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2027 Super Bowl headliner announced: Jay-Z picks himself to perform for Super Bowl LXI

Updated 12:12 AM ET · 11:25 PM ETConfirmed

Sports Desk

In Short: The NFL announced that Jay-Z will perform at the Super Bowl LXI halftime show in February 2027.

The NFL has confirmed that Jay-Z will headline the Super Bowl LXI halftime show, set to take place on February 14, 2027, near Los Angeles.

According to the NFL, Jay-Z's company Roc Nation has been producing the halftime show since 2019, and he plays a key role in selecting each year's performer.

Jay-Z, a New York native, will bring East Coast hip-hop to the West Coast for the Super Bowl LXI halftime show.

The announcement was made during Monday Night Football on October 26, 2026, and was confirmed by multiple outlets including the BBC, CBS Sports, and the Daily Mail.

Jay-Z's decision to perform at the Super Bowl comes after a week of speculation and rumors.

The hip-hop mogul has not previously performed himself at the NFL championship game, and the announcement did not specify if he would be the sole headliner.

Jay-Z's wife, Beyoncé, headlined the halftime show at Super Bowl XLVII and was a guest performer at Super Bowl 50.

The NFL and Apple Music made the news official during Monday Night Football, with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell expressing his excitement for fans to experience Jay-Z's artistry and cultural impact.

Jay-Z's last full-length solo album was 4:44 in 2017, followed by the collaborative album Everything Is Love with Beyoncé in 2018.

The rapper has helped select artists for the last several Super Bowl halftime shows, and his involvement has been a significant part of the event's production.

Jay-Z's upcoming performance will give fans another opportunity to celebrate a career that has influenced hip-hop for decades.

The possibility of Jay-Z performing alone has sparked criticism from fans and calls for a Beyoncé appearance.

What this adds

Background

What's confirmed

• After word of JAY-Z’s upcoming performance first leaked in the media last week, the NFL and Apple Music made the news official during Monday Night Football earlier this evening.
• The music mogul will headline the Super Bowl LXI halftime show, which was announced during halftime of Monday's Dallas Cowboys-Philadelphia Eagles game.
• Jay-Z has also been performing, celebrating milestone anniversaries this year: 30 years since his debut album, "Reasonable Doubt," and 25 years since "The Blueprint." That celebration has included stadium shows in London, Paris and, last weekend, at SoFi, the same venue that will host the Super Bowl.
• “From Reasonable Doubt to standing on the Super Bowl Halftime stage, this has been a journey,” JAŸ-Z said in a statement.
• A teaser soundtracked by “Public Service Announcement (Interlude),” off 2003’s The Black Album, plays across a black-and-white video of Jay-Z in stadium seats, kicking off with the famous line: “Allow me to reintroduce myself, my name HOV — H to the O-V.” The tease was posted to social media after.
• NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he "couldn't be more excited for fans around the world to experience the artistry, creativity and cultural impact he will bring".

What's still developing

• "Anticipation as to who Jay-Z might have guest star at halftime for the big game will now kick off," the NFL said in a statement.
• According to Puck News, Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus were also considered for the 2027 halftime show before JAY-Z ultimately settled on himself for the coveted gig.
• Following weeks of speculation that the rapper, 56, had selected himself to perform during the big game, ESPN, which will broadcast this season's Super Bowl, officially announced that he would take to the stage.
• "I said no to the Super Bowl: You need me, I don't need you. Every night we in the end zone, tell the NFL we in stadiums too." -- Jay-Z, "Apes---" The man who famously rapped about turning down the Super Bowl in 2018 has changed his tune. Jay-Z is headed to SoFi Stadium to headline the Super Bowl LXI halftime show, putting one of hip-hop's deepest catalogs on football's biggest stage. Apparently, "I don't need you" left a little room for "see you in Inglewood."
• With 2026 marking 30 years of "Reasonable Doubt" and 25 years of "The Blueprint," Jay-Z and Roc Nation announced a three-night celebration at Yankee Stadium on March 18.
• That possibility has already sparked complaints about the selection process and demands for a different headliner.
• “Our teams are really close. They sometimes will call and say, 'How does she feel about the Super Bowl?' And that's not an official offer or like a conference room conversation. We’re really close, it’s like, 'How does she feel about it in general?'" She also cited being way too emotionally invested in "a guy who does that sport on that field" to focus on putting on a show.
• He kicked off the celebrations as a headliner at the Roots Picnic in late May, followed by three sold-out shows at Yankee Stadium in July to honor the 25th and 30th anniversaries of his albums “The Blueprint” and “Reasonable Doubt,” respectively.
• Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Carter, just wrapped his 30 Tour, which celebrated the 30th anniversary of his debut album, “Reasonable Doubt.” His final two shows were at SoFi.
• One fan immediately attached a condition to the potential booking.
• Jay-Z became the first rapper inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2017 and joined the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2021.
• It's Jay-Z’s first time headlining the show he has helped shape since the partnership began.

Sources

• BBClink
• Billboardlink
• CBS Sportslink
• Consequence of Soundlink
• Daily Maillink
• Entertainment Weeklylink
• Eonlinelink
• Hip Hop Vibelink
• NBC Newslink
• New York's Power 105.1 FMlink
• Pro Football Networklink
• Varietylink
• CBS Newslink
• Foxsportslink
• Espnlink
• WarpBeat — background on Jay-Z to Headline 2027 Super Bowl Halftime Show link
• E! News — video link