Despite apparent NFL protests, Eminem kneeled on stage during his Super Bowl 2022 halftime show performance, which has been utilized as a form of protest against police brutality and racial inequity.
According to Puck, the rapper was at issues with the NFL because he kneeled "Colin Kaepernick-style" during a star-studded halftime concert that also included Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, and 50 Cent.
However, NFL representatives denied that the league had any issues with Eminem prior to his performance. Reps told the Post that athletes have been taking knees without punishment since 2016, so musical skill would not be held to a different standard.
Eminem takes a knee at the Super Bowl 2022 halftime show./REUTERS.Eminem takes a knee at the Super Bowl 2022 halftime show./EPA.
League officials also knew going into Sunday that the rapper would take a knee because officials “watched it during rehearsals this week,” an NFL spokesman told The New York Times.
The report from Puck says league organizers “also flagged something that Snoop Dogg was set to wear as possibly appearing gang-related.”
Eminem reportedly wanted to kneel “Colin Kaepernick style” at the Super Bowl halftime show, but the NFL said no./Icon Sportswire via Getty Images. Eminem, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg at the 2000 BET Awards./WireImage.
According to the story, Dr. Dre had a lot of back-and-forth annoyances when arranging his performance.
According to a source close to Dr. Dre, the rapper felt "disgustingly censored."
The league was claimed to be concerned with a phrase in "Still D.R.E." — "still not liking cops" — because it did not want this performance to be a "divisive cultural war moment."
