The artist currently known as The Weeknd has spent the last 15 years building his reputation as the “dark prince of pop.” Starting as an enigmatic artist who released his songs anonymously, The Weeknd has become a global superstar and household name. But now — after several chart-topping albums, an HBO series, and an ongoing world tour — he’s in the process of making a major career shift, even dropping The Weeknd stage name in favor of his real name, Abel Tesfaye.
It’s just the next step in Tesfaye’s evolution as an artist. To understand his impact on modern music, let’s take a look at The Weeknd’s humble mixtape beginnings, his meteoric rise to fame, and what’s next for the man behind the moniker.
The Weeknd’s musical evolution: from mixtapes to superstardom
Early dark R&B mixtapes
After spending most of his teenage years partying and getting into trouble with the law, Tesfaye began releasing music anonymously in 2009. His first effort was a collection of leaked demos simply titled “The Noise.” Tracks like “Love Through Her” and “Material Girl” attracted interest from listeners online, establishing the dark R&B sound and hedonistic topics The Weeknd would become known for.
Transition into mainstream pop
In 2011, Tesfaye capitalized on the buzz generated by his first releases by putting out a flurry of additional mixtapes — “House of Balloons,” “Thursday,” and “Echo of Silence” — which he would later repackage into the platinum compilation album “Trilogy.”
But it was his contribution to the soundtrack for the raunchy 2015 film “Fifty Shades of Grey” that would really propel The Weeknd’s music from bedrooms and basements to nationwide pop radio. Combining Tesfaye’s sexy delivery with a slick pop approach, “Earned It” not only reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, but earned The Weeknd an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song and his first Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance.
The Weeknd’s albums and eras
‘Kiss Land’ and ‘Beauty Behind the Madness’
By the time Tesfaye released his official debut album, “Kiss Land,” in 2013, he was already an established R&B trailblazer. The Canadian artist prepared for the album by traveling to Tokyo and starting to dabble in more experimental and cinematic styles that would become central to Tesfaye’s later work.
While his 2015 sophomore album, “Beauty Behind the Madness,” nodded to his dark R&B roots on tracks like “Shameless,” it also leaned more heavily into pop with hits like “Can’t Feel My Face.”
‘Starboy,’ ‘My Dear Melancholy,’ and ‘After Hours’
The seeds he planted on “Kiss Land” and “Beauty Behind the Madness” would burst into bloom on The Weeknd’s next project, 2016’s “Starboy.” With help from electronic duo Daft Punk, Tesfaye successfully blended his experimental leanings and fresh production into several major pop hits, including “I Feel it Coming” and the title track.
Later, fans of The Weeknd’s older work were treated to a brief return to form on the 2018 EP “My Dear Melancholy,” which explored his breakups with singer Selena Gomez and model Bella Hadid. But the EP wasn’t a sign that The Weeknd was abandoning his new path. Two year later, he released the ’80s-inspired “After Hours,” which kicked off his second trilogy.
‘Dawn FM’ and ‘Hurry Up Tomorrow’
With 2022’s “Dawn FM,” Tesfaye chose a nostalgic radio show as a framing device to deliver moody meditations on fame, life, and death. The album was a critical and commercial success, setting a new Billboard Global 200 chart record and pushing The Weeknd to number 1 for top Spotify listeners.
His latest project, “Hurry Up Tomorrow,” capped off the trilogy with an even darker treatment of these themes, while also hinting at the artist’s next evolution. While melancholy as always, Tesfaye sings about feeling ready to change his ways, most notably on the title track.
Innovation and strategy: The Weeknd’s vision across music and film
The Weeknd joins ‘The Idol’
By 2023, Tesfaye had proven his staying power as a pop star and started seeking new artistic endeavors. The HBO series “The Idol” — which he co-created with “Euphoria” director Sam Levinson — offered him plenty of new challenges, including delays, rewrites, and rushed reshoots. Despite these setbacks, Tesfaye kept pushing forward until the series finally premiered in 2023.
