Tag Archives: halftime show

All Hail The Sugar Mamas, Beyoncé’s 10-Piece All Female Backing Band

Julie GersteinFebruary 4, 2013 //
Beyonce Bowl
How awesome was Bey at the Superbowl? Read More »
Beyonce GIFs
Nobody works a GIF better than Beyonce. 16 Photos »
Beyonce Sings!
beyonce national anthem
Her huge green earrings stole the show. Read More »
"Check out the boss!"

I always find it maddening when people have the gall to critique a performer like Beyoncé, questioning her star power, or entertainment value, or (gasp!) singing voice. It’s akin to the flunky armchair quarterback, sitting at home saying he would have caught that pass. HA! I’d like to see you try. You absolutely cannot step to Beyonce or her singing abilities — and particularly her balls out Super Bowl halftime performance Sunday night. And you also can’t step to Bey’s backing band, the Sugar Mamas, who bring with them scads of musical experience and sweat equity in the biz. Keep reading »

What Did You Think Of The Black Eyed Peas’ Super Bowl Halftime Show?

Amelia McDonell-ParryFebruary 7, 2011 //


After the first half of last night’s Super Bowl was done — and congrats to the Green Bay Packers, the least rapey team on the field last night, for their win — TRON took over for the halftime show. I mean, the Black Eyed Peas. Slash from Guns ‘N’ Roses showed up too — is he having financial problems? He is way too cool to be standing next to Fergie as she brays the world’s worst Axl Rose impression. Also, a piece of advice for the Peas: if you’re going to insist on singing a four-year-old hit — “I Got A Feeling” — you should at least update the lyrics to reference the current year and not 2008. Speaking of 2008, I have never been so excited to see Usher do the splits in all my damn life. I get that as a spectacle, this might qualify as “entertaining,” but given that my ears are still bleeding, I remain unimpressed. You? Keep reading »

The Weirdest Super Bowl Halftime Show Ever

Amelia McDonell-ParryFebruary 4, 2011 //


I did not grow up in a football-loving family (we went to political rallies on Sundays instead), so the Super Bowl has never meant a whole heck of a lot to me. But since I became an adult, I’ve starting tuning into the big game for three obvious reasons: 1) I like the food commonly served at Super Bowl parties, 2) it’s the only time I’m actually interested in watching commercials, and 3) I want to watch the spectacle that is the halftime show. Consider me officially bummed out, then, that my parents were such pigskin-hating hippies in 1989, the year the halftime show took a significantly bizarre turn in the form of Be-Bop Bamboozled, a magic show that involved 3-D glasses and a magician-slash-Elvis-impersonator in glitter spandex. Check it out above and then go read an utterly fascinating interview with the producer behind the show over at Popdust. This year’s entertainers, the Black Eyed Peas, better bring it. [Popdust] Keep reading »

CBS & Janet Jackson Win Fight For Their Right To Flash

SimchaJuly 22, 2008 //

Justin Timberlake could have Janet Jackson naked by the end of his song. In a surprising landmark judicial decision, the US Circuit Court of Appeals stopped the FCC from fining CBS over half a mil for the infamous 2004 halftime split second strip show…er, wardrobe malfunction. The Court ruled in favor of JT, Janet, and the station for a couple reasons. At the time, the FCC laws weren’t explicit enough to be enforced for the accident, so it became a case of puritanical opinion versus freedom of speech. Also, since it was a live show, there was no way for any CBS employee to prevent Janet’s jug from airing, therefore, there was no network negligence. Nevertheless, Nipplegate was the shot heard ’round the world and the FCC immediately freaked out and created tighter restrictions and higher indecency. The boobie bonanza is over! [Guide Live]

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