Adam Levine responds to Maroon 5 Super Bowl criticism: 'I am not in the right profession if I can't handle a bit of controversy'

'It is what it is. We would like to move on from it and speak through the music'

Adam Levine has spoken out on the controversy surrounding Maroon 5‘s upcoming Super Bowl performance on Sunday.

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, Levine said: “I am not in the right profession if I can’t handle a bit of controversy. It is what it is. We would like to move on from it and speak through the music.”

Before Maroon 5 had been confirmed for the performance, reports stated that several other stars had turned down the opportunity in support of former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick and his decision to kneel during the national anthem at football games to raise awareness for police brutality and racial inequality.

It was previously revealed the band would not be doing the traditional pre-Super Bowl news conference, with no reason given as to the cancellation.

“I spoke to many people, most importantly though, I silenced all the noise and listened to myself, and made my decision about how I felt.” Levine said of the decision to perform. He added: “No one thought about it more than I did. No one put more thought and love into this than I did.”

Responding to those who might feel as if their voice isn’t being heard, he said: “They will be [heard] — that’s all I want to say because I don’t want to spoil anything.I like to think that people know where I stand as a human being after two decades of doing this.

“So, what I would say is, you know, we are going to keep on doing what we do, hopefully without becoming politicians to make people understand, ‘We got you.’”

Levin also previewed what fans can expect from the show, adding: “The spectacle is the music. The way that we speak and emote is through the music. So the curation of the show and putting it together and that whole process of figuring out what we’re going to do and how we’re going to do it, that is all being centered around the music.”

Maroon 5 will be joined onstage by former Outkast member Big Boi and Houston rapper Travis Scott for the halftime show, which will see the Los Angeles Rams and New England Patriots face off.