Before he was “The Weeknd,” Abel Tesfaye shoplifted food with two high school friends to survive. He conceded in an interview with the New York Times that he would even tell girls he loved them in order to have a place to stay the night.

‘There was, like, three girls that thought legit that I was their boyfriend,’’ Tesfaye said.

After spending several nights in jail at age 18, The Weeknd grew. He was able “to smarten up, to focus.“

That growth certainly proved to have worked. Nearly thirteen years later, he worked his way into the spotlight of the Super Bowl halftime show.

The Weeknd’s performance last Sunday made Super Bowl history. Halftime shows of the recent past have been largely about flair. Katy Perry rode in on a giant silver lion, Lady Gaga jumped from the roof. The Weeknd, however, did neither.

The Weeknd opted to use all empty areas of Raymond James Stadium, something that former halftime performers have never done.

He began inside the stadium, first in a sports car. Tesfaye then got out of the convertible to appear between two sets of choir-robot singers. His appearance was almost angelic with all of the “Blinding Lights” in the background.

“I thought it was amazing with the resources he had and the pandemic we are in,” said senior Ashnaa Bhide.

In order to respect COVID-19 protocol, the artist decided to perform in the rafters and empty stands in the arena. 

“I thought it was really interesting that his performance didn’t take place on some massive float in the middle of the field,” junior Morgan Nash said, “[It] created a really entertaining background.”

Twitter immediately went to town on Tesfaye’s usage of the entire stadium.

“I don’t normally watch the halftime show but it was interesting,” said one student who asked to remain anonymous. “I thought the part in the maze was so funny ‘cause he was waving his head around.”

Other guest artists have been a big part of the halftime show. In 2004, there were six guests in one halftime show. This year, The Weeknd was the only guest at the halftime show, with the exception of dancers. 

“I found the set designs and costumes quite captivating,” junior Owen Jin told the Uproar. “It was cohesive with his entire After Hours era.”

Tesfaye’s After Hours era is mostly characterized by the face bandages he was seen wearing throughout all of last year and late 2019. In an interview with Variety, the singer explained their significance. 

“The significance of the entire head bandages is reflecting on the absurd culture of Hollywood [celebrities],” The Weeknd said, “and people manipulating themselves for superficial reasons to please and be validated.”

The entire After Hours album is based on a character who has what The Weeknd called “a really bad night.” The character gets in worse and worse condition as the album progresses, getting possessed by a demon and committing murder.

In the music video to the title track, The Weeknd can be seen with just a nose bandage and then continues to get more and more injured. When he performed at the AMA’s, his entire face was covered in bandages with bruises that could be seen beneath. But in the “Save Your Tears” music video, the bandages are off, revealing a bad plastic surgery result. 

“I suppose you could take that being attractive isn’t important to me,” Tesfaye said, “but a compelling narrative is.”

Many North Allegheny students were impressed with The Weeknd’s patience and commitment to his message.

“I have a lot of respect for him because he led up to it for months,” junior Renee Wilkins said. “It was definitely the most complex show I’ve seen.”

Elements of the After Hours era were present in Sunday’s show. The Weeknd and his dancers appeared in a red jacket and black gloves, symbols from the album. Dancers donned the head bandages with masks beneath them, allowing for COVID safety.

Even though there was much praise from North Allegheny students, some viewed the halftime show differently. 

“I don’t like his music, so I didn’t find it that great,” said freshman Eva Kynaston.

The show was very music-based this year, so if viewers were not fans, it was difficult to enjoy. 

According to BBC, The Weeknd spent seven million dollars of his own money on the show.

Although America’s beloved halftime show may have been a little different this year, there’s no doubt that the lively and emphatic energy was there.