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Tag: halftime show

  • That wasn’t Liam Conejo Ramos in Bad Bunny’s halftime show

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    More than 135 million people watched Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show, and because of false social media posts, some went to bed believing the performance featured Liam Conejo Ramos, the 5-year-old boy detained by ICE in Minneapolis. 

    During Bad Bunny’s Feb. 8 set at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, the Puerto Rican singer stopped to hand a child what appeared to be a replica of his Album of the Year Grammy award. As he knelt down, Bad Bunny, whose legal name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, rubbed the boy’s head and said, “Cree siempre en ti,” which means “always believe in yourself.”

    Journalists and X accounts with blue checkmarks shared that the boy was Conejo Ramos. 

    “One of the most meaningful moments of the Super Bowl halftime show happened quietly,” journalist Mariana Atencio posted Feb. 8 on X from her verified account. “Bad Bunny brought Liam Conejo Ramos onto the stage — the Ecuadorian boy who was forcefully detained by ICE in Minnesota — and handed him his Grammy.”

    A Facebook post read, “This kid that Bad Bunny handed the Grammy to is allegedly Liam Conejo Ramos — the boy who had been deported with his father by ICE in Minneapolis.” 

    The child featured in the first-ever Spanish-language halftime show was not Conejo Ramos — it was 5-year-old child actor Lincoln Fox, whose Instagram account shared a post about it shortly after the show ended: “I’ll remember this day forever! @badbunnypr — it was my truest honor.”

    In a Feb. 9 followup post, Fox’s Instagram account elaborated about his role and addressed the Conejo Ramos rumors.

    “An emotional, unforgettable day being cast as the young Benito — a symbolic moment where the future hands the past a Grammy,” the post said in part. “Sending love to Liam Ramos. We all deserve peace and love in America, a country built by and home to so many hard-working immigrants.”

    A law firm representing the Conejo Ramos family told PolitiFact the child onstage was not Liam. PolitiFact did not immediately hear back from representatives for Bad Bunny. A Bad Bunny publicist confirmed to NPR that the boy on stage was not Liam Conejo Ramos.

    Federal immigration agents detained Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrian Conejo, on Jan. 20 as they returned home from the boy’s preschool. They were sent to a Texas detention center before a judge ordered their release Feb. 1. 

    The family is from Ecuador and is in the process of claiming asylum as the Trump administration has sought to end their asylum claims and deport them.

    We rate claims that Conejo Ramos was the boy in Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show False.

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  • Bad Bunny Super Bowl halftime show: ‘Party’ and Puerto Rican culture highlights in performance

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    Following a relatively uneventful first half of Super Bowl 60, megastar Bad Bunny delivered a love letter to Puerto Rican culture that also included a handful of celebrity cameos.Bad Bunny, whose real name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, teased days ahead of Sunday that his 13-minute performance was going to be a “big party,” and his first song of choice began in that direction.Standing amid a field of farmworkers, Bad Bunny began with “Tití Me Preguntó.” As he kept walking through the field, other various facets of Puerto Rican culture were featured.The songs that followedBad Bunny kept most of his setlist to party music, playing some of his well-known hits that include “Yo Perreo Sola,” “Safaera,” and “Party” before he sampled Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina,” an anthem that is one of the most famous reggaeton songs in the entire genre.The singer’s back half of the show included more recent songs, such as “Monaco, “EoO” and “DtMF,” with the last two songs being part of the album that won him the Album of the Year Grammy last week.Bad Bunny has mentioned in recent interviews that his DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS album was his effort of trying to connect more to his cultural roots. Celebrities featured in Bad Bunny’s halftime showThere were a handful of featured guests, some widely speculated ahead of the Big Game, who made an appearance during the show.Among those featured were Pedro Pascal, Cardi B, Karol G, Young Miko, and Jessica Alba.Lady Gaga was one of two — the other being Ricky Martin later on — guests to actually sing. She performed a Latin rendition of “Die With a Smile,” a song released in 2025 by both her and Bruno Mars. She appeared right after what appeared to be a mid-show wedding.According to The Associated Press, that wedding was real. Bad Bunny served as their witness and signed their certificate before he transitioned to perform “Baile Inolvidable” and “NuevaYol.”When Martin performed, he sang Bad Bunny’s “Lo Que Le Pasó a Hawaii,” which translates to “What Happened to Hawaii.” That song echoes sentiment from Puerto Ricans pushing for cultural autonomy.Martin himself is from Puerto Rico.Transitioning the themeOne of the final songs Bad Bunny performed was “El Apagón,” which makes reference to others wanting to be Latino, but who lacked seasoning, drums and reggaeton. Bad Bunny performed this song while standing on top of a telephone pole; the song translates to “the blackout.”The latter part of the song, not played in the halftime show, has lyrics that roughly translate to, “I don’t want to leave here. Let them leave.”Also toward the end of the performance was a moment where a child was watching a clip from Bad Bunny during the Grammys. Seconds later, Bad Bunny handed the child a Grammy.Visible on the Levi’s Stadium scoreboard was the same message he shared during the Grammys: “The only thing more powerful than hate is love.”To close, Bad Bunny named every country and territory from South America to Canada, with every flag being carried out across the field. He also carried a football that read, “Together, we are America.” -The Associated Press contributed to this reporting.

