Wondered if anyone was up for discussing yesterday’s halftime show.
Apologies if this is nothing other than an old guy observing how out of it I am. And I acknowledge the inherent challenges of halftime shows.
I had heard of “The Weekend” previously from when he performed on SNL, but I had no recollection of him. I expected him to be a rapper. His music was more appealing to me than most rap, but was pretty unmemorable. Impressed me as just generic dance music. Nothing about his voice/moves really impressed me.
This morning’s paper said he had been offered EITHER the Superbowl OR the Grammies. He chose the SB and personally paid some 7mill for the show. So - what exactly did he spend that on? I couldn’t understand the lyrics, but what was with those tiers of glowing-eyed folk behind him, then the spinning inside with the lights, and all the guys w/ jockstraps over their heads?
Yeah, I’m fine w/ it just not being my cup of tea. But it seemed he was intending to convey some message that was sure opaque to me. Googling, it looks like those were supposed to be face bandages, and he apparently appears at times w/ fake injuries.
I’m eager to hear what demo he appealed to and why.
Full agreement from another out of touch old guy.
My wife and looked at each other about half way through and we were shaking our heads in bewilderment.
Same, but I had never heard of him. ( also couldn’t understand, i.e, hear clearly, his lyrics).
I couldn’t characterize his music genre either. To my ears, somehow manged to combine both bland and annoying. But I readily acknowledge, I’m not in the target demographics. If someone likes him, it’s okay with me.
I’ve heard of him (46 year old dude here), but really only knew one song of his upon hearing it (“Can’t Feel My Face”).
What struck me was how one dimensional it was. Normally, there are multiple artists on stage, meant to appeal, presumably, to multiple generations and whatnot (Aerosmith w/NSync; Shania Twain w/No Doubt & Sting; Jessica Simpson, Kid Rock, Justin Timberlake & Janet Jackson; Bruno Mars w/Red Hot Chili Peppers; Katy Perry w/Lenny Kravitz & Missy Elliot; etc). This year’s show had a very narrow and specific appeal, with not much room for cross-generational appeal (like Paul McCartney or The Who).
Also, incidentally, the artist’s name is The Weeknd, not The Weekend.
I thought it was fantastic. Visually really fun. Unfortunately as per other SB performances the sound mixing was terrible.
I do love The Weeknd so enjoyed the “Best hits” sort of thing, but I wish he just played full through a handful of his hits (Starboy, Blinding Lights, The Hills, I Feel it Coming, Can’t Feel My Face) because I always thing full songs are better than just choruses.
So, The Weeknd has sold over 75million albums since he broke out in 2013. Which is about the same as Nirvana or Usher have sold, so it is not like he’s little known. And he has a couple Grammys, I think. He’s well known among younger folks (by that I mean under 40 ). He obviously has MJ and Prince has big influences, but his pop is more moody and atmospheric.
I think at such events it would be easier just to play a pre-recorded version of the song, rather than trying to pick up the live audio. Mostly we’re watching and listening for the spectacle.
Amusing, as I was a HUGE fan of the Jacksons as a kid, MJ thru Thriller, and Prince. I remember a college DJ refusing my requests for J5 prior to Off the Wall came out. Owned Prince’s first 4 albums, saw him in concert in 79, and my band did a cover of When You Were Mine. If there is a comparison to be made between The Weeknd and Prince, I sure don’t see it. Or MJ for that matter.
But, he has apparently sold a ton of albums. Good for him - and his fans.
If I put the time into listening to his music, do you think I would find the hooks, musicianship, and vocal ability of Prince/MJ? He sure didn’t impress me as having either of their moves/stage presence.
Vocally he does get compared to MJ a lot. However, his pop is different. His musicianship is fantastic. Listen to some of his big hits to see if it grabs (Can’t Feel My Face, Starboy, I Feel it Coming are good starting places to try).
I thought that recently that was the standard procedure for Super Bowl half-time shows, something the Red Hot Chili Peppers made fun of during their guest spot in Bruno Mars’ show. They were throwing their instruments in the air, making it obvious the guitars weren’t plugged in or being played live. Only the vocals are live.The reason given was that there is such a limited time to set up the stage and tear it down that you want to minimize the number of potential problems.
As for the missing ‘e’, the misspelling is to avoid a conflict with a local band that already had the name.
I’ll give them a listen. I vaguely recall being underwhelmed by his SNL performance. Like I said, I prefer his music to nearly all rap, but just thought it awfully forgettable. Through the decades, there have always been a bunch of mediocre talents who sold a ton of records. I just assumed he was one of today’s.
I’d heard the name before but assumed it was a band and didn’t know any of his songs were his. I’m in my late 30s as is my wife, she at least knew more of his songs if she didn’t know who sang them.
I just assumed the masks to were to try and make covid masks look cool. Overall I found his music bland but better than many recent proformers. His lyrics were hard to understand and my wife kept thinking it was because he was really far away from his microphone. Still this was way better than the guys in their 60s trying to remember how to play their instruments that was the trend for so long.
