Fans have been shocked to learn that Rihanna wasn’t paid for her performance at the Super Bowl. What’s up with that? Find out why the NFL doesn’t pay halftime performance appearance fees. How do stars get paid?
How come Rihanna didn’t get paid to perform at the Super Bowl?
The Internet was abuzz with the news that Rihanna wasn’t paid for her lavish performance at the 2023 Super Bowl halftime show. Naturally, fans thought a spectacle of that nature probably came with a big paycheck.
Super Bowl performers only get paid “musicians union scale,” which works out to not a whole lot of dough.
Estimated “union scale” wages for performing at the Super Bowl work out to about $1000, according to We Are Iowa.
Even though Rihanna personally wasn’t handed a check from the NFL, the league picked up the tab for that epic show itself and the artists’ expenses.
How do performers get paid for the Super Bowl?
“We do not pay the artists,” said NFL spokesperson Joanna Hunter during a 2016 interview with Forbes. “We cover expenses and production costs.”
The NFL essentially covers the cost of the show itself, as well as travel costs. The grand scale of Super Bowl halftime shows can run into several million dollars, Yahoo Sports reported.
Looking at some previous price tags, the 2013 halftime show with Beyoncé cost $600,000, while the 2001 Aerosmith and NSYNC show ran $11 million, Prince cost $12 million in 2007, and the most expensive was Jennifer Lopez and Shakira in 2020 at $13 million.
A promotion opportunity like no other
Essentially, a Super Bowl performance allows artists an unmatched opportunity to promote their latest singles or albums to a massive audience, which in turn helps to drive traffic to their latest projects or upcoming tours, NBC reported.
When you think about it, advertisers pay millions of dollars for a few seconds to air a commercial. In that light, getting to perform at the Super Bowl is the biggest advertising opportunity in the world for the artists, and it costs them nothing but their time. This year’s Super Bowl was estimated to be viewed by around 100 million people worldwide.
All that exposure pays off.
Justin Timberlake saw his music sales skyrocket by 534% after his Super Bowl performance. Jennifer Lopez saw her music streams spike by 335% after her Super Bowl appearance, while Shakira’s streams went up by 230%.
As they say, it pays to advertise.