    Following a relatively uneventful first half of Super Bowl 60, megastar Bad Bunny delivered a love letter to Puerto Rican culture that also included a handful of celebrity cameos.

    Bad Bunny, whose real name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, teased days ahead of Sunday that his 13-minute performance was going to be a “big party,” and his first song of choice began in that direction.

    Standing amid a field of farmworkers, Bad Bunny began with “Tití Me Preguntó.” As he kept walking through the field, other various facets of Puerto Rican culture were featured.

    The songs that followed

    Bad Bunny kept most of his setlist to party music, playing some of his well-known hits that include “Yo Perreo Sola,” “Safaera,” and “Party” before he sampled Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina,” an anthem that is one of the most famous reggaeton songs in the entire genre.

    The singer’s back half of the show included more recent songs, such as “Monaco, “EoO” and “DtMF,” with the last two songs being part of the album that won him the Album of the Year Grammy last week.

    Bad Bunny has mentioned in recent interviews that his DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS album was his effort of trying to connect more to his cultural roots.

    There were a handful of featured guests, some widely speculated ahead of the Big Game, who made an appearance during the show.

    Among those featured were Pedro Pascal, Cardi B, Karol G, Young Miko, and Jessica Alba.

    Lady Gaga was one of two — the other being Ricky Martin later on — guests to actually sing. She performed a Latin rendition of “Die With a Smile,” a song released in 2025 by both her and Bruno Mars. She appeared right after what appeared to be a mid-show wedding.

    According to The Associated Press, that wedding was real. Bad Bunny served as their witness and signed their certificate before he transitioned to perform “Baile Inolvidable” and “NuevaYol.”

    SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 08: Bad Bunny and Lady Gaga perform onstage during the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show at Levi's Stadium on February 08, 2026 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

    SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 08: Ricky Martin performs with Bad Bunny onstage during the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show at Levi's Stadium on February 08, 2026 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

    When Martin performed, he sang Bad Bunny’s “Lo Que Le Pasó a Hawaii,” which translates to “What Happened to Hawaii.” That song echoes sentiment from Puerto Ricans pushing for cultural autonomy.

    Martin himself is from Puerto Rico.

    Transitioning the theme

    One of the final songs Bad Bunny performed was “El Apagón,” which makes reference to others wanting to be Latino, but who lacked seasoning, drums and reggaeton.

    Bad Bunny performed this song while standing on top of a telephone pole; the song translates to “the blackout.”

    The latter part of the song, not played in the halftime show, has lyrics that roughly translate to, “I don’t want to leave here. Let them leave.”

    Also toward the end of the performance was a moment where a child was watching a clip from Bad Bunny during the Grammys. Seconds later, Bad Bunny handed the child a Grammy.

    Visible on the Levi’s Stadium scoreboard was the same message he shared during the Grammys: “The only thing more powerful than hate is love.”

    To close, Bad Bunny named every country and territory from South America to Canada, with every flag being carried out across the field. He also carried a football that read, “Together, we are America.”

    -The Associated Press contributed to this reporting.

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  • Coca-Cola isn’t pushing to end Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl show

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    Has your titi asked you about Coca-Cola’s ultimatum to the NFL to remove Bad Bunny from the Super Bowl halftime show? Well, tell auntie that isn’t right.

    An Oct. 5 X post says Coca-Cola CEO James Quincey demanded the NFL pull Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny from the 2026 Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show, or risk the company’s important sponsorship.

    “‘I will end my sponsorship of the Super Bowl if they let Bad Bunny perform at the Halftime – Coca Cola CEO James Quincey issues shocking ultimatum, NFL’S response stuns millions!,’” says the image in the post. 

