Amid the massacre known as Super Bowl XLVIII, a young performer took the stage of MetLife Stadium and presented the world with his art. Bruno Mars, coming fresh from a recent Grammy award, offered a show that was as exciting as it was welcoming. Mars’s performance had an undisguised feeling of classy showmanship that was reminiscent of classic Michael Jackson. From the quality vocals to his flashy dance moves, Mars might just be in the running for the successor to the late King of Pop.
Initially, when Bruno Mars was selected to perform at this year’s Super Bowl, many people had thought the committee had made a poor decision. Being 28, Mars is significantly younger and less established than all of his predecessors from the last decade. Along with that, having only released two albums, many thought he lacked the repertoire to deliver enough familiar songs to the wide age range of the national viewers. The decision to have Bruno Mars perform, though, paid off to the tune of 115.3 million viewers, the all-time largest audience for a Super Bowl Halftime Show.
When Mars took the stage on his drum set following a choral rendition of his hit single “Billionaire,” he immediately made the audience aware of his status as a high caliber musician. Watching Mars play the drums reminds me that he is a man of many talents, which should not come as a surprise because the music industry is full of talented artists. The real surprise that I found refreshing was Mars’s live vocal talents. After the huge amounts of negative backlash over lip-syncing in the past few years, the Super Bowl made a smart decision booking an artist who could actually perform live. His ability to bellow out notes with such finesse and soul was welcoming in a time when most studio artists rely on heavy amounts of editing and auto tuning to produce their sound. I’m talking about you, Fergie from the Black-Eyed Peas circa 2011.
An important highlight of the show was the use of lights to accent Mars’s performance. With all of the backup performers clad in gold and backed by hundreds upon hundreds of dazzling lights, Mars literally shined on stage. In addition, football fans in the stands were given special light-up hats that produced a glittering effect that added something to see for the viewers at home.
Following Mars’s “Runaway Baby,” the Red Hot Chili Peppers took the stage with “Give It Away.” Many viewers found this performance controversial because, on closer inspection, neither the guitar nor the bass were plugged in. When asked about this later, Flea, the bassist of the band, revealed that this was due to an NFL policy and that under any other circumstances, the Red Hot Chili Peppers would have played the show live.
“When we were asked by the NFL and Bruno to play our song ‘Give It Away’ at the Super Bowl, it was made clear to us that the vocals would be live, but the bass, drums, and guitar would be pre-recorded,” Flea said.
The NFL forbids live instrumentals during the halftime performance due to the fear of technical errors ruining the viewers’ experience. The band members played their instruments regardless, and though they could have plugged them in to give the audience an illusion of live performance, they chose not to because they didn’t want to pretend. Regardless of this controversy, there is something to be said about all of the performers’ dedication to showmanship.
The show wrapped up with a heartfelt version of Mars’s breakout single “Just the Way You Are” that began with a dedication to the U.S. Armed Forces. During this song, Bruno Mars gave a performance that was enough to bring tears to viewers’ eyes and proved to many that he is a performer that has truly mastered the art of singing.