Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Super Bowl Halftime Show

    So, can I just say, congratulations to Beyonce for winning the Super Bowl. Really, she deserved that second championship.

    Obviously, one of the biggest moments of the Super Bowl, along with the actual game, was the halftime performance that many people sit down and wait for. The halftime show consisted of performances by Beyonce, Coldplay, and Bruno Mars. Beyonce was an eagerly anticipated performer this year due to her highly loved performance at the 2013 Super Bowl and she did her best to not disappoint. 

    The interesting part of her performance was not only her song choice but all of the aspects that went into performing this particular song. She used her performance as a platform to discuss the issues surrounding Black Lives Matter and the powerful message that black is beautiful. She sung her brand new song "Formation" which had just been surprise released the day before she performed. The song and the new music video have strong messages of female empowerment, feeling comfortable in your own skin, and the Black Lives Matter message. 

    What was so amazing was that Beyonce was using this event that was broadcasting in probably every bar and home around America to spread awareness to causes that she believed so strongly about. She has a position to be heard and the power to get others to follow her and she took the Super Bowl as her moment to spread her message.

    Her dancers were even dressed as Black Panthers. Beyonce was surrounded by all black woman dancing with her as she made her appearance and their uniforms were reminiscent of the Black Panther Party, a party against police brutality of black people. Of course, they were dressed in scantily-clad versions of the Black Panthers uniform which raises its own arguments against the sexualization of females but there was a message trying to be sent. Beyonce wore a similar outfit to Michael Jackson's nineties era outfit further empowering her message on the importance of Black Lives Matter. At one point they danced into an X, in homage to Malcom X.

    Besides Beyonce, there was also tribute to LGBT issues made during the performance. At one point the entire backdrop of the stadium erupted into rainbow colors and spelled out the words "Believe in Love." So, overall the Super Bowl Halftime show had incredibly strong messages about the issues surround America in 2016 and the different movements that have occurred because of those issues.

5 comments:

  1. Absolutely forgot my name, sorry about that. It's Taylor!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I didn't actually watch the halftime show but we've talked about it in a lot of my other classes. It is definitely interesting to see that football was used as a platform for social issues when football is mostly considered to be a cultural signifier of violence and toxic masculinity. The fact that there was a tribute to LGBT issues in addition to Beyonce's feminist/black empowerment platform is especially interesting because I think that most "masculine" sports like football as usually homophobic as well.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yes, the amount of inclusivity was great, and from what I hear, it had a lot of homophobic, transphobic, racist people squirming which is, personally, great. I didn't get to actually watch the superbowl, but I did watch the halftime show, and it was a cool moment to see "Believe in Love" breaking up a game that is central to ideas of "masculinity" and American-ness. Glad to see that talented artists were able to make their presence known.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I wrote my blog around the same topic because it truly sent a powerful message to a very broad audience. That these social justice issues around racism, sexism, and homophobia can not be ignored. Even in a male dominated sports arena like the Superbowl. While discussing this topic with other friends that watched the game, there seemed to be an overall nod of approval, even from my more masculine friends. I think Beyoncé was an ideal figure to be the face of this message. She is a very powerful and influential African American women, which gave her a strong platform to stand on in relation to the Black Lives Matter Movement. And the fact that the Superbowl producers had to previously approve the halftime show, sends a message all its own.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Interesting thoughts here, especially contrasting Beyonce's stunning performance with the football context. Do you see any contradictions or tensions in Beyonce's depiction of Black, feminine "power?"

    ReplyDelete