    Other posts on TikTok, Facebook and Instagram made similar claims about the supposed news; some of the posts showed disappointed users pouring bottles of Coca-Cola down the drain. 

    (Screenshot of X post.)

    Sign up for PolitiFact texts

    These posts sharing fabricated news come after the Sept. 28 announcement that Bad Bunny will headline the Feb. 8 halftime show drew criticism from some Trump supporters and Republican officials. Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio., told a journalist the NFL choice to pick a “second-rate musician” was political, and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., touted her bill to make English the official language of the U.S. President Donald Trump called the decision “absolutely ridiculous” Oct. 6 on Newsmax.

    The rapper also drew controversy in early September, when he said he didn’t include any U.S. stops on his concert tour for his latest album “DeBÍ TirRAR MáS FOToS” for fear of Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids at his shows.

    In July, Bad Bunny also criticized Trump immigration policies by featuring in his music video for “NUEVAYol” a voice that sounds like Trump’s saying, “I made a mistake, I want to apologize to the immigrants in America.”

    None of the controversy makes headlines about Quincey’s “ultimatum” real. 

    A Coca-Cola spokesperson told PolitiFact that the claim is fabricated. 

    Coca-Cola doesn’t sponsor the Super Bowl. 

    Variety reported that Coca-Cola pulled back from the Super Bowl in 2019 after an 11-year sponsorship run. Apple Music is the 2026 halftime show sponsor. The show’s producer and director is from Roc Nation, an entertainment company founded by Jay-Z. 

    There is no mention of Coca-Cola as a sponsor on the NFL players union website. Instead, Coca-Cola’s chief competitor, PepsiCo, is on the list. PepsiCo sponsored the Super Bowl halftime shows from 2013 to 2022 and is the NFL’s official drink sponsor

    Coca-Cola’s most recent Super Bowl ad was in 2020, according to websites that archived the ads.

    PolitiFact reached out to the NFL for comment but did not receive a response.

    The earliest versions of the claim that we could find link back to an Oct. 2 fictitious story on a website called News247. The article has many red flags: It has no byline, no attribution for the CEO’s quote, and includes esoteric word choices such as “ricocheted,” “explosive” and “parochialism,” which can be signs of text generated by artificial intelligence.  

    The Facebook account that posted the claim has shared multiple bogus claims, such as fake quotes from comedian Jimmy Kimmel and actor Johnny Depp about Bad Bunny’s upcoming performance. 

    We found more than 10 posts on Facebook alone sharing the claim, calling users to visit other fake websites with the same colors and layout that republished the same article from News247. 

    The Coca-Cola CEO didn’t give an ultimatum to the NFL about Bad Bunny and the company isn’t sponsoring the 2026 Super Bowl. We rate the claim Pants on Fire! 

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  • The Reasons Taylor Swift Has NEVER Done The Super Bowl Halftime Show! – Perez Hilton

    The Reasons Taylor Swift Has NEVER Done The Super Bowl Halftime Show! – Perez Hilton

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    Taylor Swift is literally at the top of the world. She’s won nearly every big award we can think of, performed all over the world, and has a legion of diehard fans. And yet, she’s NEVER — not once — done the Super Bowl halftime show! How is that possible?!

    Well, there are actually a ton of reasons why this hasn’t happened yet!

    While the Anti-Hero artist is one of the biggest singers these days, when she started, she wasn’t exactly considered the kind of artist who everybody would want to jam out to — especially not a ton of sports fans. In fact, it wasn’t until her 2012 hit We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together that she really started to make those kinds of waves, followed by her mega-successful album 1989, which spawned hits Shake It Off, Blank Space, and Bad Blood in 2014. This would’ve been an AH-mazing year for her to do the big show — except there was just one huge problem!

    Related: Taylor Swift’s Super Bowl Shoes Hid A Secret Tribute To Travis Kelce!

    In 2013, Taylor signed a “long-term” endorsement deal to be the face of Diet Coke — but up until 2022, Pepsi was the big sponsor for the NFL concert. Obviously, this was a conflict of interest! But, as Swifties know, the musician also didn’t release any new music from 2014 to 2017, so it wouldn’t have made much sense for her to take the stage anyway.

