Getty
It’s the 2019 Super Bowl Halftime Show and Maroon 5 has put on quite the performance. Tonight, Maroon 5 took the M-shaped stage in the middle of Mercedes-Benz Stadium to perform, with Travis Scott and Big Boi joining them as well. The band kicked off the show with a performance of their song “Harder to Breathe,” followed by “This Love”. Then, a short Sponge Bob clip aired before introducing rapper Travis Scott, who appeared on stage in a giant fireball.
Spongebob intros @trvisXX during the #SuperBowl halftime show t.co/iwO7K8xmZZ
Scott was joined by Maroon lead singer Adam Levine, who then transitioned into a performance of his hit song “Girls”. Accompanied by a marching band and a choir, Levine carried out the song on stage.
He then performed the song “She Will Be Loved” and made his way into the crowd, who was equipped with lanterns. As the lanterns were shown throughout the stadium, the words “One Love” lit up in the stadium.
Big Boi then rode out in a car, singing “The Way You Move”.
Atlanta rapper @BigBoi performs The Way You Move during the #SuperBowl halftime show t.co/iwO7K8xmZZ
Soon, Levine started taking off his jacket, then his shirt to perform songs including “Moves Like Jagger”. Fireworks then erupted from the stadium, to bring an end to the show.
.@Maroon5 lights up the #SuperBowl with medley of hits t.co/iwO7K8xmZZ
Prior to the big show, Maroon 5, Travis Scott and Big Boi faced criticism over their decisions to accept the Super Bowl gig, because of all the controversy surrounding the NFL’s treatment of Colin Kaepernick. For those unfamiliar with Kaepernick, he was a backup quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers and, in 2016, he decided to “take a knee” during the singing of “The National Anthem before games, in a silent protest against the police shootings of unarmed black people in America, according to Vox. Other players began to follow suit. Once Kaepernick became a free agent in 2017, he was not offered a contract from any team in the NFL. Currently, he is in a legal battle with the league.
Upon agreement to play the Super Bowl, Scott, Maroon 5, and the NFL collaborated in making a $500,000 donation to the nonprofit social justice organization Dream Corps, according to USA Today. The statement that Scott released about the charitable donation read, “I back anyone who takes a stand for what they believe in. I know, being an artist, that it’s in my power to inspire. So before confirming the Super Bowl Halftime performance, I made sure to partner with the NFL on this important donation. I am proud to support Dream Corps and the work they do that will hopefully inspire and promote change.” In addition, Adam Levine of Maroon 5 said that the band wanted to make sure to honor people of color, and those who felt their voices have not been heard, in their Halftime Show.
More than 100 Americans were expected to tune in for the 2019 Super Bowl Halftime Show.