Every year during one of the biggest sporting events of the year, people patiently wait to see how bizarre the halftime show will be. This past Sunday, The Weeknd was the halftime show’s headliner and it sparked large conversations all amongst social media as many were left posting memes about the entire performance.

The Weeknd has done some questionable things over the past few months in the media which has recently been unraveled to discover this entire public relations campaign that has gone on for months. The Superbowl was the latest event and people have begun to understand the deeper meaning behind it all.

For any who may be unaware of The Weeknd’s recent actions, he arrived at the 2020 American Music Awards with his entire face covered in bandages as it made it look he had just gone through extreme plastic surgery. Following that was the release of his music video, Save Your Tears, where the bandages came off and it was seen that he may have transformed his entire face with plastic surgery. After much speculation, it was discovered that it was simply a prosthetic and all makeup and he never actually went under the knife as some would say.

So the next question is why? Why did he continue this stunt for several months and have it continue into the halftime performance where all of his dancers were seen with similar bandages on their faces indicating plastic surgery was done?

This ongoing public relations stunt, some may consider it to be, was all to express the deep meaning behind how Hollywood blinds celebrities into feeling they need to become someone they are not. The money, fame, and criticism can cloud judgment in which Hollywood is a known place that you will see many wealthy people with a lot of plastic surgery trying to become someone else.

From a PR standpoint I found this to be genius.  People often think everyone in Hollywood becomes a fake and never are able to stay true to who they are. Some even do not understand how much pressure actually goes into trying to make it big there. This decision to continue this stunt for months brought a lot more attention to the issue and allowed the audience to uncover the entire meaning behind it all for themself. It actually allows The Weeknd to be viewed in more of a positive light as he used his fame to express a message that is often covered up and not spoken about until a celebrity breaks under the pressure. The Weeknd proved that everyone is truly Blinded by the Lights of Hollywood.

Social media has taken over the world in almost every aspect one can imagine. The audiences on each platform are only getting younger and younger and they tend to idolize and dream of the influencers or those who get the most attention on each platform. With that influencing power comes a lot of strength that can be overlooked in some ways as their actions can actually be negatively affecting their “fans”.  A huge factor that has become a global issue is the way young men and women are viewing their bodies after seeing what social media deems as the “perfect” body image.

Over the weekend Khloe Kardashian posted a photo on Instagram of the side of her body with the caption “I love my stripes”. With the Kardashians being some of the biggest celebrities in the world, this post did not go unnoticed. Her side of her body showed her cellulite and instead of the common Instagram influencer’s first instinct to photoshop or blur them out, Khloe took this opportunity to embrace her stretch marks and show other people around the world that she has them too and they are just as beautiful as one without them.

Khloe Kardashian has been the idol girl when it comes to her weight loss journey out of her large family as she has spoken about her battles with her weight as well as starting a TV show to help others feel as confident in their skin as she now does. I believe this is enhancing not only her own personal brand image but sending out a strong message to all other influencers and celebrities as well to follow in her footsteps and start embracing flaws rather than covering them.

Instagram is a place of followers never knowing what is real or fake as photoshop has become so embraced and common amongst the platform. As this is not something to look down upon if it is what may allow one to feel the most confidence, I feel it is not a practical or smart PR tactic to spread positive messages to the young followers that form on this app.

The PR industry needs to start acknowledging how important an audience’s mental health and well being is when considering which campaign would be best for a company, brand, or person. As that perfect look may come across as the most successful way of promoting an individual, the messages behind it can negatively affect the followers on every platform.

Body positivity needs to become a common message that is consistently embraced and used when PR professionals are working with celebrities and other social media influencers.

For anyone with a TikTok account, it is no secret how the social media platform knows and produces all the latest trends and news first. The creativity and 15 seconds to 1-minute posts can spread news like wildfire, but is it always true is the question.

Previously on TikTok, there was a creator who made an entire conspiracy theory that Kanye West was cheating on Kim Kardashian with Jeffree Star, and the famous celebrity couple was getting a divorce because of that. After blowing up and trending on almost every news platform in less than 24 hours, the creator said she made it all up as a lie and never expected it to get the attention it did.

The latest TikTok trend and conspiracy circling the famous platform is a drama-packed love triangle between High School Musical The Series stars due to Olivia Rodrigo’s latest release of her single Drivers License. It is rumored to be about her co-star Joshua Bassett getting into a new relationship with “that blonde girl” Sabrina Carpenter. Once again in less than 24 hours, the song blew up and conspiracies, comparisons, and edits flowed the for you page. Later that week Joshua Bassett released a song to continue the drama as there was speculation who that was about, and then the latest was Sabrina Carpenter releasing a song including lyrics “maybe blonde was the only rhyme”, which left TikTokers circling right back into the drama of this love triangle.

Speculation around Disney being behind the entire publicity stunt has just intrigued more to continue to stream and follow the Disney stars and ultimately bring in the attention and the money.

From a PR standpoint, one must consider the strength of this social media platform and if TikTok should be a go-to or a no way in regards to promotion. Tiktok is one of the biggest platforms right now and almost everyone is on it. It targets all audiences as it is a way to create a personal brand, promote one, or just simply be creative and speak out. There are endless opportunities and I believe public relations will take advantage of the strength of this app. Strategically planning publicity stunts, influencer collaborations, or new releases could benefit from TikTok.

It seems that everyone tends to believe what they see on Tiktok which could be an extreme benefit or drawback for a PR professional. The blow-ups the app has experienced stress that for the future of PR will include extreme damage control or extreme satisfaction. I believe this is the future of public relations and should be a major focus in the famous four steps of the PR process.

Amidst the political chaos that has taken over America in the past few months, the Inauguration occurred on January 20th to sworn in Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States and Kamala Harris as the first woman vice president of the United States. Social media blew up due to the women in attendance of the Inauguration all dressed head to toe in monochromatic looks, but it was not done without a purpose.

As we enter a new era for the United States, this fashion statement did not go unnoticed and was a key factor of this historical day as we begin to emphasize the trend of unity that has been evidently lacking in our country during previous presidencies. As President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris enter the White House with more women in office than ever before, they took this opportunity to spread their unified message as they step into this important day in history.

The monochromatic outfits paid close attention to their color choices as many were seen in different shades of purple. Our country has been so divided by who is red and who is blue by one’s political choices, these primary colors mixed together are known to be purple. The choice to wear shades of purple was once again to evidently stress how we may have been separated in the past but we are ultimately unified as “one nation under God”.

Another key fashion trend that did not go unnoticed was the designers behind each perfectly suited individual. Biden entering the office will bring attention to the new emerging designers that deserve just as much attention as those already established. Black-owned businesses and others who attempt to express their passions for fashion will get their well deserved hard work on display in the White H0use as our new era of America begins.

From a PR standpoint, I believe this fashion choice was a very positive one as even though some may not agree or believe in the message of unity in America, the point was still evident and received by all audiences. This historical moment of our first woman Vice President was emphasized in these choices as their outfits were strong and empowering in themselves and for everyone watching. With a personal strong passion for the fashion industry, I found this to be the most powerful decision for the Inauguration to stress the importance of women empowerment, unity, and how all designers are equally as important.

This will become the start for not only a new era in America but a new era in fashion as this statement will continue on as monochromatic will be seen to become the latest trends. I can see PR professionals using this to their advantage and emphasizing monochromatic fashions in designers and stores across the world.