It is not simply that Beyonce won the Super Bowl halftime show, she also succeeded in making it a political statement.
Despite Coldplay being the headline of the Super Bowl 50 halftime show, Beyonce stole the limelight. When the announcement from NFL first surface regarding Coldplay playing the halftime show, people assumed that they will only play lip service to previous Super Bowl and that Beyonce would join them since they had recently released a song in collaboration, “Hymn for the Weekend.” People were also expecting Beyonce to outshine Coldplay.
Coldplay did manage to give a great performance. Chris Martin, the lead singer was surrounded by eager fans as he started the proceedings. He performed ‘Adventure of a Lifetime’ and ‘Viva La Vida’ with a smiling face and hyperactive feet. To be fair, Chris Martin’s enthusiasm carried away most of the spectators rendering the halftime performance as one of the best ever.
Next, it was the turn of Bruno Mars, the Super Bowl headliner from 2014. He performed ‘Uptown Funk’ with dancers. The show looked great but the mashed audios meant that people watching the performance of their TV sets could hear nothing other than the noise of the cheering crowd.
And then came Beyonce!
Beyonce’s amazing performance was very much expected since she had given one in 2013 which is still considered one of the best in the history of the games. However, there was much more to the recent rendering of her latest song ‘Formation.’
Only a day before the Super Bowl 50, the singer had released the song featuring the boldest video she has done yet. ‘Formation’ is a song that is more risky, pulpy and filthy, than anything Beyonce has undertaken before.
The song is also deeply embedded in Afro-American culture. The song also has visibly political tones. Beyonce’s performance during the Super Bowl 2016 was true to the video as she came out in a Michael Jackson inspired Jacket. The singer was flanked by black dancers.
Beyonce presentation of ‘Formation’ at the Super Bowl is a purposeful statement. It put black at the center stage in the midst of Coldplay’s performance. However, its main aspect was its overly defiant social note.
Beyonce stole the show the moment she appeared on the stage. The dances were slickly choreographed right down to the knowing smirks that showed from time to time.
When she joined Mars and Coldplay on the stage, everyone knew she would dominate the scene. However, her biggest accomplishment was that she succeeded in transforming the biggest sports events in the country, into a profound political statement.
