Getty Do Super Bowl performers like Rihanna get paid?
Super Bowl 2023 performers don’t get paid, but that’s a long-standing tradition, and they do earn money through increased popularity and sales as a result of the visibility, according to The Sporting News.
According to the Sporting News, although Super Bowl halftime performers like Rihanna (and Michael Jackson and Justin Timberlake in the past) don’t get paid for their performance, they do gain other benefits.
For one, they receive exposure to a massive audience. “The Super Bowl is a cultural event more so than it is a sporting event,” Brandon Brown, a clinical assistant professor of sport management, told Reuters. “So you’ll have people who are not sports fans whatsoever tuning into the Super Bowl. The NFL has done a really good job embedding itself into the American culture.”
According to Esquire, the Super Bowl still draws almost 100 million viewers, giving performers massive exposure.
Rihanna is the main Super Bowl halftime performer for the February 12, 2023, Super Bowl. The Kansas City Chiefs are playing the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 2023. CBS Sports has a list of every other Super Bowl halftime performer here.
According to Forbes, Rihanna is returning to the stage after six years away.
Here’s what you need to know:
Past Super Bowl Performers Saw a Large Increase in Sales
GettyRecording artist Justin Timberlake performs onstage during the Pepsi Super Bowl LII Halftime Show at U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4, 2018.
According to the Sporting News, the National Football League covers the “costs for the theatrics” involved in the halftime performances.
In other words, the stage, smoke, lighting, and so forth are all funded by the NFL, The Sporting News reported. The halftime performance by Shakira and Jennifer Lopez cost $13 million, Esquire reported.
However, according to the Sporting News, performers generally see an increase “in their streaming numbers” because of the broadcast.
According to the Sporting News, Justin Timberlake’s album sales exploded by 534 percent after he performed during halftime in 2019.
Billboard reported that Maroon 5 saw a 434% increase in sales after a Super Bowl halftime performance. Esquire reported that Lady Gaga’s digital catalog sales “spiked 1000% following her 2017 performance.”
Rihanna doesn’t need the money. She is worth an estimated $1.3 billion, according to CBS News.
The NFL Does Pay for Expenses for Performers
GettyShakira, left, and Jennifer Lopez, right, perform onstage during the Pepsi Super Bowl LIV Halftime Show at Hard Rock Stadium on February 2, 2020 in Miami, Florida.
Esquire reported that the NFL does pay for travel expenses for performers.
Controversy has resulted over the years because of the NFL’s historic practice of not paying halftime dancers, classifying them as volunteers, Jacobin reported.
In 2016, the NFL decided to pay some volunteers after controversy resulted.
Rihanna said on the NFL’s The Process with Nate Burleson podcast that she studied Beyonce’s Super Bowl performance when practicing for her own.
“I watched Beyoncé’s halftime performances a couple of times. She is a beast and a whole other level. Just to be inspired, really,” Rihanna told the host.
“Motherhood, Oscars, Super Bowl; I’m still pinching myself, really,” she told Entertainment Tonight. “I’m grateful. I’m grateful.”
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