The ‘All-American Half Time Show’ was intended to be a more ‘family friendly’ half-time show, aimed at a pro-Trump audience. Criticism of Bad Bunny came as a result of his historic sympathy for migrant communities, given the current state of ICE raids representing an increasingly tough policy on migration into the U.S. The show lasted around thirty minutes, and ended with the rap-rock-turned-country singer performing a cover of the Cody Johnson’s “‘Til You Can’t”, before a broadcasting of a tribute to TPUSA’s founder, conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was killed last year during a public event in Ohio. According to the Athletic, the TPUSA half-time show brought in just over six million viewers, while the official show’s statistic is intended to be much higher, given that, last year, Kendrick Lamar’s performance garnered one hundred and thirty three million. 

The show’s broadcast was accompanied with a video message from the U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, declaring that we “salute Turning Point USA and everyone who believes freedom is still worth the fight”. The U.S. Administration itself, while not officially endorsing the TPUSA half-time show, has spoken against the choice of Bad Bunny. President Trump posted on Truth Social that “the Super Bowl Halftime Show is absolutely terrible, one of the worst, EVER!” Trump also stated that “nobody understands a word this guy is saying”, in reference to the fact that Bad Bunny sings in his native Spanish. 

Online reactions to Kid Rock’s performance were divided, with some MAGA loyalists embracing the performance, while others either mocked the performance or, in some cases, accused Rock of lip-syncing. Kid Rock, 55, whose sound straddles rock, nu-metal, country and hip-hop, has long been an outspoken supporter of Trump and celebrity ambassador for the conservative movement. In 2024, he performed at the Republican National Convention, dedicating his 2000 single “American Bad Ass” to Trump, with lyrics to show his public support for the President.

Since the broadcast, the travelling festival led by Kid Rock, Rock the Country, has come under scrutiny, with two bands, Shinedown and Creed, refusing to play, and the festival cancelling its Anderson, South Carolina date. Shinedown said in a subsequent statement that “our band’s purpose is to unite, not divide. With that in mind, we have made the decision that we will not be playing the Rock the Country festival.” As of 10/02/26, all other dates remain booked.

Abrams’s ‘That’s So True‘, which charted last week as number three has fallen to the fourteenth position, while ‘Apt’ by Rosé and Bruno Mars currently charts at number eight. While we predicted last week that Lady Gaga’s ‘Abracadabra’ would challenge Young’s ‘Messy’ for number one, the America Singer has yet to climb to that position and currently charts at number three.

1. Lola Young – ‘Messy‘

It is British pop sensation Lola Young’s fourth week as number one, after climbing charts for ten weeks. The song originally debuted at number 87, weeks after it was released on streaming platforms; its success is mainly to be attributed to its popularity on the TikTok platform, where it went viral last year. It is the artist’s first and only song to achieve the number one position, as well as her first song to ever chart.

2. Kendrick Lamar – ‘Not Like Us‘

Lamar’s latest album, ‘GNX‘, debuted at number one in the UK upon its release. ‘Not Like Us’ originally debuted on UK charts in May of last year at number 10 and eventually fell out of the top 20, charting at 94 two weeks ago. But with Lamar’s recent (and widely discussed) Super Bowl halftime performance, the song has once again climbed charts.

3. Lady Gaga – ‘Abracadabra‘

Last week, we had predicted that Gaga’s spell with ‘Abracadabra’ would claim the number one position over Young’s ‘Messy’, since it has debuted at number six with only a couple days of chart units. However, ‘Abracadabra’  has still to climb a couple positions before it can mark the artist’s fifth number one song.

4. Chappell Roan – ‘Pink Pony Club‘

After 13 weeks charting in the UK, this is ‘Pink Pony Club’s peak. The song was originally released in 2023, but it gained more and more popularity throughout the past year when Chappell Roan’s debuted album ‘The Rise and Fall of a Midwestern Princess‘ peaked at number one. If the song managed to climb up the charts and reach number one, it would mark the artist’s first song to achieve the position.

5. Chrystal – ‘The Days‘

‘The Days’ is Chrystal’s first song to make it on the UK’s Official Songs Charts. It debuted at number 96 in late 2024 and has since been climbing up the charts, peaking at number four for three consecutive weeks. The song was originally released on TikTok, where it gained world wide attention.

Way back in 2022, a study by Yard, a sustainable marketing agency, showed that the 34-year-old singer’s use of private jets was one of the worst contributors to climate change and CO2 emissions. People were quick to criticise and make jokes about Swift after speculation that this will be her mode of transport to watch the Kansas City Chiefs take on the San Francisco 49ers.

Taylor Swift on her way downstairs to grab her Door Dash order (which she also had delivered via private jet/helicopter)pic.twitter.com/CEPCxsECIM

— Stogna Bologna (@1000waystoRy) February 7, 2024

I will stop tracking taylor swifts private jet when she pledges to offset carbon emissions by paying off my student loan and credit card debt

— alexa (@mariokartdwi) February 7, 2024

There were some however who came to Taylor’s defence and supported her throughout the critiques. British singer-songwriter Adele publicly spoke out at one of her Las Vegas residency shows Weekends With Adele and told the haters to “get a f**king life.” The “Hello” singer went on to say “I want the 49ers to win but I also want the Chiefs to win. I think I want the Chiefs to win just because Taylor Swift goes for them…and all of you that are complaining about Taylor Swift being at the games, get a fucking life! It’s her fucking man! She’s actually made it a bit more enjoyable to watch, because like I said I have no idea what’s going on.”

| At her show tonight Adele shared she will be supporting the Chiefs tomorrow because of Taylor Swift;

“I think I want the Chiefs to win just because of Taylor Swift’s boyfriend and all of you that are complaining about Taylor Swift being at games get a f*cking life” pic.twitter.com/YQA446PCr5

— Taylor Swift Updates

Swift had also received backlash from NFL players Rob Gronkowski and Tony Dungy for appearing at games too frequently and being shown too often. Kelce’s brother Jason supported the American Sweetheart’s actions by saying: “She’s the quintessential artist right now in the world, singer-songwriter, immensely talented, unbelievable role model for young women across the globe. So I think that the NFL would probably be foolish not to show her and be a role model for all the young girls out there.”