Shaquille O’Neal has floated an idea on how Lil Wayne could upstage Kendrick Lamar‘s Super Bowl halftime show in New Orleans next year.
Speaking with NFL running back Leonard Fournette on his Big Shaq podcast, the NBA legend proposed a nefarious plan for Weezy to rain on K. Dot’s parade after being passed over for the coveted gig in his hometown.
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“I have a hypothetical question […] let’s just say the Super Bowl halftime show was from 12 to 1 — should Lil Wayne do a concert in New Orleans at the same time and televise it?” the former Louisiana State University star asked.
He then answered his own question, saying: “I would do that […] Stream it and then give people a choice.”
Lil Wayne not getting the Super Bowl spot has generated significant controversy, despite Kendrick Lamar enjoying a banner year in 2024 and cementing his place on the Hip Hop throne.
Prominent figures such as Nicki Minaj, Birdman and Cam’ron have all spoken out against the decision, with some of them directing their anger at JAY-Z, who has helped organize the halftime show since partnering with the NFL in 2019.
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Even Wayne himself has expressed disappointment at the snub, though it appears he was not in conversation with the NFL and Roc Nation about performing at the game.
In a video shared on Instagram last month, a somber-sounding Wayne admitted: “That hurt. It hurt a lot […] I blame myself for not being mentally prepared for a letdown, and for automatically mentally putting myself in that position like somebody told me that was my position. So I blame myself for that.
“But I thought that was nothing better than that spot and that stage and that platform in my city, so it hurt. It hurt a whole lot. But y’all are fucking amazing. It made me feel like shit not getting this opportunity and when I felt like shit, you guys reminded me that I ain’t shit without y’all… and that’s an amazing reality.”
Neither Kendrick nor JAY-Z have yet responded to the backlash, but they, too, have their fair share of supporters in their corner.
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During a recent appearance on The Talk, 50 Cent backed the decision to book the Compton superstar for Super Bowl LIX, saying: “I think Kendrick deserves [it]. As a solo artist right now, he’s the guy.”
Coming to the defense of his former adversary Hov, Fat Joe said on Instagram Live: “Years ago, the beef with the NFL was that Black people weren’t represented and they were doing us wrong, even though we were the talent. But then they brought in JAY-Z and Roc Nation to do the shows and they brought out Dr. Dre, Eminem, Rihanna, number one ratings — they killing it.
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“Yeah, JAY-Z’s a big voice but, you know, he gotta go through the NFL ranks, the Roger Goodells and everything like that, so they can come up with who’s performing at halftime. It ain’t just one man’s decision — that I know of. So to just blame one man…”
The Terror Squad capo ended his argument by joking: “If he wasn’t doing the halftime [with] Roc Nation, there’d be no Hip Hop! ‘Cause there never was Hip Hop [before 2022]. You’d be listening to, ‘Don’t go messin’ with a cotton-eyed boy / Cotton-eyed Joe / Cotton-eyed Joe.’ You’d be listening to that shit at halftime.”
