Super Bowl Halftime Performers Score Big on Streaming and Charts

Sara Mekinc

Feb 24, 2022

Assembling a team of Hip Hop legends with 170+ years of combined stage experience – Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar and surprise guests 50 Cent and Anderson .Paak – paid off in terms of online buzz.

On Monday, 21 February 2022, the official Halftime Show video already made it among the top five most-watched Halftime Shows on NFL’s YouTube channel. Additionally, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, and Dr. Dre are currently among the top 5 most-Shazamed artists in the world.

We kept an eye on the artists’ data to see how the show affected their streaming and views, and which tracks resonated the most. Here’s what we found out.

“The Next Episode” got a 390% increase in views

There were three tracks that people couldn’t get enough of in the week following the Halftime Show. Closing track “Still D.R.E.” saw a 261% increase on Spotify, landing 2 million daily streams on average in the week following the halftime performance.

Also crossing the million daily streams average were 50 Cent’s “In Da Club” (1.3 million Spotify daily streams, a 134% increase) and Snoop Dogg’s “The Next Episode” (1.4 million Spotify daily streams, a 315% increase). The official video for “Still D.R.E.” also passed 1 billion YouTube views on the day of the halftime show.

All the performing artists saw big jumps in their streaming numbers during the Halftime Show and in the following week. Mary J. Blige's “Family Affair” daily streams were boosted by 176%, Eminem & Dr. Dre’s “Forgot About Dre” saw a daily stream increase of 175%, and Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright” was streamed 200% more compared to his pre-Super Bowl numbers. Additionally, all the performed tracks entered various music charts the following week and were among the top ten most-Shazamed tracks of the week.

61 million YouTube views and counting

This was also the first Halftime Show to exclusively feature Hip Hop artists, and it has already made the top five list of NFL’s most-viewed halftime shows on YouTube, surpassing 61 million views. 

The most-watched Halftime Show of all time remains Shakira’s and J. Lo’s 2020 performance, which has amassed an astounding 226 million YouTube views. The second place goes to Coldplay’s 2016 set, watched 91 million times. Interestingly enough, the Beyoncé and Bruno Mars segment of the show, which the NFL uploaded separately, has received an additional 142 million views alone. Lady Gaga (2017; 74 million YouTube views) is third, and Katy Perry took fourth place (2015; 65 million YouTube views). 

In terms of television views, Katy Perry remains the undefeated champion with 118.5 million TV viewers.

What made it work?

First, there’s the reach. The Super Bowl is the most-watched program on American TV, so each performer is bound to have their streaming numbers boosted. After all, they have to get something – Halftime performers don’t get paid a performance fee and instead rely on revenues gained from views, streams and any subsequent sales or deals.

Secondly, there’s the demographic. Seeing the “Hip Hop Avengers” assembled was definitely a treat for all the 90s kids and fans of “old-school” Hip Hop. The viewers driving the Super Bowl ratings are said to be the 18- to 44-year-olds, so the lineup definitely ticked the popularity boxes.  

And finally, the context. The Super Bowl was played in Los Angeles, so who better to represent it than Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre. Add the nostalgia and the “quintessential L.A. vibes” of the opening and closing tracks and you’ve got yourself a winning combo.

Does this mean that Hip Hop listening numbers will increase overall? Can the younger Hip Hop generation of artists expect a spillover effect? Time will tell, and we’ll be sure to keep an eye out.