Here's how Scarborough reacted to the Weeknd's historic halftime show
Scarborough's very own Abel Tesfaye, aka The Weeknd, made history last night as the first-ever Canadian to solo headline a Super Bowl halftime show, leaving his home country prouder than punch and his home borough trending on Twitter.
literally me ten minutes ago when i saw that "scarborough" was trending in canada and realized it was actually FOR scarborough
— shandi (@daddyshandi) February 8, 2021
With a spectacular medley of chart-topping hits and a full-on army of bandaged dancers, the chart-topping superstar put on one heck of a show at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium during Super Bowl LV.
Some might say it was his most-important performance to date, given how many people it reached (99.9 million, according to preliminary Nielson data), and many have called it the best halftime show since Michael Jackson's in 1993.
Describe the Super Bowl HalfTime Show:
— Brian Kowlessar (@PLaY_BK) February 8, 2021
A Guy From #SCARBOROUGH is Performin’ on the BIGGEST STAGE & is the BEST Sh*t i Have Ever Seen Since Michael Jackson’s Performance.
Proud. @theweeknd 👊🏾💯#SuperBowl
The Weeknd, who takes musical, stylistic and dance inspiration from the King of Pop himself, would no doubt be honoured by the comparison.
No corner of the world was most excited by the performance and reaction to it, however, than Toronto's eastern-most borough, where 30-year-old Tesfaye was famously raised.
Toronto born, Scarborough raised musician, Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, will be performing under the name, “The Weeknd”, at the Super Bowl today. Born in 1990 to newly arrived Ethiopian parents, the singer has risen to global fame this past few years. pic.twitter.com/CTwgnBFhK9
— Morgan Cameron Ross (@Morgan_C_Ross) February 7, 2021
Scarberians were thrilled to be represented on the world stage at Super Bowl 55.
From Scarborough 🇨🇦...all the way to the #Superbowl.
— Naheed Dosani (@NaheedD) February 8, 2021
I'm from Scarborough 🇨🇦 and the @theweeknd is making us all proud tonight! 🙌🏾 pic.twitter.com/kkqd4VQLaJ
Local institutions were quick to claim the award-winning singer / songwriter / musician / producer / designer as their own.
how it started how it's going pic.twitter.com/9fgWU0l2iz
— University of Toronto Scarborough (@UTSC) February 8, 2021
Any connection to the Weeknd that could be flaunted, was.
🇨🇦 @TheWeeknd was ALWAYS a Starboy! #SuperBowl #SBLV pic.twitter.com/kEDnoZpp1R
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) February 8, 2021
You love to see it.
Good luck on tonight’s Super Bowl Halftime performance, @theweeknd!
— Toronto Public Library (@torontolibrary) February 7, 2021
And feel free to drop by again the next time you’re home!
📸 @theweeknd #SuperBowl #HalftimeShow pic.twitter.com/v6DV6ty7N8
Leaders of all stripes were similarly jazzed by the performance and resulting rush of attention for Scarborough on Twitter.
Incredible performance by @theweeknd at the #SuperBowl #PepsiHalftime show.
— John Tory (@JohnTory) February 8, 2021
From Scarborough all the way to the world’s biggest stage.
Making Toronto proud. pic.twitter.com/Tsc2tUJNb7
Even mayors from neighbouring cities, like Mississauga's Bonnie Crombie, celebrated in The Weeknd's success.
Tonight, Scarborough’s very own @theweeknd made history as the first Canadian to solo headline the #SBLV Halftime Show. Thank you for representing #Canada on the world stage! #SBLV pic.twitter.com/t633xPLDcN
— Bonnie Crombie 🇨🇦 (@BonnieCrombie) February 8, 2021
It's not like the artist wasn't incredibly famous before the Super Bowl LV halftime show, but last night provided a great opportunity for Toronto to once again remind the world of its prowess for pumping out stars.
From singing in the middle of Toronto’s Yonge Dundas Square to performing at the NFL Super Bowl Halftime Show, this is Toronto & Scarborough’s very own... The Weeknd.#SuperBowl #TheWeeknd pic.twitter.com/LDYUORC9wO
— Kris Pangilinan (@KrisReports) February 8, 2021
It was also a prime opportunity to create some, new Scarborough-specific memes.
Toronto mans when the Sheppard bus is on time. pic.twitter.com/zCa2t5VsQ9
— Cameron Bailey (@cameron_tiff) February 8, 2021
The Weeknd's performance provided much interesting fodder for memes in general, one of which was used by locals to poke fun at Toronto's oft-confusing infrastructure and public transit system.
Me transferring at Spadina subway station: pic.twitter.com/GQPJ2UUSz1
— kristyna petrollini (@kpetrollini) February 8, 2021
The entire halftime show sparked its fair share of funny reactions, including one cheeky tweet about the artist's lyrical content.
I stg @theweeknd was recreating the most iconic scene from the Lion King #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/vJVM2SciNW
— ✰ Kay ✰ (@KeenaZeigler) February 8, 2021
It also, however served as a powerful moment of inspiration for young Canadian artists on the come-up.
from homeless to halftime performer at the super bowl @theweeknd pic.twitter.com/SqbBoOJVmY
— nat (@xotourlifee1) February 7, 2021
All in all, the performance — which The Weeknd reportedly sank an extra $7 million of his own money into — was a hit.
Congratulations, Abel! Eat dirt, Grammy Awards nominating committee.
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