Here’s the real reason why Rihanna was not paid for Super Bowl Halftime Show

Rihanna made headlines after she put up a spectacle performing mid-air for the Super Bowl LVII halftime show on Sunday, February 13th, 2023.

Over the years, the famed halftime show has had big names in the music industry perform for the event, which includes the likes of Beyoncé, Bruno Mars, Eminem, The Weeknd, Shakira, Jennifer Lopez to Bruce Springsteen.

However, anyone who has headlined the Halftime show never actually received that pay cheque for performing.

“We do not pay the artists,” an NFL spokesperson told Forbes in 2016. “We cover expenses and production costs,” via People Magazine.

Brian McCarthy, the NFL’s vice president of communications, confirmed to Newsweek that the league does cover “all costs associated with the show” — and while artists don’t receive an appearance fee, they are paid union scale, which is a minimum wage guaranteed by a union contract.

According to People, for many artists, the Super Bowl tends to be an opportunity for the them to perform in front of increasingly large crowds and it attracts a lot of viewers watching at home as well.

Many artists also see a boost in sales immediately after the show.

During her show, Rihanna went viral for touching up her makeup using a compact as she plugged her Fenty Beauty brand.

She also topped off her beauty look with a new liquid lipstick, called the ‘MVP’, that launched online during halftime.