Singer Bruno Mars speaks at the Super Bowl half time press conference in New York, Jan. 30, 2014.
NEW YORK —
Pop star Bruno Mars knows he'll have a massive audience when he takes the stage for the halftime show at Sunday's Super Bowl, but the two-time Grammy Award winner told reporters beforehand he has no worries about the 80,000-strong crowd.
"I ain't scared," said the Hawaiian-born singer, who will be joined on stage at Met Life Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey by the longtime alternative rockers the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Mars, an R&B singer who follows performers including Beyonce, Bruce Springsteen and Prince in performing at what is typically the most-watched U.S. sporting event, has offered few hints on what fans will see or hear on Sunday night.
"Spectacle-wise, I don't do trapeze and all that stuff," Mars told reporters this week, an apparent reference to the 2012 halftime performance, which featured Madonna and acrobats from Cirque du Soleil. "I hope to get people dancing and get people smiling. If you ever come to one of my shows, it's just us up there with our music and our instruments and I'm hoping that's enough."
Mars, whose album "Unorthodox Jukebox" was named best pop vocal album at the 2014 Grammys, said he is ready for the rigors of performing at the first outdoor cold-weather Super Bowl, joking that his trademark pompadour hairstyle will be held firmly in place by "three gallons of hair spray."
He said he was excited to be joined by the Chili Peppers, who have sold 60 million albums since their 1984 self-titled debut and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012.
"I've been a fan of theirs for such a long time," said Mars.
Fans will also hear soprano Renee Fleming who is scheduled to sing the "Star-Spangled Banner" before the game, backed by a symphony orchestra and singers from all four branches of the U.S. armed forces.
Fleming, with four Grammy Awards to her name, will be the first opera star to sing the national anthem before the NFL championship, a duty that normally falls to a pop singer. While she called the performance a heavy responsibility, she said she was confident about her ability to perform the anthem, which is technically challenging to sing.
"We belong to a tradition that's 400 years old that has range at the heart of it among other things and certainly it will be something quite different," Fleming said of her performance.
Fans Get Ready for the Super Bowl
1/22The numerals for the the game are seen at an opening ceremony for 'Super Bowl Boulevard' along Broadway as preparations continue for Super Bowl XLVIII in New York, Jan. 29, 2014.
2/22Seattle Seahawks fans Todd Gibson and his son Karsten pose outside the stadium before the start of the NFL Super Bowl XLVIII football game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Feb. 2, 2014.
3/22Fans Todd Barnes and Mitch Daniels photograph themselves on Super Bowl Boulevard in Times Square prior to Super Bowl XLVIII, Jan. 31, 2014, in New York City.
4/22A police officer and his dog walk past football fans at the Secaucus Junction in Secaucus, N.J., Feb. 2, 2014.
5/22Tim Froemke of Ritzville Wash., waits in a security line at the Secaucus Junction in Secaucus, N.J., Feb. 2, 2014.
6/22Football fans wait in a security line at the Secaucus Junction in Secaucus, N.J., Feb. 2, 2014.
7/22Mersedes markalı avtomobil Almaniyadakı "Techno Classica" sərgisində
8/22Seattle Seahawks fans sign a "12th Man" flag on "Super Bowl Boulevard" at Times Square, as part of the Super Bowl lead up, in New York Feb. 1, 2014.
9/22'Yar Majalisar Tarayya Fredrica Wilson ta rungumi daga cikin daliban Chibok da ta samu damar kubuta.
10/22Blitz, right, the Seattle Seahawks mascot, is sits with Miles, left, the Denver Broncos mascot, Jan. 31, 2014, on top of a Super Bowl sign during a live TV broadcast in Times Square in New York.
11/22A man dressed as the Statue of Liberty poses for photos with football fans along Super Bowl Boulevard. Jan. 31, 2014, in New York. T
12/22A fan of the Seattle Seahawks jokes with a fan of the Denver Broncos at the Super Bowl Boulevard fan zone ahead of Super Bowl XLVIII in New York, Jan. 30, 2014.
13/22A billboard is displayed along Super Bowl Boulevard in Times Square in New York, Jan. 31, 2014.
14/22Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll and Denver Broncos head coach John Fox speak at a news conference, Jan. 31, 2014, in New York.
15/22A fan visits the Super Bowl Boulevard fan zone ahead of Super Bowl XLVIII in New York, Jan. 30, 2014.
16/22A police officer walks next to a fan at the Super Bowl Boulevard fan zone ahead of Super Bowl XLVIII in New York, Jan. 30, 2014.
17/22Denver Broncos strong safety David Bruton runs an interception drill during an indoor practice session for the Super Bowl at the New York Jets Training Center in Florham Park, New Jersey, Jan. 30, 2014.
18/22Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning readies to throw a pass during a practice session for the Super Bowl at the New York Jets Training Center in Florham Park, New Jersey, Jan. 30, 2014.
19/22Soprano Renee Fleming speaks at the Super Bowl half time press conference in New York, Jan. 30, 2014.
20/22Bruno Mars who will headline the half-time show at Super Bowl XLVIII during a press conference, Jan. 30, 2014, in New York.
21/22The New York skyline and the Empire State Building are seen in the distance as roman numerals for NFL Super Bowl XLVIII football game are displayed in Hoboken, New Jersey, Jan. 30, 2014.
22/22Seattle Seahawks fans walk to the stadium before the start of the NFL Super Bowl XLVIII football game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Feb. 2, 2014.
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