Who is performing at the 2021 Super Bowl halftime show?

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has brought change to nearly every aspect of our day-to-day lives, but the 55th Super Bowl is bringing some semblance of normalcy back to us this February. This year’s big game will look different — from the size of the crowds to how fans choose to tune in — but one thing will remain the same: the excitement surrounding the halftime show. And the 2021 Super Bowl halftime show is sure to dazzle.

Of course, last year’s stunning performances from Shakira and Jennifer Lopez will be hard to top, but The Weeknd is already mustering up excitement among fans. After all, the Canadian singer-songwriter hasn’t won three Grammy Awards for nothing.

The Weeknd also has collabs with some significant artists, from Ariana Grande  to Whiz Khalifa to Florence + the Machine. Unfortunately, there won’t be any surprise guests at the Super Bowl this year — but that doesn’t mean we won’t get a verse or two from some of those hits.

As far as what else fans can anticipate from this year’s halftime show, The Weeknd confirmed he’ll be using the stands to put on his 15-minute performance this year. Speaking with Variety, the artist teased an experience unlike any other saying, “Due to COVID, and for the safety of the players and workers, we kind of built the stage within the stadium. We’re also using the field as well, but we wanted to do something that we’ve never done before. But I’m not gonna tell you anything else because you’ll have to watch on Sunday.”

Who is The Weeknd?

The Weeknd is a Canadian singer and songwriter with numerous radio hits, including “Blinding Lights,” “Starboy,” “The Hills,” “Can’t Feel My Face,” and “Earned It.” His music tends to span multiple genres, from R&B to pop to alternative. He has four studio albums, the most recent of which came out in 2020 and is called “After Hours.”

The Weeknd has won a total of 107 awards for his work, including three Grammys, five American Music Awards, nine Billboard Music Awards, 10 Juno Awards, and an MTV Video Music Award. His songs have topped the charts on multiple occasions, and he’s sold more than 75 million records over the course of his career.

The man behind The Weeknd is Abel Tesfaye, who grew up in Toronto and kickstarted his music career by uploading his songs to YouTube. Within a month of putting his first few songs out there, he’d released a full mixtape, “House of Balloons,” which would later become the first disc of “The Trilogy.”

The Weeknd has come a long way since then, and evidently, doing the halftime show has always been a goal of his.

“We always had the Super Bowl on our bucket list, and we’ve always had timelines for all of our goals,” Amir Esmailian, The Weeknd’s manager, told Billboard. “It came a few years earlier than we expected.”

The 2021 Super Bowl begins at 6:30 p.m. ET, meaning the halftime show should commence somewhere around 8 p.m. or 8:30 p.m. ET.