I got the idea for this from the 'looking serious' thread. U2 did the Super Bowl in 2002. Would they have been asked to do it sooner? No. They were not asked to. Why? Was it because they as a band had reached a place where they were popular enough, well known enough, and accepted by enough people? Was it because rock and roll was?
Okay let's discuss this. I remember back in the 80's the halftime shows were usually cheesy shit like 'Up Up With People!' They had to be something generically accepted by a wide variety of Americans. (yes the Super Bowl is shown world wide too) In the early days of the Super Bowl, hell would have frozen over before a rock and roll band would have been asked to do the halftime show. Can't you see a million rednecks throwing beer cans at the TV when The Doors came on the field? But, as the years went past, rock went from being rebellious, counterculture, and bad to most grownups to something that was acceptable and even enjoyed.
A big reason for this? Time. The 'kids' who had shocked their parents with rock and roll had become parents, some even grandparents! So, these people, rock fans, went from being the rebels to the target audience for advertisers! Now you even have Led Zeppelin doing car commercials! That would have been unheard of in the past, even 10 years ago. But times have changed, the demographics changed, and so did the acceptability of rock and roll.
Okay let's discuss this. I remember back in the 80's the halftime shows were usually cheesy shit like 'Up Up With People!' They had to be something generically accepted by a wide variety of Americans. (yes the Super Bowl is shown world wide too) In the early days of the Super Bowl, hell would have frozen over before a rock and roll band would have been asked to do the halftime show. Can't you see a million rednecks throwing beer cans at the TV when The Doors came on the field? But, as the years went past, rock went from being rebellious, counterculture, and bad to most grownups to something that was acceptable and even enjoyed.
A big reason for this? Time. The 'kids' who had shocked their parents with rock and roll had become parents, some even grandparents! So, these people, rock fans, went from being the rebels to the target audience for advertisers! Now you even have Led Zeppelin doing car commercials! That would have been unheard of in the past, even 10 years ago. But times have changed, the demographics changed, and so did the acceptability of rock and roll.