How Super Bowl Music And Music-Backed Ads Are Likely To Change In 2023

This weekend’s Super Bowl will be the first with AppleAAPL
Music as sponsor of the halftime extravaganza, only one way the music of the big game and its many big ads are likely to evolve this year, just days after the Grammys wrapped perhaps their most inclusive awards show ever.

Singer and fashion mogul Rihanna will headline the half-time show, ahead of her long-awaited, frequently promised ninth studio album, her first since 2017. She’ll be joined by country crossover star Chris Stapleton (fresh off a shredding guitar solo at the Grammys with Stevie Wonder performing Higher Ground), producer/singer Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, and singer/actress Sheryl Lee Ralph (Abbott Elementary).

Having a music-streaming company running the half-time show rather than a beverage company (even one with Pepsi’s very long roots in the music business) is promising to to change at least parts of that experience. Apple already announced it’s offering all of Rihanna’s catalog in Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos. If you have the right headphones or earbuds, that should make RiRi even more of an immersive experience.

Apple Music Radio will also offer a range of streaming audio shows connected to the game, including a Thursday interview of Rihanna, 33 playlists of top songs from each NFL team, on-location daily live broadcasts in Phoenix, a 10-part series on memorable previous halftime performances, and an eight-part roundtable examining Rihanna’s cultural impact as the No. 2 best-selling female artist of all time. If, somehow, that’s not enough for the rabid Rihanna fans, there’ll be a post-game recap show next Monday.

But we’re also likely to see changes in how big brands are using music this year too, according to a new blog post from Songtradr, which licenses music to creators and corporations and tracks the broader industry. Among the big trends for this year’s splashy ads at the big game:

• It’s TikTok’s time. Given the transformative impact of the social-media site on the music business the past few years, it’s little surprise that TikTok will be a big part of many brand messages this year, both before the game and especially during it. “Looking back to last year, we saw brands create unique TikTok campaigns separate from what they did on television; an approach that increased their campaign’s overall reach and helped to engage people disinterested in football,” the Songtradr post says.
• Hopping on hip hop. Last year’s epic half-time show, featuring a Mt. Rushmore-level collection of hip hop stars (not to mention this year’s Grammy tribute celebrating 50 years of rap) are only the highest-profile moments for a durably popular genre. But Songtradr data shows that most years in the past decade, rock songs have outpaced hip hop as backing tracks on the year’s Super Bowl ads. The remade rep and near-omnipresence of Snoop Dogg as almost cuddly corporate spokesman is just one case of easing brand fears over hip hop’s NSFW historic image. Throw in ‘90s nostalgia that includes that era’s breakthrough hip hop hits, and we’re likely to see the genre ease past rock for first place in big game ads for only the second time since 2013, according to Songtradr.
• K-pop, Latin music break through too. Expect to hear more of several different major genres, even beyond hip hop. Both Latin music from stars such as Bad Bunny, and K-pop from artists such as BTS and Blackpink have become hugely successful around the globe, not just in their own backyards. Global brands are paying attention too, and will tap the music to help reach those massive fan bases. And just because BTS is on extended hiatus doesn’t mean its seven members, who’ve been drip-releasing their respective solo albums over the past several months, won’t be open to doing deals.
• Library lockups may mean fewer famous songs. Last year, 85% of the songs used in Super Bowl ads were built around older tracks that are years or even decades old. But at the same time, private equity and other investor vehicles have been scooping up the back music catalogs of prominent legacy acts at eye-popping prices. Now, even a relative newcomer such as 28-year-old Justin Bieber can sell his publishing copyrights, recording masters, and related rights for a nine-figure payday. Songtradr said it’s still too soon to fully know what the catalog gold rush will mean for brands, but it’s likely that licensing that big older hit is about to get a lot more expensive. After all, those investors need to start making back the hundreds of millions of dollars they’ve laid out for these assets. Licensing tracks under these new owners likely won’t come cheap. Brands may opt for newer, or less prominent/pricey tracks instead.

The brands are, of course, chasing the biggest audience on television, even as legacy broadcast and cable audiences continue to decline broadly. In 2022, the big game once again attracted the year’s most viewers of any U.S. television show, an estimated 99.2 million, or nearly a third of the U.S. population.

Kickoff for the 2023 game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs begins at 6:30 pm ET/3:30 pm PT on Sunday, from State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, though of course, the ads and ad previews have already begun online and on TV. The game will be broadcast on Fox and streamed on the FUBO subscription service.