• Beyoncé and Jay-Z remained seated during the national anthem at this year’s Super Bowl.
  • Footage obtained by TMZ showed the couple seated with their daughter Blue Ivy at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami as Demi Lovato performed Sunday night.
  • It’s clear from the footage, however, that most of their section also remained seated.
  • Jay-Z has been collaborating on social-justice issues with the NFL since the controversy surrounding Colin Kaepernick, who took a knee during the national anthem in 2016.
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Two of the most notable attendees at this year’s Super Bowl did not stand while Demi Lovato performed the national anthem.

Footage obtained by TMZ showed that Beyoncé and Jay-Z instead remained seated for the entire performance, along with nearly their entire section of Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium. Other sections could be seen standing. The pair appeared to be enjoying Lovato’s performance, as it looks like they were swaying to the music, and their daughter Blue Ivy filmed the performance on her phone.

Fans connected their actions to the controversy surrounding Colin Kaepernick, the quarterback who took a knee during the national anthem before games in 2016 to protest police brutality. Jay-Z has spoken out in support of Kaepernick in the past, including in a 2017 interview with New York Times Executive Editor Dean Baquet.

Jay-Z and Roc Nation – the entertainment agency that Jay-Z founded in 2008 – also announced in 2019 that they would collaborate with the NFL to address social-justice issues. They were involved in bringing Jennifer Lopez and Shakira to the Half Time Show stage and the “Inspire Change” initiative to advance social justice, according to Vox.

The artist has received some criticism for teaming up with the NFL, which has been accused of essentially expelling Kaepernick over the protest.

Jay-Z defended the partnership in a recent interview with the New York Times' Katherine Rosman, saying the ability to reach white football fans to address police brutality was worth it. "As long as real people are being hurt and marginalized and losing family members, then yes, I can take a couple rounds of negative press," he said.

Watch the full TMZ video here:

It was Lovato's first time performing at the Super Bowl, and fans said she gave them chills when she nailed the anthem.

The 27-year-old singer "brought the house down," as the "Ellen DeGeneres Show" producer Andy Lassner said on Twitter. Viewers at home seemed equally stunned by her powerful vocals.