The Super Bowl Sunday on February 4 had everyone anticipating the game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England Patriots. Will Smith was clearly in the Super Bowl spirit which was evident through the humorous posts via his Instagram! Luckily for him, his team wound up triumphing so I’m certain he didn’t stop celebrating.
Having said that, it seems many weren’t anticipating the half-time show which pop sensation Justin Timberlake headlined. Many felt it unfair that he was able to perform at the Super Bowl while Janet Jackson is still banned after the ‘Nipplegate’ incident which occurred at the 2004 Super Bowl, and this infuriated most Janet fans.
So rather than celebrating Justin’s ‘return’ to the stage, the hashtag #JanetJacksonAppreciationDay was created on Twitter and people celebrated her achievements and records broken as well as her consistency and the longevity of her career. This completely overshadowed Justin’s moment as she became the number one trending topic on Twitter! Success!
Man In The Woods, Justin Timberlake’s latest album on his Instagram
In the wake of his latest album Man of The Woods, music critics were quite harsh as were consumers, which was surprising considering he would soon be headlining the half-time show so the timing was completely off. Poor Justin!
He opened the show with Filthy which is the first single from Man of The Woods accompanied by his uber-talented band “The Tennessee Kids”, and they collectively entertained those present except the viewers.
Throughout the Superbowl, many expressed their boredom and it was clear that many were underwhelmed by Justin’s performance, even going as far as deeming it “The worst Superbowl halftime show of all time!” Yikes!
On a more positive note, Justin performed his smash hit Rock Your Body which, ironically, was the song he performed alongside Janet at the 2004 half-time show where the infamous ‘Nipplegate’ incident took place. Many felt it was distasteful and disrespectful towards Janet which sent Twitter into a frenzy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeVkKoSgkTg
Rumours circulated across social media regarding Justin Timberlake performing with a Prince hologram which Prince expressed his disdain towards prior to his death. Despite this, Justin was adamant as he felt it would be the perfect tribute as the Super Bowl took place in Prince’s hometown, Minnesota.
Thankfully, musician and Prince’s longtime confidant Sheila E revealed that she’d spoken to Justin and a hologram would no longer be included in his performance, however, Justin paid his respects to Prince by projecting Prince in motion onto a large sheet and together sang I Would Die 4 U, which the public (predominantly Prince fans) still weren’t too pleased about.
After all these years, many may wonder why the world holds a grudge towards Justin, well as Janet Jackson fan I can say that it’s truly unfair that Janet, until this day, is banned from performing at the Super Bowl yet despite Justin being the one who actually exposed her breast he is still granted access to the half-time stage.
This further emphasises just how sexist and racist society is towards black women as many are unaware of how the world over-reacted and how this affected Janet’s career. She was completely blacklisted from award shows and radio which resulted in a major decline in her career. She was also forced to apologise to the world meanwhile Justin was still reaping the benefits as he was able to move on from the incident unharmed.
I still appreciate Justin’s artistry but what I don’t respect and believe to be unfair is that he is allowed to make mistakes without the fear of being vilified; Janet, on the other hand, has had to work excruciatingly hard to resurrect her career.
Featured image by Justin Timberlake via Instagram
