Adam Levine shared a post-game message about his controversial decision to perform at the Super Bowl
On Sunday, February 3rd, the New England Patriots faced off against the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl LIII. However, it was the Super Bowl halftime show performers who’ve garnered the most attention recently. Maroon 5, Travis Scott, and Outkast’s Big Boi all performed—which many took as a sign that the artists were not allies in the #TakeAKnee movement. Several musicians, including Rihanna and Cardi B, famously passed on offers to perform specifically to show their support for Colin Kaepernick and his mission, and Travis Scott only agreed to participate if the NFL would also donate $500,000 to a social justice org.
Now, Adam Levine has shared more about his decision to perform in a lengthy post-game Instagram post.
Levine also briefly touched on the decision in a January 31st interview with Entertainment Tonight, saying,
"No one thought about it more than I did," he said. "No one put more thought and love into this than I did. I spoke to many people, most importantly though, I silenced all the noise and listened to myself, and made my decision about how I felt."
He noted that he and his band members felt the best way they could express themselves was through music, and added that he felt his band has had a positive impact and would continue “to use the one voice we know how to use properly.” He also said that the decision came with “a lot of looking inward and introspection.”
Exclusive: @AdamLevine opens up about the controversy surrounding @Maroon5's #SuperBowl performance in his ONLY interview before the big game. https://t.co/W3oy7jAQbl pic.twitter.com/51UklNrP0l
— Entertainment Tonight (@etnow) February 1, 2019
Pressure had been mounting for Levine and the other halftime acts to express support for Kaepernick, with one Change.org petition calling for the performing musicians to drop out of the show entirely. In a January 31st Instagram video, Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters challenged the performers to show solidarity by taking a knee onstage.
Ultimately, the performance was extremely apolitical…what are your thoughts?
