Justin Timberlake Super Bowl Performance Criticized by Prince Fans
American singer and songwriter Justin Timberlake is currently receiving quite a bit of flak after performing some of the songs of the dearly departed Prince at the 2018 National Football League (NFL) Super Bowl LII halftime show last Sunday, Feb. 4 — which took place at the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
One of the main points of concern during Timberlake's time at the halftime show was when he sang to one of Prince's classic songs, such as "I Would Die 4 U" — which was accompanied by Timberlake's piano playing, and a screen that projected a hologram of the departed artist's performance that dates back in 1984. The stint by Timberlake was meant to be a tribute to Prince, who was a native of Minneapolis.
However, Timberlake's choice of making use of a hologram is being questioned and criticized by fans, especially since Prince had expressed his distaste for depicting performers in holograms in the past, stating that such a thing is "the most demonic imaginable." Shortly after Timberlake's tribute, a lot of fans aired their frustrations and disappointments on Twitter.
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There was some confusion even before Timberlake set foot on the halftime show's stage, since Prince's close personal friend and former bandmate, Sheila E., stated on Twitter that there would be no hologram during the performance. Fans were initially relieved, but as it turned out, Timberlake decided to push through with the hologram anyway.
Timberlake appeared on the "Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon" shortly after his performance, wherein he shared that he asked Roots drummer, Questlove, if the hologram was appropriate or not. Questlove did mention that he gave Timberlake the go ahead to feature the hologram, but despite this clarification, Timberlake is still getting bashed.
Furthermore, fans are bringing up some past dispute that occurred between Timberlake and Prince — specifically, when the 37-year-old singer mocked Prince for being short back in 2007. Generally speaking, fans are in agreement that Prince himself would not have been happy with the tribute.
