Caitlin McDonnell, James Bolander, Joe Kelly, Taylor Handy

December 5, 2017

COPA 250

Paul Reynolds

Abstract

Throughout the years, there have been many iconic Super Bowl performances. From

Michael Jackson and the Rolling Stones to Beyoncé and Madonna, we have seen many stars of

each generation take the stage to entertain. For many, the only reason they watch the Super Bowl

each year is for the commercials and the halftime show. Speaking from experience, if you are at

a Super Bowl party with mostly arts majors, the majority do not take interest until their favorite

pop artist takes the stage. Most recently, in Super Bowl 50, we saw the performances of

Coldplay, Bruno Mars and Beyoncé. Their performances left the world talking, especially after

Beyoncé and her back up dancers performed her new song “Formation”.

The reason so many people were left talking after Beyoncé’s performance was because of

the political statement she made. Beyoncé and her backup dancers dressed all in black with

black berets, similar to the way the Black Panther Party dressed during the 1960s. In addition,

Beyoncé herself wore a bandolier of bullets. Her bandolier was almost identical to the one

Michael Jackson wore during his 1993 world tour, “Dangerous”. Beyoncé and her dancers

performed “Formation”. Just one day before, she released the video for this song which featured

references to Hurricane Katrina as well as images from the rallies of the “Black Lives Matter”

movement. Many people did not take too easily to this performance, including the Mayor of New

York, Rudy Giuliani who said in a Fox News interview “I think it was outrageous”. However,
Black Lives Matter activist Erika Totten said, “Beyoncé’s message accomplished exactly what

the movement is supposed to.”

Regardless of the performance, the nearly $10 million halftime show, greatly impacted

the ticket sales for all of the performers that year including Bruno Mars and Coldplay. According

to the Huffington Post, the halftime show attracted nearly 111.9 million viewers. Immediately

after her halftime performance, Beyoncé announced a World Tour and Coldplay promoted their

A Head Full of Dreams world tour. Beyoncé grossed $256 million in ticket sales. Single tickets

for Bruno Mar’s show at Club Nomadic averaged $443 in the secondary market and the cheapest

ticket was priced at $262 according to TicketIQ. No matter what statement a halftime show

makes, it is clear that it impacts both the viewers and the artist who is performing that year.