Pop star The Weeknd talks Super Bowl 55 halftime show and the mysterious face bandages
For many, watching the Super Bowl isn’t about the game but the halftime show.
This year, fresh off a hit album, The Weeknd was tapped to perform in the intermission of Super Bowl 55 at Raymond James Stadium.
On Thursday, he spoke at a press conference conducted virtually to preview the show, which will have a different feel than past years due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“Due to COVID and for the safety of the players and workers, we kind of built the stage within the stadium,” The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, said. We’re also using the field as well, but we wanted to do something that we’ve never done before. But I’m not gonna tell you anything else because you’ll have to watch on Sunday.
The Canadian artist has sunk his own money into this Sunday’s show, a total of $7 million, according to Billboard, and has helped locally in Tampa by delivering meals to a hospital.
“I see that people are struggling and I just want to help,” The Weeknd said. “I’ve been in that position myself and I know what it feels like. I never really had money growing up, so giving away isn’t hard for me, it’s very easy.”
His album, After Hours, that was released in 2020 debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, and videos from some of the songs on the album led to a story arc that’s played out in live performances.
At the American Music Awards, The Weeknd performed wearing face bandages playing off the character he developed off a bad night in Las Vegas storyline.
For the Super Bowl, the blood and violence aspect will be toned down due to the family nature of the event.
“Yeah, for sure, I definitely want to be respectful to the viewers at home,” The Weeknd said. “I will still incorporate some of the storyline. It’s a very cohesive story I’m telling throughout this year, so the story will continue, but we definitely will keep it PG-[rated] for the families. I’ll do my best.”
His performance also marks the first time in Super Bowl halftime show history that a Canadian artist will get to perform solo. Both Dan Aykroyd (Super Bowl 31) and Shania Twain (Super Bowl 37) performed with others.
But in terms of history, The Weeknd discussed his favorite Super Bowl halftime performance.
“I don’t know what technically is the greatest, but my favorite is Diana Ross 1996,” The Weeknd said. “... She’s just so glamorous and the show just makes me smile. And she has a great exit with the helicopter, where she lands in the middle of the field, grabs onto it and flies off into the clouds, it’s like I wish I could have done that, I wish I’d thought of it.”
