Wendy Williams Disagrees With Rihanna’s Super Bowl ‘Sell-Out’ Remarks

Wendy Williams, Rihanna & Jennifer Lopez — Image Credit: Shutterstock

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You can’t convince Wendy Williams to go against Jennifer Lopez. The talk show host, who’s been a longtime advocate of JLo, backed the singer on her October 10 show, after Rihanna‘s recent comments about why she turned down Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta. In an interview published on October 9, Rihanna stated to Vogue that she turned down last year’s gig, because it would have made her a “sell-out” and an “enabler” after she’s been a supporter of Colin Kaepernick. The former quarterback has not played in the NFL since 2016 after his decision to kneel during the national anthem before games propelled a social justice movement in the league.

Wendy caught wind of the RiRi’s remarks and disagreed with her saying, “I don’t think so,” about if performing at the Super Bowl labels artists as sell-outs. “I think she has the right to feel the way she does,” Wendy added, noting that Rihanna’s successes outside of music allow her to turn down high profile gigs.

“She has enough money to feel that way… She makes good stuff outside of making music… I understand what she was saying,” Wendy said. However, “I don’t think this is a sell-out for people who perform at halftime.”

Rihanna’s confirmation that she “absolutely” turned down last year’s Super Bowl halftime show made waves on Wednesday.

She further explained her decision in the interview: “I couldn’t dare do that. For what? Who gains from that? Not my people,” she said. “I just couldn’t be a sellout. I couldn’t be an enabler. There’s things within that organization that I do not agree with at all, and I was not about to go and be of service to them in any way.” Maroon 5 went on to headline last year’s Super Bowl halftime show in Atlanta, along with Big Boi and Travis Scott.

Jennifer and Shakira will co-headline the Super Bowl LIV halftime show in Miami in February 2020. They will be the first artists to perform during the event since the league entered into a partnership with Roc Nation to lead its endeavors in music and entertainment.