The NFL is reportedly deciding between three acts for this year’s Super Bowl. They also have some “requests” that just goes to show that the NFL isn’t afraid to throw its weight around when it comes to the almighty dollar.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the Super Bowl halftime show will be played by Katy Perry, Rihanna or Coldplay. The NFL has also asked “at least some of the acts” for a cut of their post-Super Bowl tour money or a “financial contribution” which sounds entirely legit and not at all like a shakedown.
The NFL has narrowed down the list of potential performers for the 2015 Super Bowl to three candidates: Rihanna, Katy Perry, and Coldplay, these people said. While notifying the artists’ camps of their candidacy, league representatives also asked at least some of the acts if they would be willing to contribute a portion of their post-Super Bowl tour income to the league, or if they would make some other type of financial contribution, in exchange for the halftime gig.
The request reportedly (and unsurprisingly) got a “chilly reception” from the candidates’ camps.
The NFL has gotten by without paying their Super Bowl halftime performers, based off the idea that the exposure is worth it for the artists. Bruno Mars played the Super Bowl without compensation:
They were coming to my shows and they popped the question. It’s one of those things where I feel like it’s early on in my career, but … it’s definitely something on a bucket list. It’s the biggest stage ever. It’s something you’re not gonna say no to.”
It’s not something a musician says no to, despite not getting paid.
“We do not pay,” NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy told Forbes last year. “We cover all expenses associated with the performance.”
Still, it seems rather shitty that a money-making machine like the NFL would ask acts to pay them to perform at the Super Bowl.
