Performing for tens of millions of people worldwide is just a wee bit daunting, so it’s no surprise that
The Weeknd
doesn’t really remember much of his extravagant Super Bowl halftime show.
Speaking to
Entertainment Tonight
,
Jesse Collins,
who was the executive producer of the halftime show, said after the performance was over, “I found [Weeknd] in the trailer after and he said he just, like, blacked out.”
“He said it was just like before he knew it — he was on the field and he was like, ‘Oh my God, this is almost over,’ and then there was no time to think about it because that was it,” Collins explained.
Collins also shared more behind-the-scenes tidbits from the performance, including:
-The sparkly red jacket that The Weeknd wore was embroidered with “real rubies” and weighed 40 pounds.
-The bandages on the dancers’ heads all had KN95 masks built into them, for COVID-19 safety.
-The halftime show was the first time The Weeknd ever performed with dancers. But in 2018, he figured he’d have to one day in the future, and decided right then and there who he’d want as his choreographer:
Charm La’Donna
, who did
U2
and
Kendrick Lamar’
s
opening number
at the Grammys. So when he landed the halftime gig, his team called La’Donna and hired her.
-What did the $7 million of The Weeknd’s own money that he reportedly put into the show get used for? Collins joked it “probably” went to buying the 40-pound ruby jacket, but then added, “He was just willing to spend whatever it took to get every bell and every whistle that was necessary to execute his vision.”
By Andrea Dresdale
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