The Weeknd is about to do the Super Bowl – and it’s going to be expensive.
The 30-year-old After Hours star is set to hit the stage for the halftime show performance on Sunday (February 7) during the big game.
PHOTOS: Check out the latest pics of The Weeknd
And the superstar himself is putting tons of his own money into the performance, apparently: The Weeknd spent $7 million of his own money on production costs for his Super Bowl halftime show, his manager Wassim “Sal” Slaiby told Billboard last week.
He’s doing so to “make this halftime show be what he envisioned,” his manager added in the story, going on to explain that the NFL will cover production costs as usual.
“But in general for Super Bowl performances, according to top managers and major-label sources, labels and sponsors offset some of the costs, and the amounts vary from year to year,” the outlet went on to report.
The halftime show can cost more than $10 million to put on even though the musical artist isn’t paid, Reuters reported.
“We cover expenses and production costs,” an NFL spokesperson previously told Forbes.
That amount of coverage, however, seems to change.
“The NFL allows you a production budget — it’s almost never enough to satisfy what the actual production costs are. However, usually the label will step in and provide the shortfall. That seems like an extravagant number for [The Weeknd] to be out of pocket, unless the label’s going to participate.” business manager Lou Taylor told Billboard, who works with previous halftime-show performers like Jennifer Lopez.
According to Bruce Springsteen‘s manager Jon Landau, when he performed in 2009, the NFL gave him a $1 million production budget.
“They gave me 10 minutes worth of bullet points about how big the Super Bowl is, it’s the No. 1 show on Jupiter and Mars, it’s No. 1 with women, it’s No. 1 with people who don’t brush their teeth. There’s $1 billion transacted — I remember them saying that,” he explained.
“I have one question: What do you get paid to be part of the biggest show in the history of the universe? What does the artist get…earnings for the show for Bruce and the band: zero. But it was beautifully produced, Bruce and the band were sensational and we loved it. Until you’re there, you can’t comprehend how many people work on that show.”
The Weeknd‘s show is going to be longer than ones in the past – find out how long!