Super Bowl's most iconic performances ever - Michael Jackson to 'nipple gate'
The Super Bowl halftime show has become as gargantuan a spectacle as the game itself, with an estimated 120 million people tuning in around the world to be wowed with 15 minutes of pure music magic.
The most coveted entertainment slot on television has seen some legendary performances over the years from the biggest names in music.
And there's been plenty of controversy along the way forever eclipsed by Janet Jackson's nipple exposé in 2004... it's fair to say the halftime show rarely disappoints.
Last year, Rihanna took the honours and used her moment in the spotlight to announce her second pregnancy. The year before the stage belonged to not one but five performers with Eminem, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, and Kendrick Lamar joining forces for a celebration of 00s Hip Hop.
The pressure will be on Usher to raise the bar even higher with his eagerly-anticipated return to the limelight this Sunday.
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Ahead of the musical extravaganza, we take a look back at some of the most iconic halftime shows in Super Bowl history in history kicking things off with the King of Pop...
1. Michael Jackson, 1993
The one that started it all, Michael Jackson’s epic 1993 performance birthed the mammoth spectacle that is the halftime show.
With a children's choir, a giant globe soaring above the 50-yard line and an epic moonwalk to Billie Jean, Jacko threw everything into his performance that threw down the gauntlet for future stars.
Drawing a TV audience of a whopping 133 million, more people tuned in to watch Michael's 12-minute set than the entire first half of the game.
2. Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake, 2004
Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson's performance made headlines around the world (Getty Images)Things didn't go quite as smoothly for Michael's younger sister....
During her 2004 Super Bowl performance with Justin Timberlake, Janet Jackson ended up exposing herself in front of one of millions live on TV.
As the singers belted out a duet of hit single Rock Your Body, Justin strutted over to Janet and tore off part of her costume in front of a 140 million-strong audience, revealing her jewellery clad breast.
The moment was quickly explained as a “wardrobe malfunction” and MTV who produced the segment hasn’t been allowed near the Super Bowl since.
Such was the controversy surrounding the shock nudity, Janet's glittering career derailed with shocking force as she was mercilessly axed from upcoming performances and TV appearances.
Last year, Justin issued a grovelling public apology to the his former co-performer for letting her take the wrap for the incident.
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3. Paul McCartney, 2005
Paul ran through a selection of hits at the Florida Super Bowl, 2005 (Getty Images)After the controversy of 'nipplegate' the year before, the Half Time Show was placed in Paul McCartney's very safe hands 12 months later.
The former Beatle ran through legendary hits from his decade-spanning career, including Drive My Car, Live and Let Die and of course, a rousing rendition of Hey Jude as the finale.
4. Madonna, 2012
Madona was joined by Nicki Minaj and MIA (FilmMagic)It takes a lot to upstage Queen of Controversy Madonna, but British rapper M.I.A managed to do just that when she flashed her middle finger mid-performance.
The star, who made a guest appearance alongside Madge and Nicki Minaj, later claimed she made the one-fingered salute as a symbol of spiritual devotion to a Hindu goddess.
MIA's big FU to the Super Bowl after being SUED for flicking the bird during her performance (Instagram/miamatangi)But Madonna wasn’t impressed calling the stunt “childish and irrelevant”.
The NFL even tried to sue M.I.A. – also known as Mathangi Maya Arulpragasam – for a whopping $16.6million (£11.4m) claiming the music star had breached their contract and ruined the NFL’s 'goodwill and reputation.'
Both sides settled the case in 2014 for an unknown amount of money.
5. Beyoncé, 2013
The ladies at the 2013 Super BowlQueen Bee was always going to put on one hell of a show, and when her time came she did not disappoint.
She even brought her old Destiny's Child band mates out of girlband retirement for the occasion - but in keeping with tradition she was still centre stage.
From Run the World, Independent Women Part 1 and ending on a spine-tinging rendition of ballad Halo, Beyonce's career-spanning setlist landed her the fourth most watched halftime in Super Bowl history.
6. Katy Perry, 2016
Watch out for the shark (Wireimage)Arriving into the stadium on a robotic tiger, 'lying above the heads of the crowd and bringing out Missy Elliott and Lenny Kravitz for guest cameos, Katy Perry went all out to make her shot at the Super Bowl show one to remember.
But despite all that Katy still managed to get upstaged, by a dancing shark no less, who momentarily forgot his closely choreographed dance moves and free-styled through the mishap.
The hilarious moment sparked a viral frenzy with #LeftShark trending on worldwide Twitter within minutes as viewers lapped up the on stage blunder.
7. Coldplay, 2016
Coldplay had some help from Beyonce and Bruno Mars (Getty Images North America)Chris Martin's Coldplay were billed as the 2016 headliners but they called upon a little help from their friends to get the party started.
A leotard-clad Beyoncé showed up with a troupe of backing dancers to perform a stomping rendition of her hit Formation direct from the pitch.
Many fans questioned if Bey had stolen the show from English crooners Coldplay, but the band came together with Bruno Mars and Bey for a singalong of Uptown Funk as they ended the collaboration on a high.
8. Lady Gaga, 2017
(Getty Images)There's a good reason Gaga's epic half-time show remains one of the most watched in history.
She wowed crowds at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, during a performance which saw her glide across the field attached to a harness, drop her mic, catch a football, and exit the stage by jumping off of it.
"I want to more than anything create a moment that everybody watching will never forget. Not for me, but for themselves," Mother Monster announced before taking to the stage - and stayed true to her word.§
9. Justin Timberlake, 2018
Justin Timberlake will perform at the 2018 Super Bowl (Getty)14 years after 'nipplegate' chart-topper Justin Timberlake accepted the honour of performing at the 2018 halftime show , which took place at the US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
The 2017 event was viewed by a whopping 110 million Americans alone, meaning the ex-NSYNC frontman had a lot of people to please.
Despite the rumours, Janet Jackson confirmed she would't be joining JT on the night, putting the daunting performance solely in his hands.
10. Prince, 2007
Prince lapped up his moment in the spotlight as he took to the stage in 2007 (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)It doesn't get much bigger than Prince, who rocked his personalised love symbol stage at Miami Gardens in 2007.
The rain might have been pouring down for the entire 13 minutes but that didn't stop the popstar who gave no sign of slowing down as he strutted around in his perilously high heeled boots in front of an enthralled crowd.
The performance kicked off with We Will Rock You before Prince went full throttle into a medley of hits that included 1999 and of course Purple Rain.
The show was an enormous success with the New York Times reporting it would 'go down in history as the most thrilling halftime shows ever; certainly the most predictable, and perhaps the best.'
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