Turning Point USA’s Super Bowl Halftime Show: A Spectacle of Mediocrity and Irony
A nearly 40-minute performance by Turning Point USA (TPUSA) during Super Bowl weekend offered a stark contrast to the main event’s halftime show featuring Bad Bunny, and according to one observer, revealed a fundamental inability to create compelling art. The alternative concert, pitched as an “All-American” experience, was widely criticized for its lack of polish, questionable talent, and inherent contradictions.
The author, a self-described fan of artists ranging from Hollywood Undead to Eminem, noted the performance’s timing made it impractical to view in full, as it would have meant missing the entirety of the Super Bowl’s scoring plays. However, the critique extends far beyond mere scheduling conflicts.
A “Concert That Was Filmed”
The event, described as more akin to a filmed concert than a traditional halftime spectacle, immediately signaled its shortcomings. The initial moments featured an announcer awkwardly positioned on camera, followed by extended silence as a guitarist tested his equipment. Even the pyrotechnics were underwhelming, described as a “weak ejaculation.”
The lineup itself raised eyebrows. Brantley Gilbert opened the show, with the author admitting unfamiliarity with his work but acknowledging a previous comment by the artist lamenting the absence of country representation in recent Super Bowl halftime shows. Following Gilbert, Gabby Barrett’s performance was characterized by a predictable pattern of upbeat and slow songs, mirrored by the camera work’s alternating close-ups and wide shots. This, the author argued, revealed a lack of artistic vision, a mere “going through the motions” of what a halftime show should look like. Barrett’s stage presence was also deemed lacking, resembling “a fictional singer created to be the rival of an actual star in a Disney Channel original movie.”
Slurred Words and Lip Syncing
Lee Brice’s set continued the trend of underwhelming performances, with his lyrics about a simpler life – “I just want to drive my truck and drink my beer” – feeling more like a parody than genuine country sentiment. The author found themselves initially amused, but quickly grew “annoyed” by the irony of a song about unity being performed during an explicitly partisan event.
The arrival of Kid Rock nearly 30 minutes into the performance brought another layer of criticism. The author immediately observed that he was lip-syncing, a fact confirmed by the audible separation between the vocals and his lip movements. While acknowledging a personal tolerance for lip-syncing, the author pointed out the hypocrisy of a group seemingly opposed to drag queens employing similar performance tactics. A particularly memorable moment was Kid Rock’s extended costume change, wryly dubbed a “werk queen” moment, during which a cellist and violinist provided an interlude – the only portion of the show the author found genuinely enjoyable.
The Illusion of “All-American”
The TPUSA show was explicitly positioned as an alternative to the Super Bowl’s recent choices of performers, Kendrick Lamar and Bad Bunny, both men of color. The author highlights the inherent contradiction in this positioning, noting that Puerto Rico is, in fact, part of the United States. Furthermore, the TPUSA lineup itself featured artists who utilize musical styles – rap and heavy metal – deeply rooted in Black American culture.
In a provocative conclusion, the author proposed a challenge: “I’m willing to cut MAGA a deal. You can have next year’s halftime show, and you can have it all-white. But that means you’re not allowed to use any music created by a person of color — no rock and roll, no hip hop, and no country.” This, the author argues, would expose the fundamental inability of the movement to create original art, ultimately leaving them with nothing.
The author concludes with a pointed observation: as demonstrated by the TPUSA performance, “you won’t be able to make your own art.”
