Shania Set For Super Bowl

http://www.billboard.com/billboard/daily/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1787603

International superstar Shania Twain will be among the artists performing during the AT&T Super Bowl XXXVII Halftime Show. The announcement of Twain’s participation in the Jan. 26 extravaganza was made during ABC’s broadcast of Saturday’s National Football League (NFL) wildcard playoff games.

Super Bowl XXXVII will be held in San Diego’s 70,000-seat Qualcomm Stadium, with kickoff set for 3 p.m. PT. The city previously hosted the NFL’s championship game in 1998 and 1988.

“The AT&T Super Bowl Halftime Show is an important part of the Super Bowl and one of the most widely viewed entertainment events of the year,” NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue said in a statement. The halftime show will be executive-produced by Interscope/Geffen/A&M Records chairman Jimmy Iovine and Tenth Planet Productions’ Joel Gallen (“America: A Tribute to Heroes,” MTV Movie Awards).

While no other performers have yet been announced, it’s safe to assume that many more are forthcoming. Last year’s event in New Orleans boasted U2 as the halftime entertainment, plus a host of pre-game festivities that included performances by Paul McCartney, Mary J. Blige, Marc Anthony, Barry Manilow, Wynonna, Yolanda Adams, James Ingram, and Patti LaBelle. Mariah Carey was also on hand to deliver the National Anthem.

The entertainment circus was also notable for an interview McCartney did with Fox broadcasters, during which the former Beatle revealed plans for his first U.S. tour since 1993. His 2002 North American tour went on to be the highest-grossing trek of the year.

The Super Bowl is traditionally the most-watched event by 131.7 million Americans in the U.S., according to the NFL, watched all or part of last year’s Fox broadcast, in addition to an estimated 800 million worldwide viewers. It was the fifth most-watched program in U.S. television history, ranked behind Super Bowls XXX, XXVIII, XXXII, and XXVII.

— Barry A. Jeckell, N.Y.