On Thursday afternoon, the NFL held a press conference for
the headliners of the Pepsi Super Bowl 50 Halftime Show – Coldplay – to address
the media. But before the performers were introduced to the press, NFL
spokesman Brian McCarthy made some announcements of other game-day activities
that were yet to be disclosed.
First, let’s highlight
some of what the band had to say:
Lead singer Chris Martin revealed that his children would be
in the venue for the performance after his son Moses designed two pairs of
shoes for him: one to wear at the press conference and one to wear during the
halftime show.
When asked about handling the pressure of performing on this
big stage, Martin said the group is dealing with the stress by speaking to each
other about what they wanted to communicate in the halftime show.
“We decided that we wanted to make it about togetherness and
acceptance and the things we really believe in,” explained Martin. “And then we
called the right guests, so we know that we have great people joining us.”
Coldplay didn’t reveal who all the guests were but it had
been known for some time that Beyoncé would be one of the performers to join
them. Also, prior to taking the stage, Pepsi CMO Seth Kaufman announced Janelle
Monae will open the show for the British band.
When pressed for details on what fans can expect from their
performance Martin told the audience they were asked to honor the past, present
and future because it’s the 50th year.
“The way we’ve done that is looking to the future by asking
these kids from YOLA – Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles,” explained Martin. “The
way we’re sort of honoring the past is by asking some of the people whose
halftime shows we really loved and Beyoncé’s of course is right up there.”
Martin expressed that anyone who does this halftime show
knows that this is the biggest honor and privilege ever and they just want to
make it enjoyable.
The group showed in this presser that they’re not just
entertainers while performing songs on the stage but have a good sense of humor
as they exchanged comedic barbs with some of the reporters.
At one point, Martin dropped an F-bomb, while jokingly
answering a question about a “Left Shark” moment in reference to Katy Perry’s
performance in last year’s show.
“We’ve trained our sharks so well,” said Martin. “It’s a
difficult question to answer. Are you saying which part of our show will we
F*** up terribly?”
Of course, this couldn’t be a Super Bowl event without
discussion about the game itself. The band let it be known that they know
absolutely nothing about the sport. But became Panthers fans when they were
told Cam Newton is a fan of the group.
“This changes things significantly,” exclaimed Will
Champion, jokingly. “Plus they have a Scottish kicker as well, and Guy, our
bass player, is Scottish as well, so we feel a certain affinity with the Scots,
so I think we’ll go Panthers.”
Trying to maintain a level of political correctness, Martin
jumped in with another joke.
“I’m going with the Panthers,” added Martin. “Just to be
clear, that’s the Denver Panthers that we definitely are rooting for, Okay? So
put that in your paper!”
And now for the aforementioned announcements:
McCarthy announced 40 Super Bowl MVPs will be introduced to
the crowd on the field in a special pre-game moment. That will be followed by
recognition of the Walter Payton Man of the Year recipient.
The Armed Forces Chorus will then sing “America The
Beautiful” and Lady Gaga will sing the National Anthem afterwards.
McCarthy also provided details about the Super Bowl coin
toss, which will feature a special ceremony honoring football greats from the Oakland
Raiders and San Francisco 49ers. Joe Montana will toss the coin. Jerry Rice and
Steve Young will surround Montana. Representing the Raiders in the ceremony
will be Fred Biletnikoff, Jim Plunkett and Marcus Allen.
At the conclusion of the game, Brett Favre, Emmitt Smith and
Lynn Swann will bring the Vince Lombardi trophy to the podium.
Seal and Sam Hunt, earlier in the week, were tapped to
headline the Super Bowl 50 NFL Tailgate Party at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday.
