There was much speculation over what shape their halftime show would take given the scope of J.Lo and Shakira’s extensive music catalogue. But as two of the most impactful stars of Latin music influence, their decision to include guest stage appearances of Colombian reggaeton icon J. Balvin and Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny appeared nothing short of collective. As for possible collaborators that fans would have liked to see take the stage, however, there was one artist’s name that stood out from the chorus: Ja Rule. 

Many felt that the 2020 Super Bowl halftime show was the perfect stage for J. Lo to reunite with Ja, who ushered in a lane for J. Lo’s hip-hop and R&B entry, with her performances of the classic “I’m Real (Remix),” and “Ain’t It Funny (Murder Remix)” during the set. 

To the dismay of those same fans, the anticipated reunion never happened, which wouldn’t come as a surprise to those privy to Ja’s Page Six commentary. In an exclusive reveal with the publication, the Murder Inc. artist revealed that J. Lo nor the NFL had reached out to him for the performance. 

“Everybody’s asking me...Everyone’s thinking it is gonna be a surprise, but it’ll be a surprise to me as well,” he told the publication. Back in October 2019, the New York-bred rhymer also told Entertainment Tonight it would “be really dope “ of J. Lo brought him out, which some fans seconded. Instead, the halftime performance guests comprised only of the aforementioned J Balvin and Bad Bunny as well as an adorable appearance from J. Lo’s 11-year-old daughter, Emme. 

Even though Ja Rule was never confirmed as a performer, Black Twitter was still disappointed in his absence. His presence was definitely missed by many last night. 

“We all feel some type of way that JLO didn't bring Ja Rule out imo,” one user commented on Twitter. Apparently, enough folks shared the same sentiment and Ja’s name became one of Twitter’s highest trending topics after the show.

See what they had to say about Jennifer Lopez’s Ja Rule-less halftime show below.