The true football fanatics − from the fantasy players to the spectators of the IRL gridiron −are eagerly anticipating Super Bowl Sunday’s face off between the Los Angeles Rams and the New England Patriots. For the rest us, the night’s controversial musical performances are the “must-see TV” tonight.
The Super Bowl will take place at 6:30 tonight at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, airing on CBS. The performances by a variety soul singers, rock bands and rappers will take place various times Sunday night.
Georgia’s own, Grammy Award-winning music legend Gladys Knight will be in the spotlight for her rendition of the national anthem. The “Midnight Train to Georgia” vocalist faced backlash for agreeing to sing the traditional Super Bowl tune from supporters of former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who opted to kneel more than two years ago during an NFL game to protest police brutality and racial injustices.
Knight responded to those critics in an interview with Variety magazine last month.
“I am here today and on Sunday, Feb. 3 to give the Anthem back its voice, to stand for that historic choice of words, the way it unites us when we hear it and to free it from the same prejudices and struggles I have fought long and hard for all my life,” she told the magazine.
Atlanta natives Chloe X Halle, a Grammy-nominated sibling R&B duo, will sing “America the Beautiful” prior to the Super Bowl 53 kickoff.
Maroon 5 will be at center stage for the halftime show. The band has faced its own legion of critics due to performing in the halftime show, when many artists reportedly declined the offer from the NFL. In an interview Thursday, Adam Levine, the band’s frontman said he expected the discouraging responses.
"No one put more thought and love into this than I did," he said in the Entertainment Tonight interview. "I spoke to many people, most importantly though, I silenced all the noise and listened to myself, and made my decision about how I felt."
Maroon 5 will put on the Super Bowl halftime show with the help of hip-hop artist Travis Scott and half of the legendary Atlanta rap duo Outkast Big Boi.
Here are the estimated times, eastern standard times, of each performance Super Bowl Sunday, according to CBS.
Between 6-6:30 p.m:
"America The Beautiful"
Chloe x Halle
"The Star-Spangled Banner"
Gladys Knight
Between 8 and 8:30 p.m.:
Halftime
Maroon 5, Travis Scott and Big Boi
Other times to know:
2 p.m.: THE SUPER BOWL TODAY — Live televised interviews, analysis and features profiling the key players and coaches who will participate in Super Bowl 53.
6:30 p.m. SUPER BOWL LIII – Kickoff of Super Bowl 53live from Atlanta on the CBS Television Network.
More on Super Bowl 53:
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