ATLANTA, GA – FEBRUARY 03: Adam Levine of Maroon 5 performs during the Pepsi Super Bowl LIII Halftime Show at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on February 3, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage)

 

Maroon 5 are taking heat over their Super Bowl half time show performance for several reasons, including Adam Levine’s decision to go shirtless after Janet Jackson was condemned for accidentally flashing a nipple at the Super Bowl in 2004.

(By taking his shirt off Levine has, ironically, drawn attention to and reignited the conversation around the double standards women, and particularly women of colour, deal with every day … but we doubt that was the intention behind his nipple-baring).

Today, Levine responded to the criticism, penning a short note on Instagram.

“When we accepted the responsibility to perform at the SBHTS,” Levine told his followers, “I took out my pen and just wrote.

“Some of the words that came to me in that moment eventually made their way onto the incredible lanterns that flew high and low [during the performance]. We thank the universe for this historic opportunity to play on the world’s biggest stage. We thank our fans for making our dreams possible. And we thank our critics for always pushing us to do better. One Love.”

The 39-year-old then shared the list of words. Let’s just say it’s an intriguing if not confusing insight into the brain of Adam Levine.

Forgive
Laugh
Cry
Smile
Share
Live
Endure
Embrace
Remember
Enlighten
Preserve
Inspire
Sweat
Fight
Express
Give
Receive
Elevate
Climb
Unify
Fortify
Soften
Dance
Scream
Dream
Educate
Provide
Inhale
Exhale
Persevere
Stand
Kneel
Overcome
Love
Listen

I’m hesitant to spend too long psychoanalysing a  list of words randomly generated from Adam Levine’s brain. All I’ll say is, including the word “kneel” (fourth from the bottom) isn’t enough to convince me, or probably anyone, that Levine has really tried to comprehend just how much NFL players sacrifice when they take a knee to peacefully protest – or what they’re protesting.