MTV Newsroom › Super Bowl

Madonna's Halftime Show Was Slightly More Popular Than The Actual Super Bowl

Posted 2/6/12 12:03 pm EST by in Madonna, Super Bowl


Madonna

In the lead-up to Super Bowl XLVI, many worried that Madonna wasn't the ideal candidate to perform at halftime. After all, her audience, which is dominated by women and gay men, differs wildly from that of the NFL and some wondered if that would mean less eye balls would tune in for the Queen of Pop's 12-minute halftime spectacle.

Well, it appears to have had the opposite effect, actually, pulling in viewers who might not otherwise have watched the game and averaging a higher rating than the Super Bowl itself. According to SB Nation, the game averaged an impressive 47.8 rating in the U.S. while Madonna's halftime performance nabbed a 48.3. The game fell only slightly behind last year's record setter, which generated a 47.9 rating, translating to about 111 million viewers, making it the highest-rated Super Bowl in history.

Madonna's performance proved a bigger draw than the Black Eyed Peas last year, pulling ahead of BEP by a full percent in the ratings and even bested Bruce Springsteen's halftime show by a whopping 20 percent (the Boss earned a 40.2 rating).

Though this year's game was slightly off the all-time mark, the Washington Post notes that "around the time M.I.A. was flipping off America during Madonna’s halftime show, about 48 percent of the country’s TV homes were tuned in."

As an unabashed Madonna fan, I'm pleased that so many people gave the Queen of Pop a chance. Despite digs that she may have been lip-synching – which, yeah, there was a bit of that, but I think it was part of a backing track balancing act to compensate during moments of complicated choreography and elaborate production, as "Like a Prayer" seemed as live as could be – reviews of the performance have alternated from positive to all-out raves. Read More...

Tags ,

Madonna's Super Bowl Performance: Hot Or Not? (Poll)

Posted 2/6/12 8:00 am EST by in Madonna, Newsroom Poll, Super Bowl


Madonna

Last night's Super Bowl was, as usual, one of the most-viewed televised events of the year, with football fans from coast to coast tuning in to see the New York Giants and the New England Patriots go head-to-head for the NFL championship. (The Giants won the game 21-17. Go, New York!)

But here in the MTV Newsroom, we've been obsessing for the last week about the half-time show. From the rumored setlist and the stage to the whispers about who would appear and Madonna's love it-or-hate-it new song, we waited with bated breath to see if the Queen of Pop would pull of what was, arguably, the biggest show of her career?

We've already voiced our opinion, so now it's your turn! Vote in our poll below and let us know if you loved or hated Madonna's Super Bowl half-time performance.

Tags , ,

John Legend Takes On Tim Tebow Mania With 'Extra-ordinary Tebow' Parody Tune

Posted 2/2/12 6:53 pm EST by in Music, Super Bowl


Sure, he won't be playing in Super Bowl XLVI at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN, this Sunday, but some people just can't let go of Tim Tebow mania. From his faith to his Jokey underwear campaign, the Denver Broncos' quarterback is a lightening rod, but Grammy winner John Legend has had enough.

A big sports fan, Legend visited ESPN yesterday to appear on ESPN2’s "First Take" after contacting commentator Skip Bayless via Twitter to request a throw-down – which has become an odd sort of hip-hop/R&B tradition, with LL Cool J, Lil Wayne, Common and Queen Latifah all stopping by "First Take" to take him on.

Legend spent the full episode debating the day’s sports topics with Bayless and Stephen A. Smith but it should come as no surprise that Bayless' passionate support for Tebow was one of the hottest topics.

The soulful singer later put his feelings on the matter into song, spoofing his own smash “Ordinary People” by turning it into “Extra-ordinary Tebow.”

“Now it’s the Super Bowl, and while you are sitting home, Skip and Stephen debate you every day," Legend sang, "Extra-ordinary Tebow, your power we can’t know.” Legend went on to conclude that while it's understandable to discuss Tebow, “Skip won’t you let it go.”

Check it out, after the jump! Read More...

Tags , ,

Court Finally Rules That All The Legal Hubbub Over Janet Jackson's Nipple Was A Bit Much

Posted 11/3/11 1:02 pm EST by in Janet-Jackson, Justin Timberlake


Janet Jackson

By Zachary Swickey

It’s hard to believe that seven years later we’re still talking about “Nipplegate” – Janet Jackson’s controversial wardrobe malfunction from the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show – but a federal appeals court just ruled that the Federal Communications Commission might have been a bit hasty with their fine for Janet Jackson and CBS over the incident.

The Wrap reports that according to the Philadelphia 3rd District Court of Appeals, the FCC wrongly fined Jackson and the network $550,000 for her performance, which included Timberlake ripping off a scrap of her clothing and accidentally exposing the singers left breast (although if I recall, she covered it up with a tasteful sun-shaped jewel resembling Godsmack’s logo). Of course the government agency wasn’t thrilled with the outcome, but CBS spokeswoman Shannon Jacobs viewed the ruling as the FCC being forced to adhere to the indecency policies they had in place before the incident occurred. As you can see from this handy dandy wiki chart (of course the incident has its own Wikipedia page), the fine-to-complaints ratio was rather askew.

The case has been in legal limbo for years now. In 2008, the 3rd Circuit Court ruled to void the fine, a ruling vacated by the Supreme Court in 2009. The case subsequently returned to the 3rd Circuit once again. Read More...

Tags , ,

Eminem's Chrysler Commercial Declared Super Bowl's Best

Posted 2/8/11 10:30 am EST by in Television


The conversation about the Super Bowl continued through Monday (February 7) as people continued to talk about Christina Aguilera's national anthem performance, Aaron Rodgers' championship belt, the Black Eyed Peas' eye-popping halftime performance and this year's batch of high-profile commercials. The latter group inspired a particularly intense debate online, as no one spot seemed to be the "winner" this year (the way that the Betty White ad for Snickers did during last year's big game).

According to Tivo, the top-rated ad of the night was the reinvention of that same Snickers commercial, this time starring Richard Lewis and Roseanne Barr. Meanwhile, USA Today reported that the two highest-rated commercials both involved dogs (the Bud Light spot with the trained pooches and the Doritos ad with the pup who breaks down the door). And according to a poll hosted by the MTV Newsroom Blog, Eminem's two-minute tribute to Detroit (which advertised the new Chrysler 200) was the clear winner.

The commercial (which was the longest in Super Bowl history) picked up nearly 60 percent of the vote in the poll, handily beating the Volkswagen ad that featured a kid in a Darth Vader costume (that spot finished in second place with 27 percent of the vote). (Also, the Darth Vader spot finished just behind the top-rated winners in the USA Today poll.) With six percent of the vote, the third place position went to the Bridgestone ad that starred a helpful beaver. Eminem's other ad (for Lipton Brisk iced tea) came in fourth place with three percent and Chevrolet's "Lassie" spoof picked up two percent.

Eminem's appearance in the Chrysler ad — which was kept a secret up until its premiere on Sunday night (February 6) — has inspired a great deal of chatter. Many people raised their eyebrows at the idea of Eminem as a mouthpiece for a corporation, but advertising experts lauded the rapper for his authenticity. Either way, the commercial was not one that anybody will soon forget and will go down as one of the signature moments of Super Bowl XLV.

What did you think of Eminem's Chrysler ad? Let us know in the comments!

Tags ,

Christina Aguilera's National Anthem Flub Gets Lambasted On 'Conan'

Posted 2/8/11 8:30 am EST by in Television


The biggest headline to come out of Sunday night's (February 6) Super Bowl wasn't the incredible performance by Green Bay Packers quarterback and game MVP Aaron Rodgers, nor was it the batch of high-profile commercials (lead by Eminem's dramatic endorsement of Chrysler), nor even the fact that 111 million people in the viewing audience made it the most-watched American television show in the history of the medium. Rather, people were still talking about Christina Aguilera's performance of "The Star-Spangled Banner" before kickoff, which contained a pretty high-profile lyric flub.

Aguilera subsequently apologized and also got a little back-up from Fergie (who later participated in the halftime entertainment as both a member of the Black Eyed Peas and as a stand-in for Axl Rose), but that didn't stop the late night hosts from poking fun at her mishap. Just about everybody who performs a monologue ended up cracking a joke about Aguilera, including David Letterman (who noted "I know all about public humiliation") and Jay Leno (who said "Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano told everybody if you see something at the Super Bowl that isn't right, tell somebody — and immediately 50 million people called after Christina Aguilera did the national anthem"). But leave it to Conan O'Brien to take it a step further and cut together an especially biting piece of video to poke fun at the flub.

"Everyone is talking about how Christina Aguilera screwed up the lyrics to the national anthem," Conan joked. "Some people noticed right away, and they were not happy." O'Brien then threw to a clip of Aguilera singing the song and getting a rude interruption care of a jet pilot in the midst of a flyover.

"That's a gutsy pilot to make that decision!" O'Brien noted after the clip.

"I read on the Internet that was for 'Burlesque.' It had nothing to do with the words," quipped Andy Richter.

What did you think of Conan O'Brien's send-up of Christina Aguilera's performance at the Super Bowl? Let us know in the comments!

Tags , , ,

Aaron Rodgers Wins Super Bowl MVP, Celebrates With Championship Belt

Posted 2/7/11 3:00 pm EST by in Television


All throughout the NFL season, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been making a name for himself not only because of his impressive statistics and clear leadership skills, but also because of his signature touchdown celebration. Whenever the 27-year-old Rodgers scored a touchdown, he made a motion with his hands as though they were wrapping around his waste — the sign that boxers, professional wrestlers and MMA fighters use to let the viewing audience know that they want the championship belt.

While some stuffy sports writers got all uppity about Rodgers' celebration (because apparently professional football players should be boring, charisma-free workhorses), but the crew here at MTV News (which includes a handful of hardcore wrestling and MMA fans) totally endorsed Rodgers' celebration. So when Rodgers received the Super Bowl MVP award following his team's 31-25 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night (February 6), the moment became just a bit sweeter when linebacker Clay Matthews appeared behind Rodgers and placed the WWE World Heavyweight Championship belt on his shoulder.

The belt, introduced into the WWE championship arena in 2002, is a tribute to the old NWA/WCW "big gold belt" that Ric Flair carried around the country for years. Since its inception in WWE, the strap has been worn by the likes of Triple H (who has openly praised Rodgers for his gesture), John Cena, Shawn Michaels, Batista, the Undertaker, Rey Mysterio and Chris Jericho (though Edge currently holds the strap — his sixth reign overall). It's easily the coolest-looking prize in all of professional wrestling, boxing or MMA, and it's extra cool that Rodgers incorporated it into his Super Bowl celebration.

Rodgers will probably get the chance to continue his heavyweight champ celebration, as the WWE's "Smackdown" show just happens to be in Green Bay this week.

What did you think of Aaron Rodgers' championship belt celebration? Let us know in the comments!

Tags , , , , ,

Spotted: Ke$ha Sets The Stage For The Super Bowl

Posted 2/7/11 2:30 pm EST by in Music


Every day a multitude of stars wander through the halls of MTV News to talk about their latest projects and goof around with our intrepid correspondents. But sometimes we catch stars elsewhere, and that's why we put together Spotted!, a daily compendium of stars in the wild.

The Super Bowl has gotten to be such a huge event for the music world that it's basically impossible to see every performance that goes on over the course of the weekend leading up to the big game. Kid Rock kicked things off at the end of last week, and the ensuing days saw performances by Maroon 5, the Script, Lifehouse, Pitbull and Nelly (among many others). On Saturday night (February 5), Ke$ha tuned up the audience one last time before game day with a smoking hot set at the Bud Light Hotel event in Dallas. Backed by her killer band (which takes New Wave, electro-pop and garage rock and sends them through a Bedazzled meat grinder), Ke$ha flexed and writhed through a punchy set that included all of her biggest hits (including "Tik Tok," "Your Love Is My Drug" and the recent chart-topper "We R Who We R").

