Music superstars Beyoncé and Jay-Z remained seated throughout Demi Lovato’s rendition of the US national anthem when it was performed last night at Super Bowl LIV.
Video footage of the couple’s apparent protest was captured by Super Bowl attendees and shared on Twitter, where it attracted the attention of American news outlets.
They are yet to comment on their decision.
Non-violent political protest has been a major talking point in American Football in recent years.
Much of the debate focused on former San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who famously “took a knee” during the anthem to protest racial inequality and oppression.
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The stars of the Super Bowl halftime show glistened in gold and silver as they closed their performance, Shakira wearing an outfit complete with a cropped jacket, crop top, tassles and trainers, and Jennifer Lopez in a stunning bodysuit, with silver embellishments going down her leg.
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Shakira was a vision in red as she opened the show with her 2009 song ‘She Wolf’, surrounded by a horde of dancers similarly clad in scarlet ensembles.
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The singer transitioned into a crop top and skirt combo as she performed a solo belly dancing routine, before being joined by her dancers to sing her hit 2001 track ‘Whenever, Wherever’.
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Lopez began her portion of the show standing on a pole, in reference to her opening scene in Lorene Scafaria’s Hustlers. The singer wore a billowing, pink skirt with a leather, cut-out, studded bodysuit and matching thigh-high boots underneath.
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Just before she began singing her 2002 song ‘Jenny from the Block’, Lopez ripped her pink skirt away to reveal her entire leather ensemble in full, which she accessorised with a pair of silver, fingerless gloves.
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Before performing a mesmerising pole-dancing routine, Lopez removed her black outfit to reveal a silver, mirrored bodysuit underneath. She was surrounded by an array of dancers wearing white and silver ensembles.
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Lopez’s daughter, 11-year-old Emme Maribel Muñiz, made a surprise appearance during the evening’s proceedings, joining her mother to sing her 1999 song ‘Let’s Get Loud’. Lopez draped a feathered Puerto Rican flag around her as she joined her daughter on the stage while Muñiz and the other child performers wore white.
Getty Images
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The stars of the Super Bowl halftime show glistened in gold and silver as they closed their performance, Shakira wearing an outfit complete with a cropped jacket, crop top, tassles and trainers, and Jennifer Lopez in a stunning bodysuit, with silver embellishments going down her leg.
Getty Images
2/7
Shakira was a vision in red as she opened the show with her 2009 song ‘She Wolf’, surrounded by a horde of dancers similarly clad in scarlet ensembles.
Getty Images
3/7
The singer transitioned into a crop top and skirt combo as she performed a solo belly dancing routine, before being joined by her dancers to sing her hit 2001 track ‘Whenever, Wherever’.
Getty Images
4/7
Lopez began her portion of the show standing on a pole, in reference to her opening scene in Lorene Scafaria’s Hustlers. The singer wore a billowing, pink skirt with a leather, cut-out, studded bodysuit and matching thigh-high boots underneath.
Getty Images
5/7
Just before she began singing her 2002 song ‘Jenny from the Block’, Lopez ripped her pink skirt away to reveal her entire leather ensemble in full, which she accessorised with a pair of silver, fingerless gloves.
Getty Images
6/7
Before performing a mesmerising pole-dancing routine, Lopez removed her black outfit to reveal a silver, mirrored bodysuit underneath. She was surrounded by an array of dancers wearing white and silver ensembles.
Getty Images
7/7
Lopez’s daughter, 11-year-old Emme Maribel Muñiz, made a surprise appearance during the evening’s proceedings, joining her mother to sing her 1999 song ‘Let’s Get Loud’. Lopez draped a feathered Puerto Rican flag around her as she joined her daughter on the stage while Muñiz and the other child performers wore white.
Getty Images
Kaepernick’s actions kick-started a wave of protests by predominantly African-American football players, but he was controversially dropped from the team and not drafted again, despite being well-regarded as a player. Jay-Z and Beyoncé have both expressed support for Kaepernick in the past.
The Super Bowl saw the Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers 31-20, with Jennifer Lopez and Shakira performing at halftime.