Lil Wayne has opened up about not being asked to perform at next year’s Super Bowl Halftime Show in his hometown of New Orleans.
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Earlier this week (September 8), it was announced that Kendrick Lamar would be headlining the 2025 NFL Super Bowl LIX Halftime show – which will be held at the Caesar Superdome in New Orleans next year on February 9, marking the 11th time the major sporting event will been staged in the Big Easy.
The choice of having Lamar as the performer left many hip-hop fans on the fence, arguing that Lil Wayne – who was born in the city – should take centre stage in his hometown.
Now, the ‘She Will’ rapper has taken to his official Instagram account to express his feelings over the Super Bowl performance snub. “First of all I want to say forgive me for the delay. I had to get the strength to do this without breaking. I must say thank you to every voice, every opinion, all the care, love and support. Your words turned into arms and held me up when I tried to fall back,” he began.
Addressing the snub, he said: “That hurt. Hurt a lot, you know what I’m talking about, hurt a whole lot. I blamed myself for not being mentally prepared for a let down which is automatically mentally putting myself in that position like somebody told me that was my position. So I blamed myself for that.
“But I thought that was nothing better than that spot on that stage on 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. So, like I said, it broke me and I’m just trying to put me back together. but my god, where ever you are help me.”
Wrapping up his statement, the rapper said: “Thanks to all of my peers, my friends, my family, even my homies on the sports television and everybody repping me I really appreciate it, I really do. I feel like I really let all of y’all down by not getting that opportunity but, I’m working on me and I’m working. Thank you.”
After Lamar was chosen over Wayne, many pivotal figures in the hip-hop world have argued that the former Hot Boy should have taken the Californian’s place.
The likes of Nicki Minaj, Juvenile, Birdman, Master P and more took the time to share their opinions on the decision with Minaj tweeting: “Denying a young black man what he rightfully put into this game for no other reason but your ego. Your hatred for BIRDMAN, Drake [and] Nicki got you punishing Lil Wayne?!?!!! LIL WAYNE!!!!!!!!!! THE GOAT?!!!!!!!!!!! NOLA, what’s good?!!!!!! Eminem stood firm on having 50 Cent come out.”
Denying a young black man what he rightfully put into this game for no other reason but your ego. Your hatred for BIRDMAN, Drake & Nicki got you punishing Lil Wayne?!?!!! LIL WAYNE!!!!!!!!!! THE GOAT?!!!!!!!!!!! Nola what’s good?!!!!!! Eminem stood firm on having 50Cent come out.…
— Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) September 9, 2024
Recently, a video of Lil Wayne expressing his desire to headline at an NFL Super Bowl Halftime Show has re-surfaced.
The clip from LA rapper YG‘s 4HUNNID podcast back in February, saw the host ask the ‘Lollipop’ rapper if he’d want to headline the 2025 Super Bowl halftime show.
At the time he told them that he had “not got a call” from Jay-Z or anyone at Roc Nation – the NFL’s live music entertainment strategists. “But we all praying, we keeping our fingers crossed,” he said. “I’m working hard. I’m going to make sure this next album and everything I do is killer, so I’m going make it very hard for them not to holler at the boy.”
After it was announced that Lamar was next year’s Super Bowl Halftime headliner, Jay-Z shared his support for the ‘Not Like Us’ rapper: “Lamar is truly a once-in-a-generation artist and performer. His deep love for hip-hop and culture informs his artistic vision. He has an unparalleled ability to define and influence culture globally. Kendrick’s work transcends music, and his impact will be felt for years to come.”
There is a conspiracy circulating that Lamar got the headliner spot because he recently got into a feud with Drake, another one of Wayne’s protegés. DJ Akademiks shared a theory that Jay-Z has held a grudge against Drake since he refused to join the launch of the music streaming platform Tidal.
In other news, Lil Wayne confirmed that the Hot Boys will finally reunite at this year’s Lil’ Weezyana festival in New Orleans this November.
