The Farr Side: Everyone is an expert on Superbowl entertainment

I love hearing chatter about stuff like the Super Bowl. All of a sudden, everyone is a pro and knows everything about the game and the teams. The same goes for the Super Bowl half-time show. Everybody’s a critic no matter who does the 12-minute extravaganza.

Every year it seems I feel the need to justify the event for days afterward. Can I just remind everyone that music is subjective. There is no possible way to ever please everyone one hundred percent of the time. It’s just not fathomable.

The Super Bowl might be the only night of the entire year I might sit down and actually watch the football game. It’s not that I don’t appreciate the game, it’s more that I don’t follow it enough to know anything about it. However, that half-time show — well, that’s a big deal for me. It’s the world’s biggest stage and millions of people watching.

Super Bowl LVII pits the Philadelphia Eagles against the Kansas City Chiefs in a game broadcast from Glendale, Ariz., this Feb. 12. And, you can bet one of these teams will come away the winner. More importantly, will superstar Rihanna?

I was pretty stoked that learn that the Super Bowl half-time show entertainment this year was going to be Rihanna. I’m excited to see what she can bring to the festivities. It’s her first real performance after giving birth and becoming a mother. So, the pressure is on big time!

I’ve enjoyed many of the previous half-time events. I’m still pretty partial to the year Michael Jackson stepped up the job. And, boy did he! He was the first real super star entertainer given the chance to dazzle on the worldwide stage. It was Super Bowl XXVI.

There were no expectations and no real other hardcore Super Bowl shows prior to compare. But, it was Michael Jackson. And, he was a game-changer on every level.

Jackson commanded the show that opened with a springboard catapulting him up through the stage floor. Who can recount that incredible awkward moment of silence when he just stood there motionless and in sunglasses? It was powerful. He opened with “Billie Jean” and then entertained with a thrilling mix of hits amid massive amounts of fanfare from those in attendance in the stands and those who rushed the field.

Some other half-time shows that struck my fancy included Prince (XLI), Madonna (XLVI), Bruce Springsteen (XLIII), Lady Gaga (LI) and Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar (LVI).

I can’t help but also remember the time when U2 performed for Super Bowl XXXVI.

They had the job of being the first act to perform after the horrific events of 9/11. The scrolling names of those who lost their lives in the attacks were shown as The Edge played the uplifting chords to “Where The Streets Have No Name.”

The Weeknd also had an interesting moment to appease the critics with his performance during Super Bowl LV. He performed during the height of the Pandemic.

There was no live audience and it was left up to him to come through. It was definitely interesting as he took more of an artistic approach. It was welcomed with mixed reviews and some pretty hard criticism. Again, this was n interesting time for everyone, including him. I can’t fault him. He showed up!

Rihanna has an amazing repertoire of hits she can pull from with, I’m sure, some tricks up her sleeve. I’m curious who might join her on stage.

Chris Stapleton is set to perform the National Anthem. I think he’ll do a stellar job as his voice is strong and he’ll deliver the anthem with conviction.

Whitney Houston will always be my favorite. She set the bar so high when she performed “The Star Spangled Banner” at Super Bowl XXV. Let’s not forget that her rendition also landed her in the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100.

— David T. Farr is a Journal correspondent. Email him at farrboy@hotmail.com.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: The Farr Side: Everyone is an expert on Superbowl entertainment