Elbows down! CFL punts CanCon for halftime

This week, it was announced that MGK, the American musician formerly known as Machine Gun Kelly, will be headlining the Grey Cup halftime show here in Winnipeg next month.

Some of you are probably asking, “Who is that?” Others, like me, think of him as an actor (I loved him in Roadies). Others might be excited about this baffling choice.

And it certainly is a choice! One that raises many questions, such as: why isn’t the Grey Cup headliner Canadian? Especially in this, the Elbow’s Up era?

Maybe the prospect of an American headliner is raising hackles this year with the tariffs and 51st state of it all. Perhaps the decision stings even more because of the changes to the game the CFL is planning on making that more closely resemble the U.S.’s National Football League.

But American acts have, historically, headlined the Grey Cup halftime show. The Black Eyed Peas, Lenny Kravitz, the Jonas Brothers, One Republic, Fall Out Boy, the Lumineers and Green Day have all performed at the CFL’s Big Show. (And many of the guys on the field playing the game are also going to be American, just saying.)

Having to perform outdoors on a field in the middle of November in Winnipeg sounds like a hazing ritual to me, to be honest, but it’s a plum opportunity to play live to a stadium audience and appear on television.

Yes, it’s annoying that we have to cede yet more prime entertainment space to American artists who already cannibalize so much of it. Our Canadian music scene is robust and diverse; there are plenty of acts that could have been tapped to perform at the game.

Our Canadian music scene is robust and diverse; there are plenty of acts that could have been tapped to perform at the game.

The CFL is a Canadian league; it stands to reason that the Grey Cup should be an obvious site of CanCon.

But I also understand why it’s not. A halftime show is, in many ways, about novelty. It’s about drawing eyeballs that aren’t already watching the game. That’s it.

That’s not to say Canadian artists can’t or haven’t done this, incredibly successfully (I’m thinking about the Tragically Hip, Shania Twain and Nelly Furtado, specifically).

But there has been a real trend over the last few years to look beyond Canada for halftime programming. Of the last 10 Grey Cups, eight have had headlining acts from the U.S. or elsewhere (shout out to Aussie Keith Urban).

Canadian acts, even the biggest, most popular Canadian acts, already perform in Grey Cup host markets on a regular basis. There is no shortage of opportunities to see the Arkells, or Blue Rodeo or the Trews or Metric, or any other mainstream Canadian act who receives regular radio play who I could see being programmed at the Grey Cup. They might be perceived, rightly or wrongly, as less of a draw because of that.

To wit: the act headlining the kickoff show, Our Lady Peace, was just at the arena in February. Tate McRae would have been a smart choice if the CFL is trying to appeal to a younger crowd, which MGK seems like an attempt to do, but she played here this summer.

But what if, and stay with me here, we just reimagined the halftime show entirely? There could be more surprises, such as an onstage collaboration featuring unexpected (Canadian) musicians, maybe. Or a one-off reunion (Bachman Cummings, let’s go). It could be a truly one-night-only experience that will never happen again.

It doesn’t even have to be just a musical act. This might be a hot take, but the CFL would do well to consider programming comedy at half time.

Comedy is one of our greatest exports, if we wanna get patriotic about it. Comedians pack out arenas like rock stars, and with the growing popularity of large-scale outdoor comedy festivals, it’s not weird to imagine a comedian at the mic.

We could do something different. Something unique. Something Canadian.

Oh well. Maybe next year.

jen.zoratti@freepress.mb.ca