Wu-Tang Clan will headline the halftime show when the Detroit Lions host the Chicago Bears on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 26, at Ford Field. The Lions announced the booking Sunday.
The NFC North game marks Detroit’s 87th annual Thanksgiving Day Classic. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET, with the game airing nationally on CBS.
Lions president and CEO Rich Haddad called the matchup between tradition and talent a natural fit. “Our Thanksgiving Day Classic is one of the greatest traditions in sports, and Wu-Tang Clan is one of the greatest performers in music,” Haddad said. “We are thrilled to have Wu-Tang headlining our Thanksgiving halftime show and grateful to Marshall and Paul for their partnership.”
Eminem and his longtime manager, Paul Rosenberg, picked Wu-Tang Clan for the slot as part of a multiyear deal with the Lions under which the two executive produce the team’s Thanksgiving halftime performances.
The booking lands in a big year for the New York hip-hop collective. Wu-Tang Clan was selected for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s 2026 class, with the ceremony scheduled for Nov. 14 in Los Angeles.
The group has had a busy stretch outside Detroit as well. Members appeared on Fat Joe’s hip-hop float during the Knicks’ ticker-tape championship parade in June, and Wu-Tang Clan performed at halftime of the Knicks’ Game 4 comeback in the NBA Finals. Method Man performed at the Knicks’ home opener and banner night in October. The group also wrapped its global farewell tour, “Wu-Tang Forever: The Final Chamber,” that same month.
A Hip-Hop Legacy
Formed in the early 1990s, Wu-Tang Clan reshaped hip-hop with its 1993 debut album, “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers),” widely considered one of the genre’s most influential records. It introduced tracks including “C.R.E.A.M.,” “Protect Ya Neck” and “Method Man.”
The group’s 1997 follow-up, “Wu-Tang Forever,” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and earned a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album. Across eight group albums, Wu-Tang Clan has produced multiple quadruple-platinum projects, alongside acclaimed solo work from Method Man, GZA, RZA, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Inspectah Deck and others, including Raekwon’s “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…,” GZA’s “Liquid Swords,” Method Man’s “Tical” and Ghostface Killah’s “Ironman.”
