Cardi B turned down an opportunity to play the Super Bowl halftime show in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick but admits that it was a difficult decision.
Cardi B joined many other artists in showing support for Kaepernick by turning down the massive gig. However, on Friday she spoke to the Associated Press, saying that she had “mixed feelings” about taking a stand. The Grammy-nominated rapper said that she and her estranged husband, Offset, discussed the issue.
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“My husband, he loves football. His kids play football. It’s really hard for him. … He really wants to go to the Super Bowl, but he can’t go to the Super Bowl, because he’s got to stand for something,” Cardi B said.
Meanwhile, she is turning down not just a hobby but a huge paycheck and a whole lot of publicity on the national stage.
“You have to sacrifice that,” she went on. “I got to sacrifice a lot of money to perform. But there’s a man who sacrificed his job for us, so we got to stand behind him.”
Cardi B added that she felt she had to “stand behind” Kaepernick because he “stood up” for minorities. Kaepernick caused a national uproar with a simple, peaceful protest when he was playing for the NFL. During the national anthem, Kaepernick would take a knee in remembrance of the young black people killed by police, including Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown and many others.
Kaepernick no longer plays for the NFL, and the rules around kneeling have been hotly debated since then. Many big stars felt it would be prudent to turn down the concert rather than contribute their talent to the NFL, which tried to dampen the protest. Others talent who were offered the gig reportedly include Rihanna, Pink and Jay-Z.
In the meantime, Cardi B will be performing at another concert downtown at the same time as the Super Bowl. She will also reportedly host a party later on, and will appear in a commercial during the coveted Super Bowl slot. She paid little attention to critics who said that these appearances represented her going back on her word to support Kaepernick.
“I hear people saying like ‘Oh, y’all are saying all this stuff about the Super Bowl, but you’re doing all these parties,’” she said. “And it’s like, well, if the NFL could benefit off from us, then I’m going to benefit off y’all. Y’all make the most money off our people. Why am I not going to take advantage of y’all and take money from y’all too? Because of y’all, we are getting these parties. O.K., thank you.”
As Cardi B saw it, Kaepernick’s protests were a small step toward much larger changes she wants to see in the world.
“We got an arrogant president, and the racism right now has been reborn,” she said. “They feel mighty brave nowadays. When Obama was around, I just feel like they were praying on the day when his eight years was over. A lot of jealousy.
“When they see (how) the choices they made due to racism has affected the country, that’s when things are going to start changing. Right now, they don’t want to accept that their decision has affected the country.”
The Super Bowl, which will feature the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Rams, will air at 6:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
