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Dr Dre Clarifies NFL's Position On Eminem Taking The Knee At Super Bowl
Home>News
Updated 11:54 16 Feb 2022 GMTPublished 09:11 15 Feb 2022 GMT

Dr Dre Clarifies NFL's Position On Eminem Taking The Knee At Super Bowl

Rapper Dr Dre has addressed reports that the NFL didn't want Eminem to take the knee during the Super Bowl halftime performance.

Poppy Bilderbeck

Poppy Bilderbeck

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Featured Image Credit: Alamy

Topics: NFL, Super Bowl, Eminem, Dr Dre

Poppy Bilderbeck
Poppy Bilderbeck

Poppy Bilderbeck is a freelance journalist with words in Daily Express, Cosmopolitan UK, LADbible, UNILAD and Tyla. She is a former Senior Journalist at LADbible Group. She graduated from The University of Manchester in 2021 with a First in English Literature and Drama, where alongside her studies she was Editor-in-Chief of The Tab Manchester. Poppy is most comfortable when chatting about all things mental health, is proving a drama degree is far from useless by watching and reviewing as many TV shows and films as possible.

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Dr Dre has responded to reports that the NFL didn't want Eminem to take the knee during their Super Bowl halftime performance.

On Sunday, February 13, the 'rap supergroup' took to the stage in what has since been dubbed the 'greatest Super Bowl halftime show ever'.

Making up the group were none other than rap legends Snoop Dogg, 50 Cent, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J. Blige, Anderson .Paak, Eminem and Dr Dre.

However, controversy ensued after it was alleged that the NFL had prohibited Eminem from taking the knee, which he did after his performance of Lose Yourself. NFL bosses have since denied the claims, and Dr Dre has now responded to the issues.

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Dr Dre on stage at Super Bowl with 50 Cent, Mary J. Blige and Snoop Dogg. (Alamy)
Dr Dre on stage at Super Bowl with 50 Cent, Mary J. Blige and Snoop Dogg. (Alamy)

In his performance of Lose Yourself, Eminem was joined by Anderson .Paak on the drums and Dr Dre.

However, Eminem's decision to take the knee onstage not only set off the right wing, but had reportedly been banned by the NFL, who according to Puck, had also 'flagged something that Snoop Dogg was set to wear as possibly appearing gang-related'.

The act of taking the knee represents taking a stand against police brutality and racism. It was first popularised in 2016, when Colin Kaepernick and his teammate Eric Reid took the knee during an NFL preseason game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Green Bay Packers.

The part of the show were Eminem kneeled? Report stated it was against the wishes of the NFL.
However, NFL spokesman Brian McCarhy told me that report is false. The NFL watched every rehearsal this week and that element was included.
Just passing along.

— mike freeman (@mikefreemanNFL) February 14, 2022

Reporter Mike Freeman took to Twitter to clarify that NFL bosses had not warned the rapper against doing anything of the sort, with a spokesperson named Brian McCarthy having stated that the reports were 'false' and that 'the NFL watched every rehearsal this week and that element was included'.

In an interview with TMZ, Dr Dre has since confirmed that the NFL had no issues with his fellow rapper taking the knee, and that only 'minor changes' were made to the performance during rehearsals. Dre said a specific reference about Los Angeles gangs made by Kendrick Lamar was altered, but noted that it was 'no big deal'.

Dr Dre sits down for Super Bowl halftime show press conference. (Alamy)
Dr Dre sits down for Super Bowl halftime show press conference. (Alamy)

'All in all, everybody came in, we were professional. Everybody was on time and really felt the magnitude of what this thing [their performance] was, and what we were going to be able to accomplish,' he concluded.

Dre went on to reveal the 'rap supergroup' then went out to dinner to celebrate the success of the performance before continuing the afterparty at his house.

If you have a story you want to tell, send it to UNILAD via [email protected]  

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