Super Bowl performances by Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez and Janet Jackson criticised as ‘vulgar’ by Republicans calling for more ‘family friendly’ shows
This year’s famous Super Bowl half-time show needs to be more “family friendly”, a group of critics has said – following what they describe as “vulgar” past performances by Jennifer Lopez and Rihanna, and the infamous Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction”.
Republican politicians and campaigners in Louisiana have written a letter to organisers raising “serious concerns” ahead of this year’s Super Bowl, which is due to take place at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans in February.
Grammy-winning rapper Kendrick Lamar will headline the half-time show.
In a letter signed by 17 Republican senators and representatives for Louisiana, as well as 15 pro-family organisations, critics called out Lopez‘s performance alongside Shakira in Florida in 2020, saying the star “wore little clothing and was groped by male and female dancers on stage”, and also “made sexually suggestive gestures and performed on a stripper pole”.
Jennifer Lopez performed with Shakira in 2020. Pic: AP
Criticising Rihanna‘s performance at the 2023 half-time show in Arizona – when the star revealed she was pregnant with her second child – they said she was shown “groping herself” while singing lyrics “that were so offensive that few Louisiana adults could read those lyrics before an audience without shame”.
The letter continued: “We realize that these past vulgar performances may have been acceptable to the residents of those states where those Super Bowls were held but, in Louisiana, these lewd acts are inappropriate for viewing by children, objectify women, and are simply NOT welcomed by the majority of Louisiana parents.”
Read more: What you need to know about the Super Bowl
Rihanna headlined in 2023 – revealing her baby bump. Pic: AP/Charlie Riedel
‘It would have violated obscenity law’
Jackson‘s performance with Justin Timberlake in Texas in 2004, during which he exposed one of her breasts, was also highlighted.
“Had that 2004 performance taken place in Louisiana and been proven to be intentional, it would have violated Louisiana’s obscenity law,” the letter said.
CBS, which aired that year’s Super Bowl, was fined $550,000 by the Federal Communications Commission over the incident – but this was later overturned.
Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake’s performance caused outrage. Pic: AP
In 2021, following the release of the Framing Britney Spears documentary, which included details of Timberlake’s relationship with the star and their break-up, conversation around his Super Bowl performance with Jackson was also reignited.
At the time of the incident, Jackson bore the brunt of the criticism, while Timberlake’s solo career flourished. In 2021, Timberlake issued an apology, saying: “I specifically want to apologise to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women and I know I failed.”
The Republicans’ letter did not mention Timberlake but said Jackson’s “exposed bare breast was excused by one of her fellow performers as a ‘wardrobe malfunction’.”
Super Bowl half-time performances have become “increasingly vile”, it continued, and therefore it could be “reasonably anticipated that the half-time performance this year in New Orleans will be inappropriate for children to watch”.
Sky News has contacted the celebrities for a response to the criticism.
Senator Valarie Hodges, who signed the letter and shared details on X, said: “My hope is that Louisiana can set an example for future hosting states of the Super Bowl in advocating for entertainment suitable for viewers of all ages without needing a content rating.”
It has also been shared by the Family Research Council. President Tony Perkins, a former Louisiana state representative who is also one of the signatories, said their complaint was “not only about protecting children, important as that is, but also upholding community standards”.
The letter is addressed to Phillip Sherman, chairman of the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation, and Robert Vosbein Jr, chairman of the Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District, which oversees the superdrome venue.
In a statement sent to Sky News, Jay Cicero, president and chief executive of the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation, said: “We respect and value the comments of our legislators, who play a critical role in our ability to secure large events providing an economic boost to our city and state.
“We have shared the letter with the NFL and we are all in agreement that this year’s half-time show will be a family-friendly event befitting New Orleans’ storied history hosting Super Bowls.”
Mr Vosbein told the Louisiana Illuminator news outlet it was “unfortunate” Ms Hodges had waited until less than a few weeks before the event to share her concerns.
Sky News has contacted both organisations for comment.
Donald Trump has said he is considering “taking away” the US citizenship of actress and comedian Rosie O’Donnell, despite a Supreme Court ruling that expressly prohibits a government from doing so.
In a post on Truth Social on Saturday, the US president said: “Because of the fact that Rosie O’Donnell is not in the best interests of our Great Country, I am giving serious consideration to taking away her Citizenship.”
He also labelled O’Donnell, who has moved to Ireland, as a “threat to humanity” and said she should “remain in the wonderful country of Ireland, if they want her”.
O’Donnell responded on Instagram by posting a photograph of Mr Trump with Jeffrey Epstein.
“You are everything that is wrong with America and I’m everything you hate about what’s still right with it,” she wrote in the caption.
“I’m not yours to silence. I never was.”
Rosie O’Donnell moved to Ireland after Donald Trump secured a second term. Pic: AP
O’Donnell moved to Ireland with her 12-year-old son in January after Mr Trump had secured a second term.
She has said she’s in the process of obtaining Irish citizenship based on family lineage and that she would only return to the US “when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights there in America”.
O’Donnell and the US president have criticised each other publicly for years, in an often-bitter back-and-forth that predates Mr Trump’s move into politics.
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Will Trump address parliament on UK state visit?
This is just the latest threat by the president to revoke the citizenship of someone he has disagreed with, most recently his former ally Elon Musk.
But the two situations are different as while Musk was born in South Africa, O’Donnell was born in the US and has a constitutional right to American citizenship.
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Amanda Frost, a law professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, said the Supreme Court ruled in a 1967 case that the fourteenth amendment of the constitution prevents the government from taking away citizenship.
“The president has no authority to take away the citizenship of a native-born US citizen,” he added.
“In short, we are nation founded on the principle that the people choose the government; the government cannot choose the people.”
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