In a show that started in the stands and then entered the stadium before taking over the entire field, The Weeknd performed a combination of octane hits during the Half part of the Super Bowl LV show. Although things apparently went smoothly, the Grammy-winning artist still caught the attention of social media.
He was the only performer.
Twitter users immediately began working on creating memes and comparing various aspects of the set to each other, from security dancers who looked like robots in the stands to the golden room in which The Weeknd, which is actually called Abel Tesfaye he sang his hit song “Can’t Feel My Face,” to the bandaged dancers who took over the entire field for the finale.
The R&B singer’s ensemble continued the story of their “After Hours” character. He started with Tesfaye in a bright red jacket, continuing with images inspired by his “After Hours” character and previous awards performances, backed by a large heart with bright eyes. While many considered it creepy, the sequence also resulted in memes from Jawas and C-3PO from Star Wars:
At one point, Tesfaye seemed to enter the stadium, weaving a golden maze of mirrors and performing a dizzying sequence. More memes and comparisons have been made:
Towards the end of “Can’t Feel My Face,” The Weeknd joined dancers in identical costumes except for head sales. He went out on the field turning what would normally have been a fan-filled space into a big dance party. When he began playing his hit song “Blinded by the Lights,” the backup dancers created even more fodder for social media, and many tweeters wondered if the artist was trying to make a statement, including the former surgeon general Jerome Adams:
Others provided more pop cultural references:
The mummies were invoked:
And other characters:
The Weeknd spent $ 7 million of its own money – on top of what the NFL paid – to produce the show in half. The league also released a live visual album with the entire ensemble, along with pre-game performances of HER’s “America The Beautiful” and Jazmine Sullivan and Eric Church’s “Star Spangled Banner”.
