Despite the restrictions brought about by Covid, The National Football League still brought a magnificent show worthy of its past Super Bowl halftime shows with pop R&B star The Weeknd. The Weeknd, and his song catalog was up to the challenge of the halftime show as he dusted off his hits that spanned his career so far. From 2011’s “House Of Ballons” to songs from last year’s “After Hours.”
The Weeknd a.k.a Abel Tesfaye’s Vegas themed backdrop was naturally complimented with a dizzying array of lights, a batallion of dancers and the inevitable bodies being lifted on wires. But what kept it all together was the music.
And The Weeknd delivered kicking off with “Starboy.” A short version of “The Hills” was heard before it segued into “Can’t Feel My Face.” “I Feel It Coming” came next as an image perfect replica of the Moon rose in the background. “Save Your Tears” brought a throwback feel to the set with its jangling acoustic guitars and rising synths. The Fifty Shades of Grey song “Earned It” was heard in mid-set. The Football field was filled with masked Weeknd doppelgangers who wore the same sequined red jacket and black trousers as the singer with LED lights strapped to their hands, for a choreographed take on “House Of Balloons” / “Glass Table Girls.” The latter sampling Siouxsie and the Banshees’ “Happy House” until TheWeeknd’s big 2020 hit “Blinding Lights” came on as the finale.
Earlier in the day, Miley Cyrus heated up Superbowl fans on the TikTok Tailgate show that opened the festivities with a set of her own that featured songs from her latest album “Plastic Hearts.” A fit and tattooed Miley sang “Night Crawling” and brought out featured singer Billy Idol. Billy Idol, with guitarist Steve Stevens took centerstage and sang his hit “White Wedding.” Joan Jett also came out and sang “Bad Karma” (where she’s the featured singer in ‘Plastic Hearts’) and later sang her own song “Bad Reputation.” Miley kicked off with Toni Basil’s “Mickey” and also covered Nine Inch Nails, Blondie (“Heart Of Glass”) as well as new songs “Midnight Sky” and”Prisoner” from her latest album.
The Pepsi halftime show of the Super Bowl LV was held at the Raymund James Stadium and features The Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. As of this writing, The Buccaneers won over the Chiefs 31-9 giving Tom Brady his 7th Superbowl trophy.