After months of rumors it's finally been confirmed — officially — that the Black Eyed Peas will perform during halftime at the 2011 Super Bowl. "They could have picked anybody," will.i.am tells Rolling Stone. "They could rock a million and get Cheap Trick. I love me some Cheap Trick, [they're] dope. But it says something that they picked us."
The Black Eyed Peas are the first non-classic rock act booked for the halftime show since Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson's infamous "wardrobe malfunction" performance in 2004. "I've been at every single one of them since that," says will.i.am. "The Prince one, the Paul McCartney one, Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen."
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For much of the Super Bowl's history the halftime show was almost an afterthought, often consisting of marching bands and salutes to American icons like Duke Ellington or Louis Armstrong. Michael Jackson performed at the 1993 halftime show, but two years later the show was an incredibly cheesy Indiana Jones skit followed by performances by Teddy Pendergrass, Tony Bennett and the Miami Sound Machine.
In 2001 MTV put on a multi-artist showcase featuring a medley by Aerosmith, N'Sync, Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige and Nelly. After the Janet Jackson debacle the show shifted towards classic rock acts, but after six consecutive years of that organizers clearly felt like it was time for a change.
The Black Eyed Peas are releasing their sixth album The Beginning November 30 and will launch a world tour to support it next year.