How to Be a Fan of the Weeknd

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The Weeknd is currently one of the best-selling music artists in history, with over 75 million records sold. Through his humble beginnings, he debuted as a music artist in 2011 with his 2011 mixtape, House of Balloons . He later succeeded with his studio albums, Beauty Behind the Madness and Starboy . If you want to start supporting the Weeknd, read this article!

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Learning About Him

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  1. A person's early life often shapes the person they are today. Get to know the Weeknd's early life, which includes his background, his family, and his childhood experiences. You can search up "who is the Weeknd", "The Weeknd childhood" and other related search terms to get accurate information. Understanding his childhood lets you understand references other people may make about him.
    • He was born as Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (አበል መኮነን ተስፋዬ in Amharic) on February 16th, 1990.
    • He is an only child.
    • His Ethiopian immigrant parents raised him in Toronto, Ontario (his birthplace).
    • He learned Amharic, his native language, through his grandmother.
    • At grade 11, he dropped out of school and moved to Parkdale, Ontario. [1]
  2. The Weeknd went through many struggles with drugs and homelessness before he achieved national fame. These experiences have influenced him to write multiple albums and songs about them, such as "Can't Feel My Face".
    • He lived with a couple of friends, including the creative director, La Mar Taylor, in an apartment in Parkdale.
    • They had little money, so they were often homeless. They travelled at nighttime, partying to take their minds off their situation.
    • He tried searching for work, such as working in clothing stores to maintain a stable source of money. [2]
    • He started regularly taking drugs, such as ketamine, cough syrup, and cocaine to deal with his living circumstances.
    • Listening to music also inspired him to start his own music career. In August of 2009, he started anonymously posting his music on YouTube, and this led to him releasing his debut mixtape, House of Balloons . [3]
    • He originally set his stage name as "The Weekend". But he changed it to "The Weeknd" since the original name was already used by a Canadian band. [4]
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  3. Over the course of his career, he has won over a hundred awards from countless awards shows, and more than 400 nominations.
    • He is the 4th most-streamed artist on Spotify as of March 2024. [5]
    • On January 12th, 2024, his song, "Blinding Lights", achieved the feat of 4 billion streams on Spotify. This is something that has not been done by any other artist so far. [6]
    • He has 5 songs in Spotify's most-streamed songs list. These including "Blinding Lights", "Starboy", "The Hills", "Die for You", and "Save Your Tears". [7]
    • His net worth is around $300 million as of January 2024. [8]
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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Supporting His Career

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  1. There are many ways to do this. You can stream his songs on a music streaming platform. Next, you can watch the music videos of his singles. Additionally, you can purchase physical copies of his albums. Some people prefer vinyl, and some people listen to CDs. If you have a modern record player or a CD player, those are good options. His discography, including his 3 mixtapes and 5 studio albums is listed below:
    • House of Balloons (released Mar 2011)
    • Thursday (released Aug 2011)
    • Echoes of Silence (released Dec 2011)
    • Kiss Land (released Feb 2013)
    • Beauty Behind the Madness (released Aug 2015)
    • Starboy (released Nov 2016)
    • "My Dear Melancholy" (released Mar 2018)
    • After Hours (released Mar 2020)
    • Dawn FM (released Jan 2022)
  2. The Weeknd often makes his music videos symbolic and interesting, incorporating his past life experiences and art to express his emotions. Sometimes, there are special effects used in them. If you want to watch his music videos, check them out by searching up The Weeknd's songs on a music video platform such as YouTube .
    • A famous example is in his "Starboy" music video. It symbolizes him switching his music up a bit, and moving on from his old image from the early 2010s.
  3. He has many social media accounts. Follow his social media to stay tuned with album announcements, events from award shows, and other personal life updates. He has Instagram, X (formerly known as Twitter), Facebook, a YouTube Vevo account, and a TikTok account as of 2023.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Supporting Him and Being a Fan

