Justin Timberlake Duets With Prince Video During Super Bowl Halftime: Watch
Tonight during the 2018 Super Bowl halftime show, Justin Timberlake projected footage of Prince on a sheet and performed “I Would Die 4 U” along with the video. As Prince’s hometown of Minneapolis lit up in purple, Timberlake said, “Two fingers in the air for Prince tonight.” Watch it go down below. During Prince’s 2007 Super Bowl halftime show, he momentarily performed while silhouetted through a sheet. This weekend, it was rumored that a Prince hologram would make an appearance during the show. Sheila E. criticized the move, and it was pointed out that Prince himself had once objected to hologram performances. Sheila later said that she spoke to Timberlake, who assured her that a hologram performance wouldn’t happen. Timberlake celebrated the release of his new album Man of the Woods at Prince’s Paisley Park.
In a statement, Nick Whitehouse of Fireplay—the Visual Creative lead behind Timberlake’s halftime performance—said that they wanted to “pay tribute” to Prince:
Paying tribute to Prince was something JT highlighted as an important moment for this show, and we spent quite a bit of time ensuring this moment would be true to his legacy. Ultimately, Justin decided that the only person who could do Prince justice is Prince, and we’re so proud to be part of his team who created this epic moment.
Timberlake returned to the show 14 years after his infamous 2004 performance with Janet Jackson. Jackson herself released a statement yesterday confirming that she wouldn’t be joining Timberlake. Earlier in the night, Hamilton’s Leslie Odom Jr. performed “America the Beautiful” with two youth choirs. Pink then sang the national anthem.
Revisit Pitchfork’s “Lady Gaga’s Choose-Your-Own-Political-Subtext Halftime Show” and “How Pepsi Used Pop Music to Build an Empire.”
