By SHANNON NESSERALLA, Student Reporter
On Super Bowl Sunday, Abel Tesfaye, more commonly known by his stage name “The Weeknd,” headlined the Super Bowl LV Pepsi Halftime show.
The show was interesting to say the least. Tesfaye performed some of his most notable songs like “Starboy,” “The Hills,” “I Can’t Feel My Face,” “Earned It,” and “House of Balloons” from his mixtape, which debuted in 2011. He also sang the ‘80s synth pop-inspired “Blinding Lights.”
Behind him, there was a stage designed to look like a version of the Las Vegas Strip with a dancing choir.
The stage was actually built in the stands of the arena to help speed up transitions during the performance.
In fact, it is reported that The Weeknd spent an additional $7 million of his own money to make these adjustments.
Now, was the visual performance odd? A little bit.
Dancers lined the field with gauze wrapped entirely around their faces. Some viewers commented on social media asking why they had jock straps on their heads.
But if you’re a fan of The Weeknd, you would recognize the reoccurring theme he has presented at award shows.
His music videos since the release of his latest album After Hours. The singer showed up to an award show with a bloody nose.
Followed by another appearance with his face wrapped in gauze.
Finally wearing prosthetics, imitating extreme plastic surgery in his most recent music video “Save Your Tears.”
These appearances took place throughout 2020 and part of 2021 to create a sort of character you could follow while listening to Tesfaye’s album. Not only did he create a caricature of himself, but he also used these stunts for social commentary as well.
“The significance of the entire head bandages is reflecting on the absurd culture of Hollywood celebrity and people manipulating themselves for superficial reasons to please and be validated,” he explained to Variety.
“It’s all a progression, and we watch the character’s storyline hit heightened levels of danger and absurdity as his tale goes on.”
Of course, casual fans of the artist, and those who didn’t know him at all, were extremely confused as to what was going on Sunday night. The reactions to the performance were mixed.
Some enjoyed it, some had criticisms for the sound mixing, some found it boring and some even claimed that The Weeknd included satanic symbols in his background set.
Sure, art is subjective, and people can interpret it however they want. But all in all, it wasn’t a terrible performance.
The halftime show was a little slow, but it wasn’t bad. Admittedly there was a certain something that was missing, perhaps a lack of energy due to the limited attendance because of COVID-19.
But in the end, it was enjoyable to see The Weeknd having fun on stage. He was happy performing his usually melancholy music.
So, despite the odd performance, and even if you don’t like the artist and his music, you can still try to appreciate his artistry and the message he tried to convey.