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The man who has helped produce the Super Bowl halftime show is stepping into the spotlight: Jay-Z will headline the show himself.
The NFL, Apple Music and Roc Nation announced Monday night that Jay-Z will be the featured performer for the halftime festivities on Feb. 14 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.
After days of speculation, Jay-Z is set to return to the stadium where he closed his “Jay-Z 30” concerts over the weekend. The run began with three shows at Yankee Stadium in New York, continued in London and ended in Southern California.
Jay-Z’s Roc Nation has partnered with the NFL since 2019 to advise on and help produce the league’s entertainment presentations, including the Super Bowl halftime show. At the time, Jay-Z said he told NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, “If this is about me performing at the Super Bowl, then we can just end this conversation now.”
Goodell said he had one request at the time: that Jay-Z take the stage himself “whenever the moment felt right to him.”
Seven years later, Jay-Z is ready to perform after all.
“From ‘Reasonable Doubt’ to standing on the Super Bowl halftime stage, this has been a journey,” Jay-Z said in a statement. “Thirty years of music, work, and culture on the world’s biggest stage. This run continues to be a dream come true.”
Beyonce and Bruno Mars perform during the 2016 half-time show. (Mike Blake/Reuters)
Jay-Z, born Shawn Carter, has won 25 Grammy Awards and received 89 nominations, the second-most in history behind his wife, Beyoncé — who has performed at two Super Bowls.
His catalogue includes the albums Reasonable Doubt, The Blueprint and The Black Album, and hit songs such as Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem), 99 Problems and Empire State of Mind, his collaboration with Alicia Keys.
His 1996 debut, Reasonable Doubt, was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame last year.
Jay-Z’s career has also extended into music publishing, artist management and sports. He co-founded Roc-A-Fella Records and founded Roc Nation in 2008, building it into an entertainment company that works with artists and athletes.
Jay-Z speaks during the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, in October 2021. (David Richard/The Associated Press)
Jay-Z became the first rapper inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2017 and joined the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2021.
Roc Nation will executive produce the halftime show, with Hamish Hamilton directing.
Bad Bunny performed at last season’s Super Bowl in February. His songs saw sharp gains across streaming charts, playlists and music discovery platforms in the hours following the show.
Andrew Chang explains why U.S. President Donald Trump criticized Bad Bunny’s half-time performance at the Super Bowl and how it fits into a larger pattern.
Images provided by The Canadian Press, Reuters and Getty Images
