The Super Bowl is the world’s biggest live experiment of cume vs. core, wrapped around two teams playing football.
Remember when Bad Bunny was announced as the halftime headliner? You’d think the world was going to end for some rock fans and NFL diehards.
I wanted the NFL to book Metallica for the halftime show. That’s the rock and NFL P1 in me. Just like the RockTernative P1 that wants to hear Track 3 on Side D on LP 2 from Metallica’s 1986 live Japanese import.
I’ve studied the NFL for years. Their infrastructure is second to none, and the league is arguably the most lethal marketing and promotion force the world has ever seen.
From the outside looking in, of course it made sense to have Metallica headline the halftime show. They’re local, big with NFL fans, and the biggest rock brand on earth. They sold out that same stadium twice last summer, and the energy would be undeniable.
But if you’re the NFL — where’s the win in that?
This is likely what the NFL was thinking when deciding who to invite for the halftime show: 127 million watched last year. How do we get 150 million this year?
Metallica isn’t bringing new cume to the Super Bowl. Just like RockTernative won’t grow audience by playing another Linkin Park song for people who already bought the album.
The NFL didn’t forget who their core was. They chose Bad Bunny because their core will be there no matter what. They could resurrect Bob Hope, and the diehards would still tune in.
That’s because the core is really the game itself. Everything else — the halftime show, commercials, celebrities in attendance, and all the surrounding hype — is the cume game. Like yard signs for an open house. Bad Bunny brings people in. The game sells the house.
Real-life perspective: one of my daughters, who doesn’t watch or know a thing about football, said to me the other day, “I can’t wait to watch Bad Bunny at the Super Bowl.” That’s what new cume sounds like when it walks into your living room.
But for most brands, growing cume isn’t simple, and it can be a risky tightrope walk. If not done right — tilt too far toward “new cume” — and the core ends up feeling alienated and wants to burn down the building.
We’ve seen legacy brands like Cracker Barrel and Bud Light run toward audience expansion, only to slam it in reverse to stabilize the fallout. You’ve seen RockTernatives make similar mistakes.
Alternative suddenly playing Nickelback. Rock spinning Elton John. Classic Rock experimenting with ’00s — all in the name of trying to bring in new cume. Those strategies only work in small doses, and only when they don’t totally disrupt the loyalists.
And they usually fail without some good old-fashioned marketing.
But Bad Bunny at the Super Bowl is marketing on several levels. It’s also good for business and a savvy cultural move.
- His performance will be short, and it will bring new viewers without damaging the core, which means healthy ratings and huge spot and sponsorship rates — good business.
- Culturally, he’s the hottest artist on the planet. The NFL wants to further grow in other countries. Bad Bunny will draw new attention and demand from parts of the world far, far from Santa Clara, CA.
That’s why it was a brilliant decision.
The takeaways for radio are simple:
- Mr. Bunny is like a crossover track used at the right time. Stations won’t grow cume by overplaying non-core crossovers. A few strategic records might open a few doors, but putting them in your starting lineup can turn your core into refugees.
- Marketing will grow cume faster than music ever will.
- The late addition of Green Day to the opening ceremonies is a smart and NFL-predictable local tie-in — just like making sure to play a super core after Creed.
- The best move is hiring talent that can expand brand reach without damaging the base that really pays the bills.
History shows the most successful RockTernative brands have had talent, shows, promotions, or events that transcend the station’s core music appeal — bringing in external cume without PDs having to force Hot AC or Classic Hits records down the line every 30 minutes.
The NFL is doing it right. Bad Bunny will be growing cume for the league on Super Bowl Sunday.
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Keith Cunningham is a music industry and Rock/Alternative columnist for Barrett Media and the founder of Black Box Group, a modern-modeled creative & strategic consultancy built for brands that need strategies with teeth. He’s the former Master of Mayhem at 95.5 KLOS-FM in Los Angeles for over a decade, a nationwide consultant, and has been repeatedly voted one of America’s top Program Directors and strategic thinkers. Keith has built his career by taking multi-million-dollar brands from worst to first and leading Marconi & Gracie award winners along the way. A data nerd with a rock-and-roll heart, he is an advisory council member for St. Jude fundraising, a fantasy football champion, and lover of his daughters & dogs. Reach him at keithblackboxgroup@gmail.com or on LinkedIn or X.
