Jay-Z denied that he and his wife Beyonce were making a political statement by sitting through the national anthem during the Super Bowl on Feb. 2.
During a Columbia University Question and Answer event on Tuesday, Jay-Z was asked by the moderator if he was sitting during the national anthem “to convey a signal.”
“It actually wasn’t — sorry,” he said, adding, “I’d tell you … I’d say, ‘Yes, that’s what I’ve done.’ I think people know that about me.”
Instead, he said the couple — who co-produced the event’s entertainment — was focused on making sure everything went smoothly.
“So we get there, and we immediately jump into artist mode … now I’m really just looking at the show. Did the mic start? Was it too low to start? … I had to explain to them [that] as an artist, if you don’t feel the music, you can’t really reach that level.”
Additionally, he said he was surprised when he saw people were suggesting that he was sitting to make a statement.
“So the whole time we’re sitting there, we’re talking about the performance, and then right after that, Demi [Lovato] comes out, and we’re talking about how beautiful she looked, and how she sounds and what she’s going through, and her life — for her to be on the stage, we were so proud of her. And then it finished and then my phone rang. And it was like, ‘You know you didn’t…’ I’m like, ‘What?'”
He noted that his eight-year-old daughter, Blue, was there and said he wouldn’t try to make a political statement with her there.
“Blue was right next to us; we wouldn’t do that to Blue and put her in that position. And if anyone who knows Blue … If we told her we were going to do something like that, you would have seen her attacking me 100 times,” he said.
Jay-Z and Beyonce were seen sitting through the national anthem before the Super Bowl on Sunday, which led some to suggest they were trying to make a statement.
WATCH: #JayZ, @Beyonce Refuse to Stand for National Anthem at #SuperBowlLIV https://t.co/JAlzTpMj99
— Sara A. Carter (@SaraCarterDC) February 3, 2020
Beyonce & Jay-Z remain seated during National Anthem…That disrespect aside – she has sung the national anthem & performed 2 halftime shows, yet she couldn’t find it in her to support Lovato who suffered through many struggles? SMH#SuperBowl2020https://t.co/kGrfeiQVUJ
— Wayne DuPree (@WayneDupreeShow) February 3, 2020
Listen Up Beyonce and Jay-Z!!
— Brigitte Gabriel (@ACTBrigitte) February 3, 2020
You don’t think it’s necessary to stand for our Anthem and our Flag!?
Countless lives have been lost defending that Flag so people like YOU can attend events like the Super Bowl in peace.
You should be EMBARRASSED for yourselves. What a disgrace.
What a disgusting act of shame.
— Nick Adams (Alpha Male) (@NickAdamsinUSA) February 3, 2020
Beyonce and Jay-Z remained seated during the National Anthem at the Super Bowl.
This country has given them the opportunity to be everything they are, and they reward it by disgracing the Flag and Anthem!
Our service heroes deserve more respect!
Two pieces of trash. Beyonce and Jay-Z SIT DOWN for during Super Bowl national anthem https://t.co/Qm08iGksUi via @DailyMailCeleb
— Carmine Sabia (@CarmineSabia) February 3, 2020
Hey Jay-Z & Blue Ivy, You are entitled to do whatever you want. But, you are an embarrassment for America for Remaining Seated During Super Bowl National Anthem. pic.twitter.com/i57ULElOgf
— Joel Fischer 🇺🇸 (@realJoelFischer) February 3, 2020
However, Jay-Z said that between the messages of the commercials and halftime show, “I didn’t have to make a silent protest.”