher" and "I Will Survive". She was carried off the field by a helicopter, so that's quite an exit.
Super Bowl XLIX: Katy Perry
Katy Perry's performance at XLIX was slightly overshadowed by Bryan Gaw, a dancer that'd been touring with Katy Perry's ensemble prior to the Super Bowl performance. But this time, Bryan was dressed in a seven-foot-tall shark costume, likely as an homage to the Seattle Seahawks, Gaw began to wildly flail around not in sync with Perry's performance. While Perry's performance was okay, "Left Shark" became an internet sensation immediately.
Super Bowl XXXV: Aerosmith & N'Sync
2001 was the first year that fans were allowed on the Super Bowl field surrounding the stage. It was a changing cultural moment that was personified by N'Sync performing "Bye, Bye, Bye" while Steven Tyler belted out "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing". An iconic first for the Super Bowl that set the stage for fans' entry onto the field and made the whole spectacle a lot more exciting.
Super Bowl LVI: Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J Blige, Kendrick Lamar
Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, and Mary J Blige teamed up for Super Bowl LVI's halftime show, playing 25 years of hip-hop music in the space of a few minutes. It was a lot. It was good and upbeat and got the crowd going, but it was a lot. A masterclass of hip-hop mania from the greats of the genre.
Super Bowl XLVII: Beyonce & Destiny's Child
Without a single costume change, Beyonce and Destiny's Child pulled off one of the greatest Super Bowl performances ever. From Beyonce's individual performances of "Crazy In Love," and "Baby Boy," finishing off with "Halo", before welcoming former Destiny's Child bandmates to the stage for "Single Ladies," Beyonce's commitment to only bringing female performers to the stage in that era sent a loud and clear message.
Super Bowl XLVI: Madonna, LMFAO, Nicki Minaj, Cee Lo Green
Madonna's 2012 halftime show performance was one for the ages. It showed the younger generation that accompanied her act how it was done. She was carried to the stage by Spartan soldiers and dressed as a Greek goddess. Beat that, Lady Gaga. "Open Your Heart" with Cee Lo Green began, before LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem" nearly bought the house down.
Super Bowl XLI: Prince
But, of course, there can only be one. The great man himself: Prince. Performing at Super Bowl XLI in 2007, Prince's show didn't have much of the extravagance of today's performer, but it was simply incredible. Opening with "We Will Rock You" by Queen, Prince progressed through four songs before finishing with, "Purple Rain"—in the pouring rain, no less. A stunning performance that has (thus far) been unmatched.
What Do You Think Is The Greatest Super Bowl Half-Time Performance Of All-Time?
Do you have a favorite Super Bowl halftime show? Let us know what it is in the comments below! Does Prince top your list, or is there another more worthy contender?
You May Also Like:
Are You A Football Buff? How Many Of These NFL Trivia Questions Can You Answer?
Ranking The Best Quarterbacks Of All-Time
Brutal Facts About The Most Memorable NFL Stars
Sources:
