THE RUNDOWN
- Bad Bunny is headlining the Super Bowl halftime show tonight but isn’t receiving much of a paycheck for his performance.
- Performers historically only receive a small union-mandated rate.
- The NFL’s senior vice president and global head of major events spoke recently about why artists still seek out the gig.
Fresh off his history-making Album of the Year win at last Sunday’s Grammys, six-time Grammy winner Bad Bunny is one of the most famous artists in the world. But when he takes the Super Bowl LX halftime stage tonight, he won’t receive a massive paycheck for it.
That’s because Super Bowl halftime performers don’t get paid beyond a small union-mandated rate. Sports Illustrated reported Usher, 2024’s performer, received $671 for his performance and about $1,800 for the show’s rehearsals.
The league “covers all costs associated with the show and does pay the halftime performers’ union scale,” a NFL representative told The Independent.
Jon Barker, the NFL’s senior vice president and global head of major events, spoke to The New York Times earlier this month about why big artists still seek the gig.
“When you have an opportunity as an artist to stand on a stage and reach 250 million people at one time…and that’s not counting the addition of social and streaming and the ability for people to go back and re-watch, I think that it is one of the most important stages in live entertainment,” he said. “When they join us and become part of the halftime show, I think [artists] recognize what the halftime show is and being a part of it.
“And I think that resonates very strongly with the artists,” Barker added. “That’s certainly the feedback we’ve heard year after year after years with artists.”
The NFL and Apple Music (this year’s halftime sponsor) will pay for production costs, which can be millions of dollars, according to Forbes. This includes everything from stage design to travel expenses, making the performance itself essentially “free” for the artist. However, in some cases, performers invest their own money to bring their visions to life. In 2021, for example, The Weeknd reportedly put $7 million of his own money into his show.
With last year’s Super Bowl having over 133.5 million viewers, the halftime show isn’t just a concert; it’s one of music’s biggest marketing opportunities. The real pay, as such, comes in exposure.
The show’s high visibility can lead to increased album sales, streaming numbers, ticket sales, and social media followers. Following the 2025 halftime show, performer Kendrick Lamar saw a 175 percent boost overall in his Spotify streams and a 430 percent boost in streams of his song “Not Like Us.” He and SZA set a record with their halftime show; at 133.5 million views, it is the league’s most-watched ever. Similarly, Rihanna’s 2023 set led to a 640 percent jump in music sales.
While Bunny’s performance tonight will no doubt lead to more streams of his music, the rapper spoke ahead of the game about why he decided to play the halftime show: to showcase his Grammy-winning album, DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS.
“It’s the most special project that I’ve ever done, because it brought me to here,” he said during the pregame press conference. “I wasn’t looking for anything; I wasn’t looking for Album of the Year at the Grammys and the Latin Grammys. I wasn’t looking to perform at the Super Bowl Halftime Show. I just was looking to connect with my roots, with my people more than ever, connect with myself, with my history, with my culture. And I did it in a very honest way. I only wanted to perform at the residency, and that’s it. I say, ‘I don’t want to leave here. I want to stay here the whole time.’ And then it was like, ‘Oh, wow. The world really wants me, so I should go to give some love…show love to the world…to Latin America.’ And then the opportunity to bring that feeling that I put on that album to one of the biggest stages in the world is something that I never thought [possible].”
He added, “Definitely, this album is the most special, because as I said, I was trying to connect with myself and my roots, and that tells you something, that I already knew before, but now it’s like confirmed. You always have to proud about who you are, and feel comfortable being yourself. Feel proud about your history and where you’re from, but don’t let that limit yourself. I know where I come from but I also know where I can go. This is an album that’s gonna be in my heart for my whole life.”
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.elle.com ’
