Complete with an all-Black choir, firework display, and large group of background dancers sprawled across the field in white bandage masks, this year’s Super Bowl LV headliner, The Weeknd, made sure to place a unique signature on his performance.
Due to COVID restrictions, The Weeknd wasn’t able to have swarms of fans surround him like in years past, but that didn’t stop the singer from including some form of supportive stage presence. The mix of dancers served as a good backdrop for the singer, who broke a longstanding tradition of having special guests during their halftime performances.
The Grammy-award winning singer opened his performance with his hit “Starboy.” He then followed it up with his other smash hits, “The Hills,” and “Can’t Feel My Face,” during which the latter became an instant meme for Twitter:
The Weeknd also performed “I Feel It Coming,” “Save Your Tears,” “Earned It,” and surprised viewers with a throwback classic from his mixtape House of Balloons, “Glass Table Girls.” During the latter, The Weeknd joined his army of dancers on the field for an ensemble performance, which closed out with “Blinding Lights,” complete with a short firework display to end the set.
Generally speaking, The Weeknd received a positive response for what Variety called a “technologically dazzling set” that “lived up to some of the most iconic performances of the past.” The singer paid a pretty penny to make it happen too. Wassim “Sal” Slaiby, The Weeknd’s, manager told Billboard he spent $7 million of his own money to cover the production costs of his own show.
Immediately after the Halftime Show was complete, songs from The Weeknd’s performance began to climb the charts once again via iTunes so the cost may have been worth it:
If you missed the performance, you can watch it here:
