This Saturday, The Weeknd took to the stage to perform for the Pepsi Superbowl 55 halftime performance. Super Bowl halftimes have always acted as the bridge that connects the football world to the entertainment world and making the NFL’s biggest game the most-watched television event of the year. The Weeknd’s performance was a spectacle to see and was amazing halftime during the Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Kansas City Chiefs game in Tampa, Florida.

The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, is a Canadian singer and songwriter. He has won Grammy awards for his album, “Beauty Behind the Madness” in 2015 which featured the hit single, “Can’t Feel My Face,” and his follow-up album, “Starboy,” in 2016. He is also known for the songs, “Blinding Lights,” “I Feel it Coming,” “The Hills,” “Save Your Tears,” and, “Heartless”. According to the New York Times, the Weeknd said that his halftime show would incorporate some of his trademark artistic themes but that he plans to be respectful to viewers at home.

The Weeknd spent $7 million of his own money on the performance. For this show, he wore a black and red suit which was featured in his album, “After Hours”. Many of the dancers were dressed in the same suit but had bandaged faces. According to CNN, he explained to Variety what the bandages were all about. 

“The significance of the entire head bandages is reflecting on the absurd culture of Hollywood celebrities and people manipulating themselves for superficial reasons to please and be validated,” the Weeknd said. 

The Weeknd started off the halftime performance with a short bit from his song, “Call Out My Name.” It featured a massive choir and instrumentalists while the backdrop resembled the Las Vegas Strip. The Weeknd entered through the center of the stage and followed up with his song, “Starboy,” which featured a lot of blue and black lights and fireworks. The stage then turned red as he transitioned to the song, “The Hills,” which, once again, incorporated the amazing vocals of the choir. 

After the first few songs, The Weeknd transitioned to a different set, which was inside the stage. He brought the camera with him and lots of flashing yellow lights appeared as he performed the song, “Can’t Feel My Face”. As the beat dropped, several of the red and black suit bandaged men entered in and it caused an awesome drunken and dizziness effect. After this song, he went back to the stage to perform, “I Feel It Coming,” as the stage was full of smoke and a combination of blue and white lights. To finish off the middle part of the performance, he sang, “Save Your Tears” and “Earned It”. The choir and violinists along with the vocals from The Weeknd, produced a synergistic effect which was very pleasing to hear. 

For the final part of his performance, The Weeknd moved to the field with an army of bandage-faced dancers. He ended the performance with a bang by performing one of his latest songs, “Blinding Lights”. Dark lights covered the field to create a smokey effect and the dancers held thousands of lights, seeming very appropriate for the song. Sounds of cheers and screams from the audience flooded the stadium as he delivered his last song.

Despite the pandemic and its hardships, The Weeknd delivered a spectacular performance that has never been done before. It is definitely going to go down as one of the best Super Bowl performances in history.