Jay-Z is to take centre stage at the 2027 Super Bowl halftime show, seven years after his company, Roc Nation, began shaping the league's entertainment output.
The NFL, Apple Music, and Roc Nation announced Monday night that the rapper will headline the halftime show on February 14 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
The confirmation followed days of speculation about who would headline the show and strong rumours that Jay-Z would be the one to step into the spotlight.
The booking will bring the Grammy-winning music mogul back to the stadium where he closed his “Jay-Z 30” concerts over the weekend.
GOAT’s out of the bag. @sc #AppleMusicHalftime #SBLXI pic.twitter.com/GrIurjDM9L
— NFL (@NFL) October 27, 2026
That run began with three shows at Yankee Stadium in New York, continued in London and ended in Southern California.
Jay-Z, born Shawn Carter, has won 25 Grammy Awards and received 89 nominations, the second-most in history behind his wife, Beyoncé — who has performed at two Super Bowls.
His catalog includes the albums Reasonable Doubt, The Blueprint and The Black Album, and hit songs such as “Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem),” “99 Problems” and “Empire State of Mind,” his collaboration with Alicia Keys.
His 1996 debut, Reasonable Doubt, was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame last year.
Roc Nation, which he founded in 2008, has partnered with the NFL since 2019 to advise on and help produce the league's entertainment presentations, including the Super Bowl halftime show.
At the time, Jay-Z said he had told NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, “If this is about me performing at the Super Bowl, then we can just end this conversation now.”
Goodell said in a statement: “For several years, we've had the privilege of working closely with Jay-Z and Roc Nation, and I've seen the extraordinary impact he has had on the Super Bowl half-time Show.
“When we first reached an agreement with Roc Nation to produce the show, I had just one request: that Jay-Z take the stage himself one day, whenever the moment felt right to him. I couldn't be more excited for fans around the world to experience the artistry, creativity and cultural impact he will bring to the Super Bowl stage."
Jay-Z added in his own statement: "From Reasonable Doubt to standing on the Super Bowl halftime stage, this has been a journey. Thirty years of music, work, and culture on the world’s biggest stage. This run continues to be a dream come true."
The rapper co-founded Roc-A-Fella Records in 1994 and built Roc Nation into an entertainment company that works with artists and athletes.
The 56-year-old became the first rapper inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2017 and joined the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2021.
Fans will no doubt already have begun speculating as to who, if anyone, Jay-Z will bring out to perform with him during his headline set. Among his most notable collaborators are his wife, fellow superstar Beyonce, with whom he released hits such as “Crazy in Love”, “03 Bonnie & Clyde”, “Drunk in Love” and “Deja Vu”, Alicia Keys (”Empire State of Mind”), Justin Timberlake “Holy Grail”), Frank Ocean (”Oceans”, “No Church in the Wild”) and Rihanna (”Umbrella”, “Run This Town”).
Last year’s halftime show was performed by the Spanish-language Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny to widespread acclaim and huge audience figures, with The Independent’s four-star review describing it as a “wild, inclusive fiesta”.
The performance became one of the most-watched halftime shows in Super Bowl history, drawing 128.2 million viewers. The previous year was headlined by hip-hop titan Kendrick Lamar, who set the record for the most-watched halftime performance of all time with 135.5 million views.
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