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Arts & Entertainment

Bruno Mars Expected To Be Your Super Bowl Halftime Entertainment


By

Ben Yakas

Published Sep 7, 2013

Modified Sep 7, 2013


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By

Ben Yakas

Published Sep 7, 2013

Modified Sep 7, 2013


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After last year's Beyonce Bowl symbolically (or literally?) caused power outages at the Superdome, it's understandable that officials would want to choose someone slightly less spectacular for this year's Super Bowl halftime show. And according to the LA Times, they've chosen just the correct low wattage of star power in that case: Bruno Mars is expected to perform at the halftime show at Super Bowl XLVIII next February. Bon Jovi fans won't be happy about this.

With the Super Bowl taking place at MetLife Stadium in February, locals were hoping that someone like Bon Jovi or Billy Joel would get the nod this year (patron saint of NJ Bruce Springsteen already had a crotch-splitting performance in 2009). One fan had this vision: "We have this amazing heritage of artists — everybody from Bruce to Bon Jovi to Dionne Warwick to Kool & the Gang to Frankie Valli," New Jersey Performing Arts Center CEO John Schreiber told The Star-Ledger. "It’s like an amazing mashup of brilliant Jersey-born-and-raised musicians. You would see the history of rock, performed by the greatest artists in the world, who all hail from New Jersey."

Maybe officials really did want Bon Jovi, but the band is in disarray after guitarist Richie Sambora left the band (or was kicked out) earlier this year. And Joel sorta hates pop music these days. An NFL spokesman would only jokingly confirm to LA Times that "Janet Jackson and Miley Cyrus have been ruled out as performers."

So instead of Jay-Z and Justin Timberlake, instead of Taylor Swift or Lady Gaga or Adele or another NSYNC reunion or (our dream choice) David Bowie, we're left with Mars, who is perfectly adequate and completely uninspiring. He only has two albums and a few huge singles (the best of which, "Locked Out Of Heaven," is pretty much a rip off of The Police), but certainly won't be the worst act to grace the halftime show (it's hard to imagine anything topping the Black Eyed Peas in that regard). It's just pretty underwhelming coming after The Boss, The Stones, Paul McCartney, Prince, Madonna, The Who and Beyonce.

Though we suppose this is a huge get for the fedora industry.

Tagged

bruno mars

football

halftime show

Music

sports

super bowl

whatever


Ben Yakas

Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.

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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations


Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations


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