Los Angeles: Maroon 5’s Adam Levine’s shirtless performance during the 2019 Super Bowl Halftime Show has been slammed by fans online as they recalled the flak that Janet Jackson faced for her wardrobe malfunction in 2004. Levine, 39, removed his shirt while playing guitar during the show on Sunday. Jackson, 52 was blacklisted from performing at the mega event after Justin Timberlake tried to remove her corset but accidently tore off her bra, exposing her breast during their set in 2004.
It had led to a huge controversy and both Jackson and Timberlake had to issue apologies and the Federal Communications Commission charged CBS, the network that broadcast the game that year, with a USD 550,000 indecency fine. Media had dubbed the incident “Nipplegate”. Timberlake was brought back to perform at the last year’s Halftime show but Jackson has not been invited back for the sporting event.
“So Adam Levine can perform shirtless but Janet Jackson can’t? This is so very wrong haha,” a Twitter user wrote. “Super Bowl halftime nipple rules feel inconsistent,” another pointed out. “Janet Jackson showed a nipple and the country went nuts. She had to move to Bahrain for 10 years. #AdamLevine just went full on shirtless. Guess he’s gonna have to move to Riyadh #superbowl,” wrote a user on Instagram.
“Ok so I’m all for a shirtless Adam Levine…. but…. why are we ok with him stripping down and freaking when Janet has a nip slip? #justsayin #SuperBowlLlll #HalftimeShow #feministmoment,” shared another social media user.
