Kendrick Lamar won’t be paid for controversial Super Bowl halftime show

His show divided opinion

Two-time defending Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs and the National Football Conference champion Philadelphia Eagles came face to face but it was anything but a close affair as the Eagles stormed to victory.

A highlight of the game for many is the musical spectacle that is the half-time show and while some thought it was the best half-time show in recent history, others slammed the rappers controversial actions.

The LA rapper has had an incredible year, not least because of the success of his Drake diss track Not Like Us which recently took home five Grammys.

The track is now subject to a lawsuit as Drake is suing record label UMG for defamation.

Furthermore, some fans said they would boycott his set due to his controversial Glastonbury performance in 2022 where he wore a crown of thorns and offered his support for abortion rights in the aftermath of the effective repeal of the Roe v. Wade decision.

There was uncertainty over whether Lamar would be allowed to perform Not Like Us but he of course included one of 2024's biggest Hip Hop tracks in his set.

Though the performance seemed to go down well with those in attendance, Lamar won't actually earn a penny from the performance.

The NFL refuses to pay artists but they will cover expenses and production costs, to an extent according to Forbes.

Some artists have gone that one step further and reportedly spent their own money on the performances in the past.

In 2021, The Weeknd was said to have thrown a whopping $7 million (£5.7 million) at his set, while Dr Dre reportedly spent a similar amount a year later.

Though the rapper is unlikely to get paid and may have spent a pretty penny himself on the appearance, this may be one occasion where the exposure is worth it.

Last year 129.3 million tuned in to Usher's halftime performance, which boosted his Spotify streams by 550 per cent.