Of course, Ke$ha wasn't the only star who made her way to the Dallas area to celebrate the biggest television event of the year, as Christina Aguilera and Lea Michele both participated in pregame celebrations and Ryan Seacrest hung close to Julianne Hough during Fox's pregame show. Click here for these photos as well as the entire "Spotted" archive, which features over 500 candid shots of stars like Britney Spears, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Madonna, Katy Perry, Rihanna, Eminem, Lady Gaga, Jay-Z, Mariah Carey and Kanye West!

Tags , , ,

Did Eminem Star In The Best Super Bowl Commercial Of The Year?

Posted 2/7/11 12:30 pm EST by in Television


Though the game itself was pretty thrilling (the Pittsburgh Steelers really did seem primed to make a heroic comeback until the Green Bay Packers' defense stood up and closed the door in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter), much of the conversation regarding the Super Bowl has been about what it is always about: the high-profile, super-expensive commercials that run during the game. Considering the Super Bowl is always the most-watched thing on television all year (prognosticators were expecting Sunday night's game to be the most-watched event in the history of American television, which means it would have had to have been seen by over 107 million people), the ad time is prime real estate for companies to sell their wares, introduce new products and just remind the universe that they exist.

Of all the awesome ads this year, no one spot has been talked about more than Eminem's appearance in Chrysler commercial that plugged the greatness of Detroit (and thus of the auto industry). The two minute spot (the longest in the history of the Super Bowl) was a dramatic endorsement of the new Chrysler 200 and of American-made cars in general, all set to Em's "Lose Yourself" and featuring a steely-eyed performance by the Detroit native. It was a heavy surprise that has launched a number of conversations about both the car company and Em himself.

But was it the best ad of the night? Many of the spots seemed to cover familiar territory (while funny, the Snickers spot starring Richard Lewis and Roseanne Barr hit the exact same notes as last year's Betty White breakout), while others just seemed sort of flat (none of the Pepsi Max ads ever really got out of the gate). Still, there was Bridgestone's "Helpful Beaver" spot, the Lipton ad (also starring Eminem) and Darth Vader's interaction with a Volkswagen, all of which were pretty entertaining. And of course, there were trailers for the upcoming films "Captain America," "Thor," "Super 8" and the new installment in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise.

Which one was your favorite? Vote in the poll below and make your arguments in the comments!

Tags , ,

Usher Reinforces The Greatness Of 'OMG' During Super Bowl Halftime Show

Posted 2/7/11 10:30 am EST by in Music


In the history of halftime entertainment at the Super Bowl, Sunday night's (February 6) presentation by the Black Eyed Peas was absolutely the most hit-heavy of all time. Part of it had to do with sheer density, as the group managed to cram eight songs into their set (tying a record previously set by 2004's performance, which featured a lot more artists). And because just about everything will.i.am touches turns to gold, nearly every one of those eight songs was a huge hit ("I Gotta Feeling," "Boom Boom Pow," "OMG" and "Sweet Child O' Mine" were all chart-toppers, while "Let's Get It Started," "The Time (Dirty Bit)," "Pump It" and "Where Is the Love?" were all in the top 25). Such is the power of will.i.am and his shrewd, ever-shifting production.

Though Slash's drop-in was a thrilling highlight, Usher's energetic, dynamic performance of "OMG" drove home just what a spectacular song it was. Full of jittery dance beats, a subtly shifting groove and one of Usher's most unusual (but excellent) vocal performances, "OMG" not only dominated pop radio in 2010 but continues to resonate in 2011 as a highly influential track (many artists are still trying to harness European dance music the way he and will.i.am did).

In fact, the greatness of "OMG" was so overwhelming that MTV News voted it the number one song of 2010, beating out hits by Eminem, Kanye West, Jay-Z and Cee Lo for the top spot. As writer Jayson Rodriguez notes in the video below, "OMG" represented the reinvention of Usher, and the performance at the Super Bowl solidified its place as not only one of the best songs of the past year but also among the greatest tracks of all time.

What did you think of Usher's performance at the Super Bowl? Let us know in the comments!

Tags , , ,

Page 1 of 41234
SPONSORS
AD:
©2012 Viacom International Inc. All Rights Reserved. MTV and all related titles and logos are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.