Super Bowl: From Janet Jackson’s infamous nip-slip to Beyonce’s public stance against police brutality… five times scandal and controversy took center stage in the halftime show

The Super Bowl halftime show has consistently been one of the most watched events on television as of late. What is now always a spectacle, however, is often controversial – and was not always full of superstars.

Until the 1990s, fans weren’t treated to artists performing their biggest hits back-to-back during the intermission of the NFL season finale.

The very first halftime show in 1967 featured the marching bands from Arizona and Grambling State. That was considered normal before shows evolved from local college parade bands, celebrating acts, light shows, and eventually mainstream performers.

The halftime stage eventually became a coveted jukebox that doubled as a mixer for super collaborations as millions of viewers tuned in to the performances.

With the size of the halftime show and the acts that grace it, those twelve to fifteen minutes have been a window for controversy and scandal on several occasions.

From onstage mishaps to pre- and post-show tensions between fans and the stars involved over social issues… DailyMail.com takes a look at five of the Super Bowl’s most scandalous halftime shows.

Perhaps the most controversial halftime show to date took place in 2004 with the infamous ‘Nipplegate’. The show starred Janet Jackson, Kid Rock, P. Diddy, Nelly and Justin Timberlake in Houston.

At the end of the set, Jackson and Timberlake gave a steamy performance of Timberlake’s 2003 hit “Rock Your Body,” taking the lyrics quite literally.

When the song’s final line – which reads, “You better be naked at the end of this song” – fell before the final note, Timberlake accidentally ripped a breastplate off Jackson’s costume. As a result, her chest was partially exposed to the sky for the world to see.

This prompted Michael Powell, head of the Federal Communications Commission, to quash the event. Powell exclaimed that a “celebration was spoiled by a classless, gross and deplorable stunt.”

While some details behind the incident remain unknown, the FCC’s investigation later turned up Congress passing a bill to increase fines for “indecency” on television.

On the other hand, the jaw-dropping scandal inspired the invention of YouTube soon after. According to co-founder Jawed Karim, YouTube grew out of the difficulty of finding clips of the “wardrobe malfunction.”

In the aftermath, Jackson’s career took a nosedive due to the incident, while Timberlake managed to avoid the same fate.

MIA’s $16 million bird, 2012

Although rapper MIA wasn’t the headliner for this halftime show, she undeniably did some damage with her guest appearance.

Maybe she got carried away when she shared the stage with pop legend Madonna and Nicki Minaj. While performing their hit song “Give Me All Your Luvin,” MIA turned off the camera at the end of her verse.

The set, which also featured LMFAO and Cee Lo Green, was otherwise excellent, save for the demonstrably inappropriate gesture made on national television.

The NFL sued the rapper for $16.6 million and ultimately settled for an undisclosed amount. Surprisingly, the FCC did not fine MIA for the incident.

MIA asked Madonna for help on social media after news of the lawsuit became public.

‘@madonna uhm…can I borrow 16 million?’ she tweeted.

Red Hot Chili Peppers’ not-so-live performance, 2014

The Red Hot Chili Peppers brought a different kind of energy to the height of Bruno Mars’ setlist in 2014. However, fans quickly noticed how disconnected the California legends’ instruments were and began to raise questions.

Although performers are expected to give a stellar performance when called up for the halftime show, the band was criticized for allegedly lip-syncing their hit song “Give It Away” on stage.

Bassist Flea later posted an open letter confirming that they had recreated part of the performance, at the request of the NFL. Although they wanted to put on a real performance, the league apparently tied their hands while opting for perfection.

“It was made clear to us that the vocals would be live, but the bass, drums and guitar would be pre-recorded,” Flea wrote. ‘There was no room for discussion about this.

‘We take our music seriously, it is something sacred to us, and anyone who has ever seen us in concert knows that we play from the heart, improvise spontaneously, take musical risks and sweat blood at every show. We have been working on it for 31 years.’

The band was soon confronted with the music and admitted that they chose to let go of the instruments to make the circumstances clear to the audience.

Beyonce fuels accusations against law enforcement, 2016

Beyoncé had fans divided over her performance during the Super Bowl 50 halftime show. Fronted by Coldplay, Bruno Mars and Beyonce came on as guests with their respective hits “Uptown Funk” and “Formation” toward the end of the set.

During her part of the performance, the pop star’s dancers were dressed in Black Panther-esque outfits, which sparked debate given the group’s unpleasant history with law enforcement.

Furthermore, Beyonce was highlighted for bringing race into her art form. In the music video for “Formation,” an African-American boy dances in front of police officers as the words “Stop Shooting Us” appear in graffiti on a wall.

Shortly after the performance, Vincent Gericitano, president of the Tampa Police Benevolent Association, released a statement saying his group’s officers were “disgusted” by the halftime show and music video.

The Police Union also called on police to boycott Beyoncé’s ‘Formation World Tour’ in 2016-2017.

Maroon 5 performing during the Kaepernick controversy, 2019

After Colin Kaepernick knelt during the national anthem in 2016 to protest the oppression of African Americans in the United States, many athletes followed his lead. This quickly resulted in the former 49ers quarterback being left without a team.

In 2018, the NFL instituted a new rule fining players if they do not stand during the national anthem, sparking outrage among fans and community members.

So when the league tried to book Rihanna for the halftime show, she turned it down, citing her support of Kaepernick as the reason. After contract negotiations with P!nk fell through, the NFL landed Maroon 5 to perform during the peak of the season.

The pop rock band faced backlash for taking the league’s offer amid calls for a boycott. In the wake of the controversy, Maroon 5 was reportedly desperate for an artist of color to join them for their set.

The show took place as Maroon 5’s hit ‘Girls Like You’, featuring Cardi B, was not far away from dominating the airwaves. But like Rihanna, the rapper reportedly had no interest in participating in solidarity with Kaepernick.

Variety reported that the band had contacted Andre 3000, Mary J. Blige, Usher, Lauryn Hill and Nicki Minaj, among others. However, everyone declined the opportunity.

Maroon 5 eventually got rappers Big Boi and Travis Scott to work with them for the halftime show. While Big Boi managed to dodge heavy criticism, Scott dealt with it tenfold after Jay-Z reportedly tried to talk him out of taking the gig.