    That said, when Apple Music took over the halftime show, they quickly tried to tap her for the role. They even asked her to do the honors at last year’s Super Bowl LVII, but the Lover artist declined. Why?! At the time, she supposedly said she couldn’t do it because she was preoccupied with rerecording all her albums. TMZ sources claimed something similar in 2022, saying the 34-year-old didn’t want to do the show without owning all her music, and she has yet to re-release her self-titled album and Reputation. That makes a lot of sense, honestly!

    Besides, while the songwriter has proven she can do a million things at once, it would’ve been hard for her to put together a glitzy performance amidst her hectic Eras Tour schedule. Usher, on the other hand, has been doing a Las Vegas residency — making it that much easier to prep! And while a halftime show (or even a cameo) would have been incredible, at least we still got lots of Taylor content at the game! And maybe one day in the future, especially if her romance with the Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce continues to blossom, she’ll finally do the honors! Fingers crossed!

    Reactions, Perezcious readers? Let us know (below)!

    [Image via MEGA/WENN]

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    Perez Hilton

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  • What Was Said? Jermaine Dupri Responds To Social Media Jokes About His Viral Super Bowl ‘Fit

    What Was Said? Jermaine Dupri Responds To Social Media Jokes About His Viral Super Bowl ‘Fit

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    Jermaine Dupri is weighing in on the social media discourse surrounding the now-viral fit he wore to Super Bowl LVIII. As The Shade Room previously reported, the music mogul made an appearance amid Usher’s halftime on Sunday, February 12.

    RELATED: What A Show! Watch Usher Light Up Las Vegas With ‘Fits & Hits In Super Bowl Performance

    Jermaine Dupri Addressed The Internet Chatter

    On Monday, February 12, Jermaine Dupri took to Instagram to share a carousel of photos with fans. The first picture featured him flexin’ his $565 Louis Vuitton Pocket Socks, adorned with pearl pocket-button.

    The second photo featured a screenshot of one social media user’s comment on Jermaine Dupri’s Super Bowl fit while the third featured an animation graphic of his appearance.

    Additionally, the 51-year-old shared a caption with the carousel.

    “Haaa!! ok I ain’t have time for y’all last night I was too drunk, me and my homies performed at the Super Bowl!so I’m just really seeing y’all got me f****d up !! But I will say it’s funny as hell,yoooo!! @pharrell 🤣🤣 you see this !? PS we came into this game with our clothes on backwards, i ain’t no regular n***a 🤣🤣” he wrote.

    Swipe below to see Dupri’s reaction and check out a photo of his now-viral fit.

    Here’s What Social Media Said

    Of course, social media users reacted to Dupri’s subtle clap back in The Shade Room’s comment section.

    Instagram user @byrdsosweet_ wrote.

    “Just because they’re LV doesn’t make it right 😂😂”

    While Instagram user @therealkerwinclaiborne added.

    “We don’t care they still look like his daughter Easter socks”

    Instagram user @notsochristian_ wrote.

    “Just cause LV told you to dress like a pilgrim don’t mean you GOTTA do it 🙄”

    While Instagram user @_brookes.alexandria_ added.

    “His socks said ‘anothuh bowl of porridge sir 🥹’ 😂😂😂”

    Instagram user @tastelikecandi_ wrote.

    “Somebody Said Jermaine Dupri Was Dressed Like Boss Baby && I Can’t Unsee It 😂😂😂”

    While Instagram user @blackfoodlife added.

    “So because it’s designer….it’s ok to wear them orphan Annie church socks?😂”

    Instagram user @kingali wrote.

    “A purse 👛 on a sock 🧦 crazy”

    While Instagram user @mizzlipz added.

    “Somebody tell ‘em it wasn’t just the socks, it was the half size suit- for an already smaller sized man 😭 or fact that it took a second to realize it wasn’t CeeLo Green up there 😩 Congrats on the performance tho 💫 for the culture!”

    Check out additional social media reactions to Dupri’s fit below.

    More Details Regarding Super Bowl LVIII

    As The Shade Room previously reported, Usher’s halftime performance kicked off with a few solo sets from the singer. However, it was also joined by Alicia Keys.

    Chatter on social media even prompted Swizz Beatz to weigh in on his wife’s romantic duet with Usher.

    RELATED: Hubby Speaks! Swizz Beatz Gives His Take On Usher & Alicia Keys’ Viral Halftime Performance

    Additionally, Usher was also joined by Lil Jon, Ludacris and others.

    To see more reactions to Usher’s performance and other viral moments from Super Bowl LVIII, click the link below.

