Lil Wayne Says He Won’t Perform at the Super Bowl After NFL Got His Hopes Up With 2025 Halftime Show

Lil Wayne has vowed to never perform at any future Super Bowl Halftime Shows.

The rapper was devastated he lost the gig this year to Kendrick Lamar, who performed at Super Bowl LIX in February at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. Unbeknownst, Lil Wayne revealed he was in communication with the NFL to potentially serve as the star of the 2025 halftime show and they encouraged him to amp up his public persona in hopes of him potentially snagging the spot to perform at the Super Bowl. 

“To perform, it’s a bunch of things they’re going to tell you to do and not do, asses to kiss and not kiss,” he said in a Thursday interview with Rolling Stone. “If you notice, I was a part of things I’ve never been a part of, like [Michael] Rubin’s all-white parties. I’m doing shit with Tom Brady. That was all for [the Super Bowl]. You ain’t never seen me in them types of venues.” 

Despite the confusion, the “Lollipop” singer said he won’t partake in a future Super Bowl Halftime Show. “They stole that feeling. I don’t want to do it. It was perfect,” he explained of the 2025 game, which was held in New Orleans, the rapper’s hometown. 

When Roc Nation, NFL and Apple Music officially announced the “Not Like Us” rapper as the Super Bowl performer, Lil Wayne released a heartfelt video where he said he “blame[s] myself for not being mentally prepared for a letdown and for just automatically, mentally putting myself in that position.” 

Now, he’s revealed that after the news became public, someone from the NFL told him: “We ain’t in charge,” as Roc Nation, Jay-Z’s entertainment company, produces the show and seemingly has the final say in who takes the stage. Lil Wayne added that the news came as a surprise to the NFL, “All of a sudden, according to them, they got curved. So, I’m going to have to just settle with whatever they say.”

He also admitted that he didn’t watch Lamar’s performance during the Feb. 7 game and had no idea the rapper had beef with his friend Drake. “Every time I looked, it was nothing that made me want to go inside and see what was going on,” he said.