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Why Lil Wayne Was NOT Chosen Over Kendrick Lamar For the Super Bowl Halftime Show

The internet has been in an uproar after the announcement that Kendrick Lamar was announced as the headlining act for the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

First off, this is not a story meant to kick Lil Wayne while heโ€™s down. He is unquestionably one of the greatest and most influential MCs ever. Heโ€™s done a lot for hip-hop and deserves to be honored on a national stage.

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Trump’s Tariffs Might Stick Around. What Should We Buy Now?
Trump’s Tariffs Might Stick Around. What Should We Buy Now?

But we at The Root donโ€™t have to put down Wayne to be excited about Kendrick Lamar performing. We also donโ€™t have to put down Lamar to defend Wayneโ€™s legacy. The two can both exist and be great in the same space.

The goal of this story is to simply give reasons why the New Orleans MC may have not been chosen for the Super Bowl Halftime Show in his hometown. Thatโ€™s all.

Hometown artists are rarely picked for the Halftime Show

The main reason fans are upset that Lil Wayne is not headlining the Super Bowl Halftime Show is because itโ€™s taking place in his hometown of New Orleans. It would be cool if the NFL had a history of picking hometown artists for the Super Bowl...but it doesnโ€™t.

In fact, for the last 30 years, the NFL has only once chosen hometown artists, and that was in 2022 for Super Bowl LVI when Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and Kendrick Lamar performed at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.

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Lil Wayne is more popular than he is relevant

STAY WITH ME. This is not to say that Lil Wayne does not have name recognition or people do not know who he is. Heโ€™s a popular figure, but right now, Kendrick Lamar is much more culturally relevant than Wayne.

For the last six months, every move Lamar has made has been the most talked about thing in popular culture, let alone hip-hop. His verse on โ€œLike That,โ€ his beef with Drake, the Pop Out show, and so on.

I guarantee NFL execs had a look at the number of people who streamed his โ€œKen and Friendsโ€ show and wanted that same audience to watch his halftime performance.

As one user wrote on X, โ€œDonโ€™t be upset that Wayne wasnโ€™t selected, be upset that he hasnโ€™t been selected.โ€

During the late 2000s and early 2010s, Wayne was the most culturally relevant rap artist out and had the reach to headline the Super Bowl halftime show. He just never got the opportunity. The 2013 Super Bowl XLVII was in New Orleans and he wasnโ€™t chosen. Where was the outrage then?

Kendrick Lamar is an excellent live performer

This should be the most obvious reason. Kendrick Lamar is an excellent live performer who would easily put on an entertaining show for TV. Thatโ€™s the key. Thereโ€™s a difference between being a good live performer at a normal concert and being a good performer for a TV audience. K. Dot has proven to be both.

While people try to act like Lamar just got hot off of his feud with Drake, itโ€™s clear that he has the catalog to carry a halftime show that could be enjoyed by millions. He checks every box an artist needs to perform at an event of this magnitude.

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Wayneโ€™s politics are suspect

This is not to say that the NFL isnโ€™t above promoting and celebrating people who have questionable political affiliations. But in the middle of election season, it would cause outrage if a man who endorsed Donald Trump is announced to perform at the Halftime Show.

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His 2016 comments on Black Lives Matter are also suspect: He said during an interview with Linsey Davis that he doesnโ€™t feel connected to the movement as a rich rapper.

โ€œI donโ€™t feel connected to a damn thing that ainโ€™t got nothing to do with me,โ€ he said, removing a cloth from his back pocket. โ€œIโ€™m connected to this flag right f**king here, because Iโ€™m connected. Iโ€™m a gangbanger now.โ€

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The NFL is in the money-making business

This might be the most important reason. I think thereโ€™s a cultural disconnect with some Lil Wayne fans who think he shouldโ€™ve been the headlining act for the Super Bowl halftime show. While thereโ€™s no doubt heโ€™s known worldwide, more eyes would be on a Kendrick Lamar performance. Thatโ€™s all the NFL cares about.

Yes, I know Jay-Z and Roc Nation are involved. But this halftime show is not just for hip-hop fans to enjoy. If it were, they wouldโ€™ve chosen hip-hop artists as the headlining act for years now. But itโ€™s for casual fans โ€” who need to be neither fans of hip-hop or sports โ€” to enjoy.

This year, Lamarโ€™s reach is so big that people who never pay attention or care about the genre are all of a sudden experts on everything heโ€™s done in the past six months.

Every box for the NFL will be checked. Hip-hop fans who donโ€™t normally watch the Super Bowl will tune in and people who just recently started paying attention to Lamarโ€™s every move will also watch. Itโ€™s everything the league wants.

Straight From The Root

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