Super Bowl LIII halftime show

Super Bowl LIII halftime show
DateFebruary 3, 2019
LocationAtlanta, Georgia, U.S.
VenueMercedes-Benz Stadium
HeadlinerMaroon 5
Special guests
SponsorPepsi
DirectorHamish Hamiliton
ProducerRicky Kirshner
Super Bowl halftime show chronology
LII
(2018) 		LIII
(2019) 		LIV
(2020)

The Super Bowl LIII Halftime Show, officially known as the Pepsi Super Bowl LIII Halftime Show, took place on February 3, 2019, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, as part of Super Bowl LIII. It was headlined by Maroon 5, joined by rappers Big Boi and Travis Scott as guests.

Prior to the show, it was reported several musicians turned down offers to perform the show due to their support for Colin Kaepernick, who has accused the NFL and its franchises of colluding against him for his national anthem protests against police brutality. As such, Maroon 5, Big Boi, and Scott, along with national anthem singer Gladys Knight, were criticized by fans and critics for accepting the invitation.[1][2] In response to the controversy, Scott only agreed to participate if the NFL made a donation to a charity supporting social justice, and Maroon 5 later announced a similar donation to Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.[3][4] Following the death of SpongeBob SquarePants creator Stephen Hillenburg, an online petition to pay tribute to Hillenburg went viral (based on an episode that, itself, centered around a halftime show), leading to a short clip being created for the performance.[5]

The show was universally panned by critics and audiences and is widely considered to be one of the worst Super Bowl halftime shows of all time, with critics considering the show to be "boring" and "underwhelming".[6][7][8][9] They also argued that the choice of Maroon 5 intended to be "safe" and uncontroversial in the wake of the Kaepernick controversy. While cited as a highlight of the show, the SpongeBob clip received negative reviews for its short length; and a portion of the show where Adam Levine was shirtless received audience backlash in comparisons to Janet Jackson's 2004 performance.

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