When global pop music megastar Taylor Swift announced last August that she was engaged to marry Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, speculation immediately began that Swift would perform at the Super Bowl LX halftime show.
The demand for Swift is clear. A new survey released this week showed that the “Opalite” singer is the preferred choice of NFL fans to headline the Super Bowl halftime show. She is also a proven draw with TV audiences. Her appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last October drew that program’s largest audience since 2023. Her End of an Era docuseries on the Disney+ streaming service was that platform’s most-watched series, and her concert film, The Eras Tour – The Final Show, was the third-most streamed movie on Disney+.
But the Super Bowl LX halftime show did not feature Swift.
Now, according to a new report, Swift will not perform at next year’s Super Bowl show either, whether she wants to or not. And the reason, according to sources cited in the report, is rapper Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter and who founded and runs Roc Nation, the company in charge of Super Bowl halftime shows since 2019.
Bad Bunny Draws 4th-Highest Viewership Ever
In the end, the Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention and did not play in the Super Bowl. That meant that Kelce was not there, and neither was Swift. Instead, the NFL and Roc Nation — the promotional company run by Jay-Z that contracts with the league to stage Super Bowl halftime performances — chose Puerto Rican rapper Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, better known by his stage name Bad Bunny.
Bad Bunny’s show, despite a political controversy surrounding his selection, turned out to be an unqualified success, averaging a reported 124.9 million viewers, according to Nielsen figures cited by ESPN.
That was slightly down from the previous year when another rap star, Kendrick Lamar, drew 127.7 million. But the Bad Bunny show was nonetheless the fourth-most-watched in Super Bowl history.
But wouldn’t Swift, whose recently ended worldwide “Eras Tour” drew nearly 11 million paying ticket buyers — at prices often ranging from $1,500 to $3,800 per ticket — be next in line to perform at the Super Bowl, and draw almost certain record ratings?
Jay-Z Deems Swift Unacceptably ‘Safe’: Report
The answer to that question, according to the insider report, appears to be “no.”
“Insiders say Jay-Z is thinking bigger, louder, and riskier,” wrote entertainment industry insider Rob Shuter in his Naughty But Nice newsletter on Monday. “Sources tell Naughty But Nice that Jay, who oversees halftime entertainment through Roc Nation, feels fully vindicated after backing a performance some initially doubted.”
After the resounding success of the controversial Bad Bunny performance, the Roc Nation founder “feels empowered,” according to Shuter’s source. “He doesn’t want safe. He wants culture-defining.”
“Taylor equals ratings,” another executive-level music industry source told Shuter. “But Jay isn’t chasing guaranteed anymore. He’s chasing impact.”
According to Shuter’s report, Jay-Z sees the Super Bowl show not as mere entertainment but as a “cultural megaphone” and he wants to “push it further.” Swift does not meet that requirement, according to the insider report.
Another factor, according to Shuter, may be Kelce’s retirement decision. If the future Hall of Famer decides to play another year in the NFL, Shuter reports, citing sources close to Swift, the pop megastar would not want to commit to performing at the Super Bowl because there is a chance Kelce might be on the field.
Report: Jay-Z Rejects Taylor Swift for Super Bowl 61 Halftime