A performer in Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show was detained on the field and could face charges after unfurling a combined Sudan-Palestine flag.
The performer stood on a car used as a prop during the rapper’s performance, holding up the flag with “Sudan” and “Gaza” written on it.
The NFL confirmed the person was part of the 400-member field cast. The New Orleans Police Department said in a statement that “law enforcement is working to determine applicable charges in this incident.”
“The individual will (be) banned for life from all NFL stadiums and events,” NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy said in an emailed statement.
The NFL said “the individual hid the item on his person and unveiled it late in the show” and that “no one involved with the production was aware of the individual’s intent.”
Roc Nation, the entertainment company which produced the show, said that the act “was neither planned nor part of the production and was never in any rehearsal.”
The show continued without interruption, and it did not seem as though the person was shown on the broadcast of Lamar’s performance.
At the Superdome in New Orleans, Lamar was introduced by actor Samuel L. Jackson dressed in a top hat as Uncle Sam.
Dancers in all white, all red and all blue piled out of a Buick Grand National GNX, the car that inspired the name of Lamar's recent album "GNX."
The 37-year-old spun through "Squabble Up," "DNA" and other hits before telling a group of female dancers: "I want to perform their favourite song, but you know they want to sue."
A few beats of "Not Like Us" played, but Lamar switched to a duet of "Luther" with R&B singer SZA.
There had been speculation that Lamar might skip “Not Like Us” at the Super Bowl.
Canadian rapper Drake had filed a defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group over the hit, saying the song's accusation that he is a paedophile put him and his family in danger.
But Lamar went for it. At one point, he omitted the word "paedophiles" - opting instead for a scream - but included a line about seeking "A minor" in which the crowd sang along.
"Not Like Us" won five Grammy Awards a week ago, bringing Lamar's lifetime total to 22.
Lamar's appearance on the biggest stage in music followed big names from Beyonce to Prince, Madonna, Lady Gaga and the Rolling Stones.
The Super Bowl typically draws more than 100 million live U.S. viewers, the largest TV audience of the year.
