Taylor Swift reportedly not playing Super Bowl after NFL refuses her demands
Published in Entertainment News
Taylor Swift reportedly won’t be rocking the Super Bowl halftime show after all, despite rampant speculation the world’s biggest pop star would finally take its biggest stage.
The 35-year-old Grammy winner — whose 12th studio album, “The Life of a Showgirl,” drops Friday — walked away from playing Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8, after the NFL allegedly refused to give in to her demands, according to multiple reports.
News of the failed deal originated with British pop culture journalist Rob Shuter’s Substack, to which a music executive reportedly said Swift “knows her worth,” even if the halftime show famously compensates artists in exposure instead of dollars.
“She knows the kind of ratings she brings, the global attention she commands. She wasn’t about to hand that over for free,” the industry source said. “Taylor Swift doesn’t need exposure. She wanted a deal that reflected her value.”
According to NBC affiliate WCNC, part of that deal would include Swift retaining ownership of the performance footage, much like the way she’s fought to regain control of her music masters.
Adele is now reportedly being considered as an alternative headliner for the show.
Representatives for Swift, the NFL, the show’s producer Roc Nation and sponsor Apple Music did not immediately return the Daily News’ request for comment.
Speculation about Swift finally playing the Super Bowl ratcheted up last month when she and Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce announced their engagement — not least because this will likely be the tight end’s last season in the league.
Asked earlier this month about the prospect of Swift performing at the Super Bowl, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told NBC’s “Today” that he would welcome her “at any time.”
Further pressed on whether discussions were actually being held, Goodell simply said, “I can’t tell you anything about it.”
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