When it comes to football, most Americans may have stronger feelings about it than anyone else. The Super Bowl halftime show initially was created to give players so needed break during the game but ended up being one of the most anticipated music and fashion moments of the year. Those performances take all world by the breath and are one of the biggest musical milestones for performers. This year it was the Weeknd who had the honors. This event had some iconic moments throughout the years, from the most-watched (117.5 million viewers) Lady Gaga show to the iconic Beyonce halftime show reunion with Destiny’s Child. Let’s take a look at those most iconic Super Bowl halftime show looks of all time. Sorry the Weeknd, you didn’t make the cut.
Lady Gaga in Atelier Versace
The ultimate halftime show ever! Most watched and most anticipated. Lady Gaga gets all glam with her silver bodysuit and matching boots by Atelier Versace, fully embroidered with Swarovski crystals. Opens with legendary Poker Face. Grand entertainment for sure!
Beyoncé
While performing with Bruno Mars and U2, she wore a Dsquared2 custom-made leather jacket inspired by Michael Jackson’s jacket he wore in the 1993 Super Bowl. Also, Christian Louboutin boots she wore were sold out minutes after the performance.
Madonna warrior
Like a true queen, Madonna enters as a Roman warrior/goddess with a stylized Roman warrior outfit and performs her hit Vogue. It was all Riccardo Tisci for Givenchy Haute Couture that put us in a winner mood.
Katy Perry colors
Performance with 4 outfits designed by nobody else but the visual master Jeremy Scott. Katy Perry rocks with a 20-foot mechanical lion and lits the stage with bright colors.
Sweet Bruno Mars
Drum solo on a moving stage? No problem for Bruno. Actually, he also performed a couple of times on the Super Bowl and always looked sharp! And we’re talking that time he wore Versace, ah that black and gold are matching so good.
Emotional U2
U2 performance took only 5 months after 9/11 making this performance incredibly emotional. The band performed only 3 songs and projected the lost ones’ names on 9/11 during the performance.
Michael Jackson legend
Michael performed with the 3500 children choir and wore a legendary outfit that inspired even Beyoncé. It’s only known that it may be made by a 25-year-long collaboration between Jackson and his longtime costume designers, Michael Bush and Dennis Tompkins.
Shakira and Jennifer Lopez moves
The next level of singing and dancing! Performers wore Peter Dundas and Versace to make the best of it.
History of Super Bowl halftime show performers
I / 1967 / Universities of Arizona and Michigan Grambling University Bands
II / 1968 / “Old Man Winter Takes a Vacation in Miami” featuring seven local Miami-area high school bands
III / 1969 / “America Thanks” with Florida A&M University
IV / 1970 / Carol Channing
V / 1971 / Florida A&M Band
VI / 1972 / “Salute to Louis Armstrong” with Ella Fitzgerald, Carol Channing, Al Hirt, and U.S. Marine Corps Drill Team
VII / 1973 / “Happiness Is…” with the University of Michigan Band and Woody Herman
VIII / 1974 / “A Musical America” with University of Texas Band
IX / 1975 / “Tribute to Duke Ellington” with Mercer Ellington and Grambling University Bands
X / 1976 / “200 Years and Just a Baby” Tribute to America’s Bicentennial
XI / 1977 / “It’s a Small World” including crowd participation
XII / 1978 / “From Paris to the Paris of America” with Tyler Apache Belles, Pete Fountain, and Al Hirt
XIII / 1979 / “Super Bowl XIII Carnival” Salute to the Caribbean with Ken Hamilton and various Caribbean bands
XIV / 1980 / “A Salute to the Big Band Era” with Up with People
XV / 1981 / “A Mardi Gras Festival”
XVI / 1982 / “A Salute to the ’60s and Motown”
XVII / 1983 / “KaleidoSUPERscope” (a kaleidoscope of color and sound)
XVIII / 1984 / “Super Bowl XVIII’s Salute to the Superstars of the Silver Screen”
XIX / 1985 / “A World of Children’s Dreams”
XX / 1986 / “Beat of the Future”
XXI / 1987 / “Salute to Hollywood’s 100th Anniversary”
XXII / 1988 / “Something Grand” featuring 88 grand pianos, the Rockettes, and Chubby Checker
XXIII / 1989 / “Be Bop Bamboozled” featuring 3-D effects
XXIV / 1990 / “Salute to New Orleans” and 40th Anniversary of Peanuts’ characters, featuring trumpeter Pete Fountain, Doug Kershaw, and Irma Thomas
XXV / 1991 / “A Small World Salute to 25 Years of the Super Bowl” featuring New Kids on the Block
XXVI / 1992 / “Winter Magic” including a salute to the winter season and the winter Olympics featuring Gloria Estefan, Brian Boitano, and Dorothy Hamill
XXVII / 1993 / “Heal the World” featuring Michael Jackson
XXVIII / 1994 / “Rockin Country Sunday” featuring Clint Black, Tanya Tucker, Travis Tritt, Wynonna, and Naomi Judd
XXIX / 1995 / “Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye” featuring Tony Bennett, Patti LaBelle, Arturo Sandoval, the Miami Sound Machine
XXX / 1996 / Diana Ross
XXXI / 1997 / “Blues Brothers Bash” featuring Dan Akroyd, John Goodman, James Belushi, James Brown, and ZZ Top
XXXII / 1998 / “A Tribute to Motown’s 40th Anniversary” including Boyz II Men, Smokey Robinson, Queen Latifah, Martha Reeves, and The Temptations
XXXIII / 1999 / “Celebration of Soul, Salsa and Swing” featuring Stevie Wonder, Gloria Estefan, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, and Savion Glover
XXXIV / 2000 / “A Tapestry of Nations” featuring Phil Collins, Christina Aguilera, Enrique Iglesias, and Toni Braxton
XXXV / 2001 / “The Kings of Rock and Pop” featuring Aerosmith, N’SYNC, Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige, and Nelly
XXXVI / 2002 / U2 with Beyoncé and Bruno Mars
XXXVII / 2003 / Shania Twain, No Doubt and Sting
XXXVIII / 2004 / Janet Jackson, Kid Rock, P. Diddy, Nelly and Justin Timberlake
XXXIX / 2005 / Paul McCartney
XL / 2006 / The Rolling Stones
XLI / 2007 / Prince
XLII / 2008 / Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
XLIII / 2009 / Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
XLIV / 2010 / The Who
XLV / 2011 / The Black Eyed Peas, Usher, Slash
XLVI / 2012 / Madonna with Cee Lo Green, LMFAO, M.I.A., and Nicki Minaj
XLVII / 2013 / Beyoncé with Destiny’s Child
XLVIII / 2014 / Bruno Mars with Red Hot Chili Peppers
XLIX / 2015 / Katy Perry with Missy Elliott and Lenny Kravitz
L / 2016 / Coldplay with Beyoncé and Bruno Mars
LI / 2017 / Lady Gaga
LII / 2018 / Justin Timberlake
LIII / 2019 / Maroon 5 with Travis Scott and Big Boi
LIV / 2020 / Shakira and Jennifer Lopez
LV / 2021 / The Weeknd
