The biggest game in the NFL hosts one of the most-watched music shows of the year. Millions of people from different countries reunite not only to watch their favorite team win or lose but also to appreciate the highly-expected halftime performance that brings renowned artists to sing in the middle of the field with lots of lights, fireworks and dancers all around. But, have you ever wondered what requirements those people had to meet in order to be considered as part of this event? Well, here is a quick glance at the recruitment process.
Choosing the artists
Performing at the Super Bowl’s halftime show is a great boost for an artist´s musical distribution and career recognition. Many of the personalities who have been chosen to participate are well-known for their amazing careers and of course, undoubted talent but the overall selection is not only a matter of experience.
Each year, the event organizers create a list of artists that could be selected for that show´s edition. The curation process is mainly based on popularity, music genre, and performance value, 3 elements that are equally important since the NFL covers all the expenses of the event, and whoever is chosen needs to ensure a good reach in terms of audience.
Then, that little list is passed to the host city representatives and they are the ones who pick the final winner to perform. Once the final decision has been made, the experience becomes a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the artist since she/he can hardly be picked again to lead the show in its future editions.
Last but not least, it is also important to mention that there is no payment for performing at this halftime show, even though it is still a win-win trade between both parties. The chosen artist does not receive any direct monetary benefit from the NFL but she/he does get all the expenses covered and days after the show, they usually experience a huge rise in album sales that can even double the average.
Recruiting dancers
One of the expenses that the NFL has to cover to get performance-ready is the hundreds of backup dancers that are a huge part of the greatness of this show. A good percentage of the total dancers needed is recruited personally and the rest are part of the group of people who offer themselves as volunteers just to live the experience that would definitely look bomb on their resume.
Participants are expected to be at least 18 years old, attend all the rehearsals which in total are around 72 hrs worth, and sign a confidentiality agreement that prohibits them from distributing pre-show information by any means. In this case, some of the participants are paid dancers, and others, since they were accepted as volunteers, just get the “experience“ out of it and they have to cover all their expenses.
The great magnitude of this event is impressive and the stakes are quite high for all those who get to participate. This whole process is definitely not easy and it surely has its own flaws and benefits, but in the end, it involves thousands of people that after long planning and rehearsal times, are able to put together amazing shows for us to enjoy and look forward to for an entire year.
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