Red Lobster Sees Sales Surge After Beyonce Song Mentions Taking Man To Seafood Chain After Sex
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Red Lobster says it's feeling the "Beyonce Bounce."
The seafood chain says sales surged 33 percent Sunday, compared with last year's Super Bowl Sunday. The increase came after the release of "Formation," a song in which Beyonce says she took a man to Red Lobster after sex.
The halftime show — seen by an estimated 112 million people — is drawing praise from her fans and consternation from critics.
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While Beyonce hasn't commented on the specifics of the show, and her rep declined comment, the imagery speaks for itself. Beyonce's dancers donned berets, sported Afros and wore all black, similar to the style of the Black Panther party, founded 50 years ago by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale in the Bay area — the location of this year's Super Bowl.
At one point during their routine, the dancers formed an "X'' on the field, which some people are taking as a tribute to slain black activist Malcolm X.
Former New York City mayor called it "outrageous," saying the pop superstar disrespected police officers across the nation.
"This is football, not Hollywood, and I thought it was really outrageous that she used it as a platform to attack police officers who are the people who protect her and protect us, and keep us alive," Giuliani told Fox News. "And what we should be doing in the African-American community, and all communities, is build up respect for police officers, and focus on the fact that when something does go wrong, okay, we'll work on that.
Giuliani added that Beyonce is "probably going to take advantage of" this political position.
"You're talking to middle America when you have the Super Bowl. So if you're going to have entertainment, have decent, wholesome entertainment and not use it as a platform to attack people," he told Fox News.
Giuliani called the entire halftime show "ridiculous."
The Twitterverse also thought Red Lobster's late response to Bey's shout out was ridiculous.
The chain got skewered on Twitter for posting a late response to the "Formation" mention.
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