The Weeknd's Super Bowl half-time show has set the internet abuzz, with several moments prompting an outpouring of memes.
The Canadian pop star reportedly spent some $7m of his own money to create the backdrop for his performance at the blockbuster occasion – which last drew more than 100 million viewers when headlined by Jennifer Lopez.
“We’ve been really focusing on dialling in on the fans at home and making performances a cinematic experience, and we want to do that with the Super Bowl,” Abel Tesfaye (aka The Weeknd) told Billboard ahead of the show.
It appears to have been money well spent – with fans likely to appreciate the trippy neon set and at-times anxiety-inducing choreography as an ambitious expansion of the themes in his After Hours album.
While his decade-long back catalogue was given the chance to shine through to a degree not always seen among the bombast of Super Bowl appearances, some aspects of the backdrop particularly caught viewers' attention.
As the scenery changed from a Vegas-esque play on the Tampa skyline to a more frenzied world of gold and mirrors for his hit "I Cant Feel My Face", some people felt they could relate in some surprising ways.
Me trying to find the bathroom at the club after 6 or 7 #PepsiHalftime #SuperBowl https://t.co/T2tleRUbR7— DJ112sa aka the Count of Monte Fisto (@DJ112sa aka the Count of Monte Fisto) 1612748988
4 year old me in the grocery store looking for my mom. #PepsiHalftime #SuperBowl https://t.co/sdum3jHGui— Tyler Roney (@Tyler Roney) 1612749417
my camera roll when I take my iPad back from a toddler https://t.co/g0OqJLFpPH— 𝑨𝒔𝒉𝒍𝒆𝒚 𝑾𝒉𝒊𝒕𝒆 | 𝑬𝒔𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒏 (@𝑨𝒔𝒉𝒍𝒆𝒚 𝑾𝒉𝒊𝒕𝒆 | 𝑬𝒔𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒏) 1612748839
me immediately after someone gives me specific directions https://t.co/XtAsYjHw91— Alyssa Limperis (@Alyssa Limperis) 1612751401
Entering an apartment where I know a dog lives https://t.co/31MhCFu2kx— push push (@push push) 1612749013
what my pizza rolls see from inside the microwave https://t.co/GavZzw7cQR— Ryan Schocket (@Ryan Schocket) 1612747884
Trying to take make the $25 admission price worth it when they tell you the museum is closing in 5 minutes. https://t.co/n1vohfeotb— Felipe Torres Medina (@Felipe Torres Medina) 1612752018
My dad on FT asking for IT help https://t.co/XhPU4IpWIA— Slade (@Slade) 1612748801
One of the stand-out visual themes of The Weeknd's performances recently has been his decision to perform with his face covered in bandages, as first witnessed at the American Music Awards in November.
He told Variety that the facial bandages are a progression of the After Hours protagonist's "bad night in Las Vegas" storyline, adding that they are "reflecting on the absurd culture of Hollywood celebrity and people manipulating themselves for superficial reasons to please and be validated".
For his Super Bowl performance, it was not he, but his back-up dancers who were clad in the unique face coverings – sparking some amusement online.
With the NFL having partly filled the Super Bowl stadium with cardboard cut-outs as a result of the pandemic, the costume felt particularly timely to some.
it’s just nice to see lots of people in masks— Dave Itzkoff (@Dave Itzkoff) 1612748290
Cdc: dancers must wear face masks the weeknd: say no more #PepsiHalftime https://t.co/WWaxMqThVC— Amymarie (@Amymarie) 1612748773
Other comparisons were drawn...
was trying to figure out what the weeknd dancers reminded me of and i finally figured out that it’s the son from Us… https://t.co/AGesTCPwQf— joey (@joey) 1612749366
Nobody: Absolutely no one: All of the Weeknd's dancers: https://t.co/VSbrB552Rd— it dave (@it dave) 1612748540
The Weeknd loves Darkman!! https://t.co/pbkVHGCHf3— Krister Johnson (@Krister Johnson) 1612748338
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