Super Bowl Halftime Show 2014: Bruno Mars and Chili Peppers Provide Fun Combo

After you've watched enough Super Bowl halftime shows, you pick up on a few trends. Generally, the performances fall into one of three categories:

1. Fun.
2. Ridiculously over the top and tacky.
3. Controversial.

I promise you, you can put every single Super Bowl halftime performance into one of these categories. But there is good news for this year, folks, because more than likely, the combination of Bruno Mars and the Red Hot Chili Peppers will fall into the "fun" category.

Super Bowl Information

When: Sunday, Feb. 2, at 6:30 p.m. ET

Where: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

Watch: Fox

Streaming: Fox Sports Go

Mobile: NFL Mobile app

Spread: Denver (-2.5), according to Vegas Insider 

The Halftime Show

While Mars and the Chili Peppers certainly represent different styles of music, both artists are known for catchy, upbeat tunes. Perhaps Mars saw the connection as well, as he invited the Peppers to join him for the halftime show.

But why was Mars the choice? Especially after a world-renowned superstar like Beyonce rocked her performance a year ago?

Zack O'Malley Greenburg of Forbes has more on that:

"

His selection surprised some observers, given that the last two years’ performers—Madonna and Beyonce—had both been international superstars for many years before playing the Super Bowl. Why didn’t the league pick another name like that?

“One of the answers is there aren’t that many acts like that,” says Marc Ganis, president of the consultancy Sportscorp, Ltd. “And the NFL has been going through most of them. You don’t want to recycle. If you’re going to look outside that limited sphere, Bruno Mars is a pretty good selection.”

Indeed, in just four years’ time, Mars has rocketed from being a struggling songwriter to cementing his status as one of the top acts in pop music today. On top of releasing a pair of platinum-selling albums, he’s been nominated for 18 Grammy awards and won two, including Best Pop Vocal Album for Unorthodox Jukebox at last week’s ceremony.

"

Mars, to his credit, isn't about to shrink from the giant spotlight being cast on him, as he told Dave Itzkoff of the New York Times:

"

No matter where I perform, it’s my job to uplift the people. So whether I’m performing at a graduation party, a wedding, a bar mitzvah, the Grammys, the Super Bowl, I’m going to give it all I got. Whatever happens, happens. I ain’t scared, if that’s what you think.

"

Surely, the Chili Peppers aren't scared either. The band that has been rocking since the '80s has played its share of arenas, stadiums and festivals, though of course not with potentially a hundred million people around the world watching.

No pressure, right?

But back to the fun. It would be pretty sweet if Mars and the Peppers mashed together a few of their songs in a joint performance, at least for a part of the performance. For example, the stadium will erupt when Mars busts out "Locked out of Heaven."

And it would make a lot of sense for the Peppers to play "All Around the World," because, you know, the Super Bowl will be watched around the world.

But with if the Peppers sprinkled in some of the chorus to "Californication" during "Locked out of Heaven"?

Yeah, now that would be fun.

No matter what they do for the performance, expect an upbeat, high-energy show. Different styles of music, sure, but one thing in common: These two acts want you to move along with them.

Here's to hoping they pull it off.