Critical and fan reception
Co-starring alongside Lily Rose-Depp and sharing writing credits with Levinson, The Weeknd was largely responsible for what ended up being a massive critical and commercial failure. The charged sexual nature of the show’s narrative failed to resonate with audiences who found “The Idol” both disturbing to watch and difficult to follow. The result was Tesfaye’s first real brush with failure as a mainstream artist.
The Grammy comeback: A shift in perspective
The failure of “The Idol” may have changed Tesfaye’s perspective on more than just television as a vehicle for telling stories. When “After Hours” was snubbed by the 2021 Grammy Awards with no nominations — even for the smash hit “Blinding Lights” — the artist criticized the Recording Academy and launched a boycott of the annual ceremonies.
For the next four years, Tesfaye refused to submit his music for Grammy consideration. But that boycott would come to a surprising end in 2025, when he returned to the Grammys stage to perform a few songs from his album “Hurry Up Tomorrow.”
Was this a hint at another shift in the controversial singer’s career?
Rebranding as Abel Tesfaye: Why did The Weeknd change his name?
Tesfaye’s experience working on “The Idol” had one more major impact on the artist: Playing a character on the show reminded him of the artificiality of his persona, The Weeknd.
After shooting for the show wrapped, Tesfaye told W Magazine, “It’s getting to a place and a time where I’m getting ready to close the Weeknd chapter.”
The artist quickly clarified that he had no intention of retiring from music altogether: “I’ll still make music, maybe as Abel, maybe as The Weeknd,” he mused. “But I still want to kill The Weeknd. And I will. Eventually. I’m definitely trying to shed that skin and be reborn.”
The Weeknd’s tours and live performances
After Hours til Dawn Tour performances and locations
If you’re hoping to see The Weeknd live before he retires the moniker for good, you can still catch him on his record-breaking After Hours til Dawn Tour, which has been going strong since 2022. The tour — which will be making stops throughout the United States and Canada this summer, including cities such as Detroit, Chicago, Denver, Seattle, and Vancouver — will complete in September.
What to expect
The tour’s show takes fans through a guided journey of The Weeknd’s eras, pulled off with the artist’s signature flair for moody spectacles. According to concert reviewers, Tesfaye puts on a dazzling show, complete with back-up dancers, pyrotechnics, and rousing renditions of hits like “Sacrifice,” “Can’t Feel My Face,” and “Often.”
Cultural impact and legacy: redefining R&B and pop
Redefining modern R&B and pop
The Weeknd’s music has always been a refreshing contrast to an industry dominated by squeaky-clean pop stars and conventional R&B heartthrobs. With polarizing subject matter and bold aesthetic choices, Tesfaye never shies from creating music that provokes.
Influence on emerging artists
The Weeknd’s unfiltered lyrics and experimental soundscapes have inspired many newer artists to pursue authenticity and innovation in their music. Younger artists like 6lack and Partynextdoor take obvious cues from Tesfaye’s music, and even peers like Drake, Usher, and Miguel have incorporated some of The Weeknd’s sounds into their own music.
Expanding into film and business
Despite his misstep with “The Idol,” Tesfaye has continued to make his mark in TV and film. He made his film acting debut in 2019’s “Uncut Gems,” voiced the lead character in the upcoming animated movie “Ari the Bat,” and is working on a new film with director Trey Edward Shults.
Outside of film and TV, Tesfaye has also lent his creative eye to collaborations with clothing companies Puma, H&M, and A Bathing Ape.
A new chapter in music and identity
Is this a true rebirth for Abel Tesfaye or just a brief shift on his creative path? No matter what he calls himself, nothing can erase the outsized impact he’s had on R&B and pop music. He’s influenced a range of artists — even some of the industry’s biggest pop stars — to dabble in new genres and tell their most intimate tales through music. Regardless of what comes next, Tesfaye has already cemented his legacy — in music and beyond.
Still curious about the Canadian superstar? Check out our archives for more coverage of The Weeknd.