    RELATED: A Game To Remember! Social Media Reacts To The Biggest Moments From Super Bowl LVIII (Videos)



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    Jadriena Solomon

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  • Rihanna’s Halftime Show Looked Like A Smash Bros. Stage

    Rihanna’s Halftime Show Looked Like A Smash Bros. Stage

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    Look, you probably saw the show and noticed it straight anyway regardless, but just in case you didn’t, here are a bunch of people all making the same joke: that Rihanna’s halftime performance at the Super Bowl tonight looked just like a Smash Bros. stage.

    To be fair, it’s not really a joke. More a case of just stating the clearly obvious. All that was missing some some backup dancer getting punched into space.

    In case you want to read more about the performance itself—one of the all-time great Super Bowl halftime shows—The AV Club have some coverage you can check out:

    As a musician, Rihanna’s greatest strength—the thing that most sets her apart from her peers—has always been her catalog. Other artists may be better singers or dancers, but, besides Mariah Carey, no living artist has more number-one hits than Rihanna. It makes sense that Team Rih would try to cram as many of these songs into her 13-minute Super Bowl Halftime Show set as possible—unfortunately, the trip down memory lane came at the expense of other kinds of showmanship.

    Rihanna opened the set high above the field, standing on one of many eye-popping floating stages, powering through her anthemic “Bitch Better Have My Money.” This was easily the best moment of her performance, and the stage stunned visually. Plenty of other artists have recently taken to the sky during their time at the Super Bowl, but none used the space in such a deliberate way. Rih flashed a smirk with all the cockiness we’ve come to expect from someone who’s dubbed herself “Bad Girl Riri”—a welcome reminder of what we’ve missed in the past seven years without a Rihanna album.

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    Luke Plunkett

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  • Rihanna Literally Soars In Banger-Filled Super Bowl Performance

    Rihanna Literally Soars In Banger-Filled Super Bowl Performance

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    There was a long-awaited Rihanna concert Sunday night (and some football).

    The singer took the stage at the 2023 Super Bowl in Arizona for her first live performance in five years, belting out a powerhouse medley of some of her greatest hits from a stunning arrangement of floating stages above the field. She performed the hits without any guest appearances ― which had been the subject of much speculation ― alongside an enormous crew of backup dancers clad in white puffer tracksuits.

    Suspended in the air, Rihanna started out the set with “Bitch Better Have My Money,” and floated between ground and sky for renditions of “Where Have You Been,” “Only Girl in the World,” “We Found Love,” “Rude Boy,” “Work,” “Wild Thoughts,” “Pour it Up,” “All of the Lights,” “Run This Town” and “Umbrella,” finishing with “Diamonds.”

    Following widespread speculation the singer was announcing her pregnancy in her performance, the singer’s representative confirmed she’s pregnant with her second child. She and her partner, rapper A$AP Rocky, welcomed a son in May.

    Watch the full performance from the 10:20 mark below.

    The Grammy winner set social media afire in September when she announced that she’d be headlining the 2023 Super Bowl halftime show, breaking what felt to fans like an interminable hiatus from music. Weeks later, she dropped her first solo release in six years, “Lift Me Up,” as the lead single for the soundtrack of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” The track has since earned the singer-songwriter her first Oscar nomination.

    Sunday’s performance marked her first time on the stage since the 2018 Grammys, when she belted out her DJ Khaled collaboration “Wild Thoughts.” Fans have been champing at the bit for new music since her eighth studio album “Anti” in 2016.

    It’s not like she hasn’t been busy in the interim, though. Since 2017, the 34-year-old has launched her wildly successful Fenty Beauty empire, introduced her lingerie brand Savage X Fenty and starred in the 2018 movie “Ocean’s 8,” to name a few projects. In July, Forbes named her the youngest self-made female billionaire in the country, with an estimated net worth of $1.4 billion.

    To top all that off, she also became a first-time mom during her hiatus.

    In a media preview Thursday, Rihanna said she was initially unsure about taking on the halftime show, and making such a major decision while she was three months postpartum.

    “But when you become a mom, there’s something that just happens where you feel like you can take on the world, you can do anything,” she said. “The Super Bowl is one of the biggest stages of the world. As scary as that was, because I hadn’t been on stage in seven years, there’s something exhilarating about the challenge of it all.”

    The 2023 show follows last year’s groundbreaking hip-hop extravaganza with rap legends Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem and Mary J. Blige. The Weeknd gave a memorable (and meme-able) performance in 2021 and pop icons Shakira and Jennifer Lopez fired up the stage with an electrifying set in 2020.

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