TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — There will be some big-name entertainers in town soon as Tampa makes its final preparations ahead of Sunday’s Super Bowl LV.
Grammy-award-winning singer H.E.R. is set to sing “America the Beautiful” before the game while R&B singer Jazmine Sullivan and country star Eric Church will team up to perform the National Anthem. This year’s halftime show will be headlined by The Weeknd, an R&B star who’s won three Grammy awards and released a fourth album last year.
This year marks the fifth Super Bowl in Tampa, meaning the city is no stranger to star-studded performances before and during the big game. Here’s a look at the past four pre-game and halftime performances for Super Bowl games in Tampa:
Super Bowl XVIII: Jan. 22, 1984
National Anthem: Barry Manilow
Before the kickoff of Super Bowl XVIII in 1984, marching bands from the University of Florida and Florida State University took the field to perform. After their performance, Barry Manilow sang the national anthem as the Washington Redskins and Los Angeles Raiders stood and looked on.
Halftime show:
The Super Bowl XVII halftime show was a “Salute to Superstars of Silver Screen” and was produced by Disney. The University of Florida and Florida State University’s marching bands returned to the field and performed several songs alongside dancers and Disney characters. The show wrapped up with a performance of “When You Wish Upon a Star.”
Super Bowl XXV: Jan. 27, 1991
National Anthem: Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston’s rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” before the 1983 game at Tampa Stadium is widely seen as one of the best – if not the best – Super Bowl national anthem performances of all time.
Houston was 27 years old at the time and had pre-recorded the vocals before the game. Her performance came in the midst of a tense time in the United States – just more than a week after the nation led a coalition of countries in an aerial bombing in the Persian Gulf War. Houston donated the proceeds she earned from her performance’s commercial single and video to the American Red Cross Gulf Crisis Fund.
Halftime show:
Similar to Tampa’s Super Bowl XVIII in 1984, Disney also produced the halftime show for Super Bowl XXV in 1991. The show was called “A Small World Salute to 25 Years of the Super Bowl” and featured thousands of local children and Disney characters. New Kids on the Block also performed which, according to the Atlantic, marked the first time a pop artist performed at a Super Bowl halftime show.
The halftime show, however, was not widely seen by Super Bowl viewers. Due to the ongoing Gulf War, ABC opted to broadcast a news report at halftime to give Americans an update on Operation Desert Storm.
According to the Atlantic, some ABC affiliates did play a shorter version of the halftime show after the game.
Super Bowl XXXV: Jan. 28, 2001
National anthem: Backstreet Boys
Before the game began and before the National Anthem was performed, singer Sting and rock band Styx played a pre-game show called “Life’s Super in Central Florida” to celebrate some of the traditions and things to do in the Tampa Bay area. The show was hosted by “King of Queens” star Kevin James and featured a pop group from Tampa called PYT.
In honor of America’s 225th birthday, the NFL had two performances in the National anthem Ceremony for the first time. Ray Charles sang “America the Beautiful” and was followed by the Backstreet Boys, who performed the “Star-Spangled Banner.” The Backstreet Boys formed in Orlando and included Tampa native (and huge Buccaneers fan) Nick Carter.
28 Jan 2001: Pop singer Sting performs during the pregame show for Super Bowl XXXV at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. DIGITAL IMAGE. Mandatory Credit: Tom Hauck/ALLSPORT 
28 Jan 2001: Performers run across the field during the pregame show for Super Bowl XXXV at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. DIGITAL IMAGE. Mandatory Credit: Doug Pensinger/ALLSPORT 
28 Jan 2001: A general view of the band Styx peforming during the pregame show of the Super Bowl XXXV Game between the New York Giants and Baltimore Ravens at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The Ravens defeated the Giants 34-7.Mandatory Credit: Andy Lyons /Allsport 
28 Jan 2001: The All Girl Band “PYT” performs during the pre-game show at Super Bowl XXXV between the Baltimore Ravens and the New York Giants at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. Mandatory Credit: Andy Lyons/ALLSPORT 
28 Jan 2001: Ray Charles sings “America The Beautiful” before the start of Super Bowl XXXV between the Baltimore Ravens and the New York Giants at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. Mandatory Credit: Andy Lyons/ALLSPORT 
The Backstreet Boys sing the national anthem before Super Bowl XXXV on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2001, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Dave Martin) 
28 Jan 2001: N’sync performs during halftime show of the Super Bowl XXXV Game between the New York Giants and the Baltimore Ravens at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The Ravens defeated the Giants 34-7.Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Daniel /Allsport 
384856 15: Steven Tyler of Aerosmith performs during the halftime show January 28, 2001 for Super Bowl XXXV at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Allsport/Newsmakers) 
28 Jan 2001: Britney Spears and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith perform during the halftime show for Super Bowl XXXV at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. DIGITAL IMAGE. Mandatory Credit: Brian Bahr/ALLSPORT 
28 Jan 2001: A general view of the halftime show for the Super Bowl XXXV Game between the New York Giants and the Baltimore Ravens at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The Ravens defeated the Giants 34-7.Mandatory Credit: Doug Pensinger /Allsport 
384856 27: ”NSYNC, Aerosmith and Britney Spears all perform during the halftime show for Super Bowl XXXV January 28, 2001 at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL. (Photo byDoug Pensinger/ALLSPORT) 
Justin Timberlake, Steven Tyler, Britney Spears, and Nelly on stage during MTV’s Superbowl halftime show at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.. 1/28/01 Photo by Scott Gries/ImageDirect 
TAMPA, UNITED STATES: The rock group Aerosmith and singer Britney Spears (C-R) and Nsync perform during the halftime show at the Super Bowl XXXV 28 January, 2001 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The Baltimore Ravens and New York Giants are playing for the NFL championship. AFP PHOTO/Jeff HAYNES (Photo credit should read JEFF HAYNES/AFP via Getty Images)
Halftime show: Aerosmith, NSYNC & guests
The star-studded 2001 Super Bowl halftime show really had something for everyone, and is regarded by some as one of the best Super Bowl halftime shows.
The wildly-popular boy band NSYNC and iconic rock group Aerosmith headlined the performance, singing hits like “Bye Bye Bye,” “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” “It’s Gonna Be Me” and “Jaded.” The two groups brought in pop star Britney Spears, hip-hop singer-songwriter Mary J. Blige and rapper Nelly to perform “Walk This Way” to close out the halftime show.
Super Bowl XLIII: Feb. 1, 2009
National Anthem: Jennifer Hudson
Journey and John Legend both performed ahead of Super Bowl XLIII. Pre-game performances also included Faith Hill singing “America the Beautiful.”
Jennifer Hudson was chosen to sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” before kickoff. It marked Hudson’s first public appearance since the murder of her mother, brother and nephew. The three were killed in Chicago in October 2008.
Halftime show: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
Springsteen kicked off the halftime show by telling viewers, “I want you to step back from the guacamole dip!” and “I want you to put the chicken fingers down!” as he introduced the E Street Band.
Don Mischer, the director of the Super Bowl halftime show, later said Springsteen had long been sought after to perform at the big game but hadn’t been interested until after the 2008 show headlined by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
“Almost every year that we did the Super Bowl, we tried to get Bruce and there was just never any interest,” Mischer said. “The most surprising call I’ve ever had in my career is … [when] Bruce’s people called me and said ‘we think it’s maybe time to talk about this.'”
Springsteen and the band played “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out,” “Born to Run,” “Working on a Dream” and “Glory Days.”