Bad Bunny headlined the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show, but the Puerto Rican star received no payment for his performance. The NFL does not pay halftime headliners, who rely on the exposure from the event to boost their careers.
The singer, born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, became the first male solo Latin artist to perform the halftime show and the first to perform entirely in Spanish. His set prompted backlash from some quarters, but the performance was a landmark moment.
According to Forbes, performers receive only a union-mandated minimum of a few hundred dollars, which is absorbed into overall production costs. The NFL and Apple Music typically spend around $10 million on the show's production, covering staff, sets, and equipment.
Previous performers have seen significant benefits from the exposure. Kendrick Lamar's 2025 performance led to a 430 percent increase in streams for his song 'Not Like Us'. Rihanna saw a 640 percent surge in Spotify streams and an estimated $88.3 million in media impact value within 12 hours of her 2023 show.
Lady Gaga's album and song sales increased by 1000 percent after her 2017 performance, and Jennifer Lopez gained 2.3 million new Instagram followers following her 2020 appearance with Shakira. Some artists have also invested their own money; The Weeknd spent $7 million on his 2021 show, and Dr. Dre did the same the previous year.
