Wu-Tang Clan is set to headline the Detroit Lions’ Thanksgiving Day halftime show when the team faces the Chicago Bears at Ford Field on Thursday, Nov. 26. The Lions announced the booking on Nov. 1, confirming that the legendary hip-hop group will lead the Thanksgiving Halftime Show powered by Verizon during the franchise’s 87th annual Thanksgiving Day Classic.
The game is scheduled to kick off at 1 p.m. ET and will be nationally televised on CBS. The halftime performance will bring Wu-Tang Clan’s catalog to one of the NFL’s most prominent regular-season stages, continuing the Lions’ long-standing Thanksgiving tradition.
The announcement also marks the second year of a multiyear partnership involving Eminem and his longtime manager, Paul Rosenberg, who serve as executive producers of the halftime show and select its performers. Rosenberg said the group’s appearance in Detroit would be both exciting and unexpected, adding that he and Eminem have been Wu-Tang fans since the early 1990s.
Detroit Lions president and CEO Rich Haddad welcomed the announcement, describing the Thanksgiving Day Classic as one of the sport’s major traditions and Wu-Tang Clan as one of music’s great performers. The booking follows last year’s show, which featured Jack White with a surprise appearance by Eminem.
Wu-Tang Clan’s Thanksgiving performance comes as the group wraps its global farewell tour, Wu-Tang Forever: The Final Chamber, and prepares for its induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as part of the 2026 class. The collective was formed on Staten Island, New York, in the early 1990s and released its influential debut album, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), in 1993.
The group’s lineup includes RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, U-God, Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck and Cappadonna, alongside the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard. Wu-Tang Clan has released eight group albums, with three achieving quadruple-platinum status, while its members have also developed solo careers and worked across film, television, fashion and publishing.
Actor and recording artist Antonio Cipriano will perform the national anthem before the game. The Michigan native is known for his role as John Logan in the Amazon Prime Video series Off Campus and his Broadway appearance in Jagged Little Pill.
The Lions’ Thanksgiving Day Classic is presented by Ford, with the halftime show powered by Verizon. The Nov. 26 matchup against the Chicago Bears will air on CBS at 1 p.m. ET.
