Maroon 5’s Superbowl performance fails to live up to expectations

Maroon 5 receive backlash for the Superbowl Half time show.

American pop rock band Maroon 5 took to the stage at the end of what has been described as one of the most underwhelming displays in Super Bowl history.

The build-up to the event had been marred by controversy, with stars including Rihanna reportedly turning down the gig to show support for quarterback Colin Kaepernick. This meant Maroon 5 had to play the Cardi B duet Girls Like You without their star collaborator, after she declined to appear, citing solidarity with Kaepernick. “There’s a man who sacrificed his job for us, so we got to stand behind him,” she explained earlier this week according to the BBC.

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When we accepted the responsibility to perform at the SBHTS, I took out my pen and just wrote. Some of the words that came to me in that moment eventually made their way onto the incredible lanterns that flew high and low tonight. We thank the universe for this historic opportunity to play on the world’s biggest stage. We thank our fans for making our dreams possible. And we thank our critics for always pushing us to do better. One Love. ❤️ And the list of words is… Forgive Laugh Cry Smile Share Live Endure Embrace Remember Enlighten Preserve Inspire Sweat Fight Express Give Receive Elevate Climb Unify Fortify Soften Dance Scream Dream Educate Provide Inhale Exhale Persevere Stand Kneel Overcome Love Listen

A post shared by Maroon 5 (@maroon5) on Feb 3, 2019 at 5:44pm PST

Wary of a backlash, Maroon 5 canceled the traditional pre-game press conference in order to “let their show do the talking”.

Colin has been without a team since he started kneeling during the pre-game performance of the US national anthem in protest against alleged police brutality against minorities.

Telegraph reported that the show itself passed without incident and saw Maroon 5 perform some of their best-known hits, including “This Love”, “Girls Like You”, “She Will Be Loved”, “Moves like Jagger” and “Sugar”.

At one point Levine stripped to the waist to show off his heavily tattooed torso which led to a whole conversation that Levine showing his nipples was highly inoffensive and they gave a bland performance.

According to the People, many compared his shirtless performance to the Janet Jackson infamous wardrobe malfunction during her 2004 Super Bowl set with Justin Timberlake. Many wondered why it was okay for him to show nipples while Jackson was roasted for it. In the incident Timberlake went to remove her corset and accidentally tore off her bra too, exposing her bare breast. Timberlake headlined the 2018 show while Jackson has never been invited back to perform at the biggest sporting event again.

Rapper Travis Scott was introduced by a Spongebob Squarepants animated short before an asteroid light installation announced his arrival on stage. He performed his hit song “Sicko Mode” before falling back into the crowd.

With all said and done, Maroon 5’s Super Bowl half-time show had everything from comets, drones, marching bands to Spongebob Squarepants, except an emotional connection with the fans.