The Weeknd Emerges From the Shadows at the Super Bowl Halftime Show In a year shaped by the coronavirus, a pop star with an affection for the grandeur and sheen of the biggest 1980s pop found a way to make a large affair small. The Weeknd performed a career-spanning set at the Super Bowl halftime show, but he was mostly confined to the stands.Credit...Chang W. Lee/The New York Times Feb. 7, 2021 For almost all of his decade-long career, the Weeknd has been finding ever more ornate ways to duck the spotlight, becoming immeasurably famous and popular while maintaining a cool, skeptical and effective remove from the harsh, sometimes goofy spotlight of fame.