Toronto native The Weeknd put on an electrifying show at the Super Bowl Halftime Show on Sunday night, captivating a crowd of millions with stunning live renditions of his songs "Starboy", "I Feel It Coming", "Blinding Lights", "Save Your Tears", and more. Prior to his performance, it was being reported that the world-class recording artist had invested $7 million of his own money to ensure that his visual experience was perfect for everybody in the crowd, as well as those watching from home. Despite that, new reports suggest that it's very likely that the 30-year-old did not get paid for the performance.
According to The New York Post, reps for The Weeknd and Pepsi, who sponsored the show, have declined to reveal what sort of money the performer is taking home from the jaw-dropping effort. As the Post points out though, every former Super Bowl performer has essentially worked for free though, including Beyoncé and Bruno Mars. Forbes has reported that Halftime Show performers are paid "union-scale", which is a percentage of the six and seven figure paychecks they normally receive.
However, despite likely not making much money from the performance itself, The Weeknd likely will see an immediate uptick in streams and sales, as well as world tour ticket packages, starting today. At the end of the day, the exposure to millions of eyes is worth it at the end of the day.
Were you entertained by The Weeknd's stunning performance at the Super Bowl Halftime Show last night?