Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, more commonly known as The Weeknd, performed at this year’s Pepsi Halftime Show, at the Big Game. Viewers around the world had high expectations for this performance after last year’s show with Jennifer Lopez and Shakira.

After Tesfaye was not nominated for any Grammy’s, despite “Blinding Lights” being the most streamed song on Spotify for 2020 with 1.6 billion streams, and his album “After Hours” being the second most-streamed album on the platform, many speculated this was due to Tesfaye choosing to perform at the Pepsi Halftime Show over the Grammys. With that in mind, the expectations for this performance were only that much higher.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but I think his performance was grossly underrated, and I understand why. Many shared the sentiment that, though this performance was good, it wasn’t a Pepsi Halftime Show. If you haven’t been a fan of The Weeknd, and haven’t been following his moves for the past year, you wouldn’t understand the character he’s playing or the significance of virtually anything he included in his performance. His performance told a story of addiction and heartbreak, and if you aren’t apart of his audience, you probably wouldn’t catch onto what he was trying to portray.

His performance began with a massive choir (who also aren’t getting enough credit) singing a rendition of “Call Out My Name,” then a quick transition to “Starboy,” where the first line of the song he sings are about drug use, tying in the idea of addiction. He then began singing another one of his hit songs, “The Hills,” which highlights the addictive rockstar lifestyle. He also incorporated the mirror scenes from his music video for “Blinding Lights,” while he was performing “Can’t Feel My Face.” This is also when a swarm of people in the same red suit The Weeknd was wearing and bandages across their face funnel into this mirror room, and then eventually the field.

The Weeknd is a performer. Throughout his entire performance from the firework display during “Earned It,” to his performance of “Save Your Tears,” you could feel his energy and excitement through the screen. When his posse of bandaged clones rushed the field alongside him and danced along to his performance of “Blinding Lights,” it was electrifying.

It’s also worth noting that The Weeknd was able to put on his performance in the midst of a global pandemic and performing alone without any other headliners. His manager has also said in interviews that The Weeknd contributed 7 million dollars of his own money to put on the show he desired. This shows his dedication to putting on a great production given the circumstances, and I think he did a great job. He even added in an ode to his longtime fans by including, “House of Balloons/Glass Table Girls,” a cult favorite.

Overall, I think The Weeknd deserves a 10/10 for his performance. His ability to put on an amazing performance without another headliner, and during a pandemic is impressive and gets him that high rating.