Rihanna's Super Bowl Halftime Show Sparks Backlash for Being Overly Sexual
The 'Disturbia' singer suddenly went from 'underwhelming' to far too much.
Suddenly Rihanna's Super Bowl halftime show has gone from an 'underwhelming performance' to too sexy to see on TV.
103 pages of complaints have been made to the Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, which regulates cable TV, about this year's Super Bowl broadcast, with the vast majority having to do with the superstar's performance, according to TMZ. Specifically, the complaints have focused on the sexual nature of her lyrics and her choreography, which some viewers apparently compared to porn, according to the publication.
TMZ reports that one Californian viewer compared the set to Kim Petras and Sam Smith's Grammy performance of "Unholy."
"I don't care what someone worships but children shouldn't be exposed to pornography and as an adult I don't wish to see it ... Where has decency gone? How about respect for others and self?" their message to the FCC read.
"This year the halftime show was so indecent I had to turn off the TV because of the pornographic content," a viewer from Utah wrote.
It's a stark contrast to the flood of tweets that have rolled in since, calling the performance underwhelming.
The "Umbrella" singer didn't do any outrageous choreography that evening due to her pregnancy, but she had a swarm of coordinated background dancers spread across the stage, field, and several elevated platforms suspended in the air.
Fans, of course, came to her defense, but for others it was too much.
According to TMZ, Rihanna wasn't so much the problem as her dancers were, with one accusing them of moves that "were patently offensive and completely inappropriate for children."
A few came after RiRi too, complaining about her spreading her butt cheeks, groping herself inappropriately, sniffing her fingers, and more.
Rolling Stone published some of the complaints in more detail, including one note from a viewer who mistook her for Shakira and another claiming that "twerking should rank up there with the F bomb” in terms of what's allowed to be aired.
Rihanna managed to escape a small amount of their scrutiny, though. According to Rolling Stone, broadcaster Terry Bradshaw was also criticized for “fat shaming” the Chiefs' coach Andy Reid when he called him "Big Guy" and said "waddle over here.”
Related: Internet Wants Rihanna's Sign Language Interpreter to Get Her Own Super Bowl After Viral Video
