The Super Bowl halftime show from Bad Bunny has opened up a volcano online of upset feelings by right-wingers and conservatives, leading to one prominent figure alleging that white artists have been “banned” from doing the show and being mocked along with others on social media.
Controversial podcaster Matt Walsh went on X, formerly Twitter on Monday (February 9), and quoted a now-deleted post from an account called “End Wokeness,” blaming JAY-Z and Roc Nation for excluding white artists.
“Jay Z took over producing the Super Bowl halftime show in 2019. Since then, white performers have been banned from the show. There hasn’t been a single white headliner at the Super Bowl in 7 years, with the lone exception of Eminem who performed alongside Dr. Dre, Snoop, Kendrick Lamar and other black artists,” Walsh wrote.
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Walsh would see some share his sentiment of falsely believing whites were being excluded, but that bubble burst quickly as others shot holes in his argument. Podcaster Brad Polumbo pointed out that superstar Lady Gaga was a guest performer in Bad Bunny’s show in a post on X, mocking Walsh.
Another X user named Lovely2BeMe called out the inaccuracy in Walsh’s post point by point. “What’s funny about Matt Walsh including that Beyoncé 2016 performance pic is: A) Jay-Z wasn’t even producing the halftime show when that performance happened….so why is it included(we know why)? B) Bey wasn’t even the headliner that year; Coldplay was.”
Walsh and the others openly complaining will probably be unhappy with the Super Bowl Halftime Show for quite some time; Jay-Z and Roc Nation signed a deal with the National Football League to continue their partnership for another five years back in October 2024. The details were not publicized, but the previous deal was valued at $25 million for five years.
“It’s been a mutually positive relationship, I’m not sure either one of us really spend much time talking about contracts. Jay is happy. Desiree Perez is happy. I’m happy, so we’re all good,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goddell said at the time.