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  1. You can show off your singing talents by singing along to the Weeknd's songs. Or you can sing along with your friends. Plus, if you are going to one of his concerts, singing along with other fans can strengthen your bond, and it makes the experience memorable. Listen to his songs as much as possible and use a website like Genius to read the lyrics.
  2. Many of his lyrics are autobiographical, taking from his early life experiences. Some people don't catch these references on the first listen. Try listening to his music multiple times and reading the lyrics to understand his songs in depth. He usually writes about the struggles of drug use, romance, and heartbreak. [9]
    • Knowing his inspirations can also guide you. He is heavily inspired by Michael Jackson. His other inspirations include Prince, Daft Punk, R. Kelly, and David Bowie. [10]
  3. These accounts post updates on the Weeknd and his whereabouts. They also talk about awards he has won and events he has recently attended. Follow some the Weeknd's fan accounts based on the social media you use. There are different accounts on various social media sites.
  4. Attending one of the concerts can be a very exciting experience. Try attending his concerts when you have time. Try being early to buy tickets to his concerts and stay updated on concert-related information.
  5. The Weeknd has supported numerous organizations by donating money to them. He supports causes such as the COVID-19 relief effort, medical facilities, and the Black Lives Matter movement. Try supporting some of these organizations yourself by donating money and volunteering to help. [11]
    • He donated $500,000 to COVID-19 relief efforts to the Scarborough Health Network in Scarborough, Ontario in 2020.
    • He donated $500,000 to the Black Lives Matter causes in 2020.
    • In 2023, he donated $2.5 million to the United Nations World Food Programme (the WFP) for their humanitarian Gaza relief efforts. [12]
  6. You should know these facts to get to know the singer, Abel Tesfaye (aka the The Weeknd) better. You can also use fan accounts and other websites to dig deeper into The Weeknd's personal life, reasons why he wrote certain albums, etc.
    • He performed at Super Bowl LV in February 2021.
    • He has collaborated with various artists, including Ariana Grande, Daft Punk, Drake, French Montana, Madonna, and Travis Scott.
    • In 2023, he co-created and starred in the TV series, The Idol . He acted alongside Lily-Rose Depp as the main characters of the series. The series got negative reviews, so the show was cancelled after its first season. [13]
    • His eras (such as the After Hours era) use the music videos and the songs to weave a complex story. In each of the After Hours music videos, he dons a red suit with drops of blood on his face. In the various music videos, he gets badly injured while wandering the streets of Sin City (Las Vegas). At the 2020 American Music Awards, Tesfaye wore facial bandages while performing. "Save Your Tears" showcases his final facial transformation, and it is shown that his face was botched during the repairs. This symbolizes the lies of the Hollywood industry. [14] [15] [16]
    • His upcoming album is likely to be his last one under the name "The Weeknd". He will revert back to his birth name, Abel Tesfaye, for his upcoming albums. [17]
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      References

      1. ↑ https://www.britannica.com/biography/the-Weeknd
      2. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33P83SpibHk
      3. ↑ https://www.complex.com/music/everything-we-know-about-the-weeknd-before-he-blew-up/
      4. ↑ https://the-weeknd.fandom.com/wiki/The_Weeknd
      5. ↑ https://chartmasters.org/most-streamed-artists-ever-on-spotify/
      6. ↑ https://variety.com/2024/music/news/the-weeknd-blinding-lights-4-billion-streams-on-spotify-1235869322/
      7. ↑ https://chartmasters.org/most-streamed-tracks-on-spotify/
      8. ↑ https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/singers/weeknd-net-worth/
      9. ↑ https://www.sweetyhigh.com/read/best-the-weeknd-lyrics-as-instagram-captions-113022
      1. ↑ https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-weeknd-talks-david-bowie-prince-influences-on-new-album-122216/
      2. ↑ https://www.cbc.ca/music/the-weeknd-gaza-humanitarian-aid-2-5-million-donation-1.7049356
      3. ↑ https://philanthropynewsdigest.org/news/other-sources/article/?id=14342332&title=The-Weeknd-funds-humanitarian-aid-in-Gaza-with-$2.5-million-donation
      4. ↑ https://ew.com/tv/the-idol-canceled-hbo-the-weeknd-lily-rose-depp/
      5. ↑ https://thsindex.org/2023/10/13/after-hours-the-perfect-halloween-album/
      6. ↑ https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/the-weeknd-after-hours-character-timeline-9521577/
      7. ↑ https://hypebeast.com/2021/5/the-weeknd-confirms-end-of-after-hours
      8. ↑ https://ew.com/music/the-weeknd-new-album-last-hurrah-as-the-weeknd/

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