The Weeknd is set to join an illustrious list of musical artists to headline the Super Bowl Halftime Show when he takes the stage for Super Bowl LV in Tampa on February 7.
And he is banking on delivering a ‘cinematic experience’ during the performance by putting up $7 million of his own money to help give the production value an added boost, according to Billboard.
The Canadian native is also using the opportunity to play in front of one of the most watched annual sporting events in the world by releasing a new greatest hits album ahead of the big game.
Going all in: The Weeknd is putting in $7 million of his own money into the production budget for his upcoming Super Bowl Halftime Show performance in Tampa, Florida; seen in 2018
The Tamp Bay Buccaneers are facing off against the Kansas City Chiefs in the championship game at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, the home of the Buccaneers.
But due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there will only be 22,000 fans in the stands, which is just over one-third of its 60,000+ capacity.
With the television audience for last year’s Super Bowl at about 100 million in the U.S., added with an estimated 50 to 65 million viewers around the world, The Weeknd (born Abel Makkonen Tesfaye) decided put up $7 million of his own pocket to realize the vision he has had for the massive event.
The big game: The Tamp Bay Buccaneers are facing off against the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV that’s being held at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida
‘We’ve been really focusing on dialing in on the fans at home and making performances a cinematic experience, and we want to do that with the Super Bowl,’ The Canadian native, 30, revealed.
‘We always had the Super Bowl on our bucket list, and we’ve always had timelines for all of our goals,’ the singer-songwriter’s co-manager Amir ‘Cash’ Esmailian added. ‘It came a few years earlier than we expected.’
The singer’s decision to add money to the production budget comes after the halftime show’s sponsor, Pepsi, announced that it was joining other advertisers in scaling back their commercials for Super Bowl 55.
The big game kicks off on CBS at 3:30pm PT/6:30pm ET, which means halftime should be will be around 5pm PT/8pm ET.
Big plans! The hitmaker says he and his team are now focused on making his performances, which includes the Super Bowl, ‘a cinematic experience’
Jennifer Lopez and Shakira headlined the Super Bowl Halftime Show in Miami last year.
The list of legendary performers who have also taken the stage in previous years includes Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Paul McCartney, U2, The Rolling Stones, Beyonce, Madonna, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, Kay Perry, Bruno Mars and Shania Twain, among others.
The Weeknd’s upcoming greatest hit album, titled The Highlights, is dropping on February 5, two days before the Super Bowl. The 18-track compilation includes a number of his biggest hits like Can’t Feel My Face, Starboy and Blinding Lights.
His most recent studio album, After Hours, spent four weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and garnered nearly 900 million on-demand U.S. streams in 2020, according to MRC Data.
Cashing in: The Weeknd also using the opportunity to play in front of one of the most watched annual sporting events in the world by releasing a new greatest hits album, The Highlights, on February 5, two days before the big game