Jay Z says sitting during national anthem was not political

Some camera person noticed that Jay Z, Beyoncé and Blue Ivy did not stand when singer Demi Lovato sang the national anthem at last Sunday’s Super Bowl. Much of the media and other observers began saying the famous entertainment family was making a political statement. But Jay Z says that’s not the case, reports the Huffington Post. “It actually wasn’t. Sorry it really wasn’t,” he said during a lecture at Columbia University on Tuesday. “It was not premeditated at all,” he continued, adding that TMZ — which first shared video footage of the couple in their seats — “can tell you anything without speaking to me. I need to tell you, if it was me, I would say, ‘Yes, that’s what I’ve done,’ and I think people would know that about me.” The power couple’s sit-down came under intense scrutiny. Many people on social media suggested it was a show of solidarity with former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, whose kneeling during the anthem to protest racial injustice prompted a wave of similar demonstrations and drew the ire of President Donald Trump. But Jay Z, whose Roc Nation co-produced the halftime show as part of its controversial partnership deal with the NFL, insisted he didn’t stand on Sunday because he’d jumped “into artist mode” and was focused on the quality of the sound in the performance. To bolster his story, Jay Z said that if there had been a plan for the couple to protest, their 8-year-old daughter Blue Ivy would have given the game away by constantly asking when they were going to do it. “We were making the biggest, loudest protest of all,” Jay-Z added, citing the halftime performances of Shakira and Jennifer Lopez, which took a swipe at President Donald Trump’s anti-immigration policies. “Given the context, I didn’t have to make a silent protest,” he added.