Maroon 5 will be headlining the halftime show at the upcoming Super Bowl in Atlanta in February. But it doesn’t seem like the pop band was the NFL’s first choice.
According to this report from US Weekly, both the NFL and CBS had wanted Rihanna to headline the show. She declined. The reason? Rihanna stands with free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick and isn’t a fan of the way the league has handled the ongoing National Anthem controversy.
“The NFL and CBS really wanted Rihanna to be next year’s performer in Atlanta. They offered it to her, but she said no because of the kneeling controversy. She doesn’t agree with the NFL’s stance,” the magazine reported, citing an insider close to the situation.
This is the first time that the Kaepernick-led protests and the league’s handling of it has impacted the brand when it comes to this already overrated mid-game performance.
It’s also important to note that Rihanna has been a boisterous supporter of Kaepernick since he started said protests back in August of 2016. It’s in this that we shouldn’t be considered too surprised.