The Canadian artist The Weeknd shone in the halftime show of Super Bowl, the final of American football in the United States, with an impressive spectacle full of allegories that, for the first time, did not take place from the field of play.
After the first two halves of the game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, all the attention was focused on the stands of Raymond James Stadium, in Tampa, Florida, where The Weeknd, dressed in a red sequined jacket over a Monochromatic outfit in black, he began the presentation with a mix of his biggest hits.
After performing segments from his first production, “House of Balloons”, accompanied by a choir whose members wore a post-apocalyptic robot uniform, the artist followed from a maze of mirrors with “Can’t Feel My Face”, “Feel It Coming “and” Save Your Tears. “
Then it was the turn of “Earn It”, the theme of the movie “Fifty Shades of Gray”, which he sang accompanied by a live orchestra and in front of seats lit in such a way that they gave the sensation of being buildings that later were transformed into the silhouette of a cemetery.
The artist closed the show with “Blinding Lights”, the song that made him the king of Tik Tok during the first months of the pandemic.
And when the first chords of the song were heard, the playing field was filled with hundreds of dancers dressed like The Weeknd.
Unlike all his presentations in 2020 and early 2021, in which he had been first beaten, then with bandages and later with a grotesque alteration of his features – all the product of a visual performance – the Canadian singer-songwriter appeared in Tampa with his face natural.
On the contrary, his dancers wore bandages that served as masks and maintained the concept that the artist has been developing since the beginning of 2020, in which he maintains his criticism of the falsehood of today’s society and the imposed concept of beauty.
While the chords of the song sounded, the artist went down to the field, where the dancers moved like a macabre army, in perfect formation and with a march in which the eight feet of social distance was respected.
The formation broke up around the artist, who closed the show in the light of imposing fireworks and with all his dancers lying on the field.
THE WEEKND, MORE SOBER THAN EXPLOSIVES JLO AND SHAKIRA
Unlike the showy presentation of Jennifer López and Shakira last year, which unleashed much criticism for the explosiveness and sensuality of its presentation, The Weeknd opted for a more sober and totally audiovisual show.
Although the halftime show is usually a hybrid production for the spectator in the stadium and the spectator at home, this time it felt like an all-television show.
And it was a personal gamble by The Weeknd, who put seven million dollars out of his own pocket to deliver this cinematic experience.
LUXURY TELONERAS
The artistic part of the Super Bowl had begun hours earlier with a Miley Cyrus concert outside the stadium, which was broadcast live on TikTok.
The artist performed, among other songs, her single “Nothing Breaks Like a Heart”.
In addition, he shared the stage with Billy Idol, with whom he performed “Night Crawling” and “White Wedding”, before an audience of 7,500 health workers.
The honorees, from different parts of the country, had been invited free of charge by the National Football League (NFL), as a symbol of its gratitude to the health personnel who have fought against the covid-19 pandemic.
These workers and the 15,000 admitted spectators witnessed the masterful performance of the American national anthem by African-American soul and R&B singer Jazmine Sullivan and white country singer Eric Church.
This combination appeared to be a further step in the NFL’s efforts to heed the call of its players and American society to demonstrate its rejection of racism.
Additionally, American singer-songwriter with a Filipino mother and a black father HER sang the patriotic song “America The Beautiful” and the acclaimed deaf singer and writer Warren “Wawa” Snipe performed the two songs in sign language.
And in an unpublished section, young poet Amanda Gorman, who attracted attention for her role in Joe Biden’s inauguration, recited a poem in honor of Californian educator Trimaine Davis.
The players and their technicians, many without masks, and others with their masks on, but their noses exposed, applauded them as they prepared to start the game. (EFE)
THE PREVIOUS
It is a holiday in North America. This Sunday, February 7, Raymond James Stadium will witness the 55th edition of the Super Bowl, the season finale of the Nation Football League (NFL) between the Kansas City Chiefs and the City Buccaneers. And, as is customary, a mega musical party will enliven the night more.
The Weeknd will be in charge of leading the halftime performance (Halftime) of the Super Bowl, as it is also called. The artist will join the list of prestigious singers such as Madonna, Beyoncé, Coldplay, Lady Gaga or Michael Jackson singing their hits such as “Blinding Lights” o “Save your tears”.
According to the artist, he himself has invested about 7 million dollars to make his presentation: “We have really focused on getting the attention of fans at home and making the performances a cinematic experience, and we want to do that with the Super Bowl ”.
However, you will not be alone. Green Day will be in charge of opening the event, Miley Cyrus will sing hours earlier in honor of medical workers fighting COVID-19 and Jazmine Sullivan Y Erik Church they will be in charge of singing the national anthem of the United States.
Schedule:
Peru, Colombia, United States: 7:45 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Mexico: 6:45 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Where to see?
Peru, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Argentina and Venezuela: ESPN – Fox Sports
United States: CBS – ESPN
The Super Bowl LV it will be the one with the least audience present in the history of the final. Although the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa has a capacity of 65,000 people, the organization has decided that only 22,000 people should be allowed in.
14,500 will be tickets sold to the public, while 7,500 are those received by health personnel who have worked in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic and who were invited by the NFL.
The NFL is going to deliverr a free pack with mask, hand wipes and sanitizer to each of the party attendees for their mandatory use while they are inside the field.
