Beyonce is a cultural icon. In her 3 decade career, she single-handedly has changed the music scene forever. On the other hand, Netflix had splurged $150 million for exclusive rights of NFL Christmas games. So, when they approached Bey to perform at halftime, they had to make an offer that could not reject. And they did it the right way.

To rope in the icon for the Christmas game between the Ravens and Texans, the streaming giant rejected the NFL’s tradition of not paying the performing artists. And they paid her a whopping $20 million for 13 minutes. That’s a break from how the league handles such performances. In 2016, an NFL spokesperson revealed that they don’t pay artists. but they cover the expenses, production costs, and travel expenses.

The NFL pays the artists according to the union contracts. That’s a fraction of the millions the superstars get, usually around $1000. However, there is another angle. Broadcast across the globe, halftime performances in Super Bowl or other important games, bring in a wider audience for the artists. So, it helps increase their popularity and music sales.

Beyonce doesn’t need anyone else to give her sales. She is a global icon. Grooving to the tunes of Cowboys Carter, she lit the stage with her lively dance. Her daughter, too, appeared for a few minutes. Her superstardom raised the Ravens–Texans game’s excitement to another level. The fans broke the viewership records with an average of around 24.3 million with the peak going to $27 million for the Ravens game. So, Netflix might have recovered its overall expenses.

The league works differently. They understand that fans love the game. So, any musical performance, such as Beyonce, is a bonus. Not for them, but for the artists as well. However, some have backed out too.

Which artists have rejected the NFL offer to perform at the Super Bowl?

The league has never paid a hefty amount to any artist to perform. But in 2015, they became over-ambitious and wanted to charge artists to perform at the Super Bowl halftime. The league approached artists like Coldplay, Katy Perry, and Rihanna with an offer to charge them. But all of them rejected it. Only perry agreed at first, but later, she too rejected the deal.

While talking about the offer with Forbes, she explained her mindset and said, “I don’t want an asterisk by my name for playing the Super Bowl for the rest of my life. I want to be able to say I played the Super Bowl based on my talents and my merit, thank you very much.” Charging these popular artists for a performance seems far-fetched. They rightly dismissed it soon.

For the fans, the halftime performances bring fun and joy, like Beyonce brought on this Christmas. That also increases the appeal of the sport across varying audiences. Within 2 months, the Super Bowl will take place. This time, Kendrick Lamar will be delivering his fiery verses. It would be a great show to watch.