Eminem’s daughter Hailie Jade supports him at Super Bowl as he takes the knee during halftime show

NFL denied claims it tried to stop rapper from making the political gesture

Eminem’s daughter Hailie Jade shared support for her father during his halftime show at the Super Bowl.

The NFL season came to a climax on Sunday (13 February) with the Cincinnati Bengals going up against the Los Angeles Rams at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.

Many eyes, however, were on the much-anticipated halftime show, which saw Eminem perform alongside Kendrick Lamar, Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, and Mary J Blige.

During the halftime show, Eminem – real name Marshall Mathers – took the knee while performing a rendition of his 2002 hit song “Lose Yourself”.

“Taking the knee” is a political gesture popularised by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who started kneeling during the pre-game national anthem in 2016 to protest police brutality.

Kaepernick’s gesture was adopted by other players in the NFL, but the league’s reaction to the protest was widely criticised. Kaepernick has not played in the NFL since the 2016 season ended.

The NFL has denied the suggestion that it attempted to stop Eminem from making the gesture amid reports that it had tried to censor political statements from this year’s halftime acts.

Eminem’s daughter, Hailie Jade, shared a picture of herself at the game to social media ahead of the rapper’s performance.

“Here for the halftime show, staying for Stafford,” she wrote in the caption, in a reference to Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford.

When her father took to the stage, the 26-year-old shared her support by posting a number of videos of the performance from her spot in the stands.

Throughout Eminem’s career, the Grammy award-winner has made numerous references to his daughter in his lyrics.

Perhaps most famously, “Hailie’s Song” is a track dedicated to her on his 2002 album The Eminem Show.

Hailie’s voice also features on the song “My Dad’s Gone Crazy” from the same album.

Eminem kneels during his Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show performance (Getty Images)

Eminem has previously admitted he regrets being so open about his relationship with his daughter and her mother Kim Scott in his music.

Eminem shares Hailie with his former partner Scott. He also has two adopted children Alana Marie Mathers and Stevie Laine.

You can read The Independent’s review of the Super Bowl halftime show here.