He is preparing for the release of his highly anticipated new album – his first in two years.
And The Weeknd continued the publicity tour of its new material on Thursday by wearing facial prostheses for a party celebrating the release of Dawn FM.
The singer wore the same prosthetics and makeup that he used to create the cover art for his fifth album, causing him to become an elderly man.
It’s my birthday: The Weeknd continued their new album’s publicity tour on Thursday by wearing facial prostheses for a party celebrating the release of Dawn FM
The artist, whose full name is Abel Tesfaye, was unrecognizable at his own party, with gray hair and beard and a wrinkled face.
He was joined at the party, held at Delilah! in West Hollywood, by a series of famous buddies including Formula 1 ace Lewis Hamilton, singer Ty Dollar Sign and rapper Nav.
On Monday, The Weeknd released a preview of his upcoming album, due out Friday, where he sports the same gray hair and wrinkled face.
The clip – which showcased “a new world of sound from the mind of The Weeknd” en route – featured a list of notable names collaborating with the artist on the project, including Quincy Jones, Tyler, the creator, Lil Wayne, Oneohtrix Point Never and Jim Carrey.
Transformation: The singer sported the same prosthetics and makeup he used to create the cover art for his fifth album, causing him to become an elderly man
The star has been doing promotional stunts for the album for weeks. In November, her face was covered in bandages at the 2020 American Music Awards.
Then, on Tuesday this week, he revealed that this look was a setup for his latest creepy aesthetic, dropping his Save Your Tears clip.
The 30-year-old Starboy hitmaker appeared in the disturbing video with prosthetics designed to make him look like his face had undergone radical plastic surgery, including fillers around his cheeks and lips.
Make an entrance: The artist, whose full name is Abel Tesfaye, was unrecognizable at his own party, with gray hair and beard and a wrinkled face
Friends: He was joined at the party, held at Delilah! in West Hollywood, by a series of famous buddies including Formula 1 ace Lewis Hamilton
The superstar has given fans dark and bloody clips before with her clips for Blinding Lights, In Your Eyes and Too Late.
Meanwhile, hitmaker After Hours recently revealed to special edition zine TMRW that the Black Lives Matter movement and COVID-19 will inspire his next album.
As his scheduled After Hours tour was postponed until summer 2021, he said: “I was more inspired and creative during the pandemic than I would normally be on the road.
Famous Friends: Ty Dollar Sign (left) and rapper Nav also arrived at the Hollywood hotspot to help The Weeknd celebrate
VIP crowd: Director Eli Roth brought a date to The Weeknd’s Dawn FM listening party
“The pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement and the tensions of the elections have above all created a feeling of gratitude for what I have and of closeness to the people near me.”
Speaking of his undeniable vocal abilities, he said he was inspired by Ethiopian music growing up, before moving on with his albums to portray different sides of himself.
“The older I got the more exposure I was to music and my voice became a chameleon entering different characters with each album. By going my own way and breaking industry standards, it seems to be influencing others, ”he said.
Look good: Grownish actor Luka Sabbat was also seen arriving
Hot couple: Zack Bia and Madelyn Cline laughed while waiting to be out of the party
Party: Lil Baby was dressed in sportswear as he chatted with friends outside
Wow factor: Anastasia ‘Stassie’ Karanikolaou caused a storm for cameras outside
Speaking about his career, the Starboy singer said, “I was laser focused back then and I’m laser focused right now,” as he called it the “story” of his 20s.
“I feel like I’ve spent the last 10 years creating sound and most of my career I’ve either shunned it or duplicated it,” he shared.
It’s been an interesting year for the star as last spring the Toronto-based star called the Grammys “corrupt” after being snubbed in the nominations.
Speaking to social media, he wrote to organizers: “You owe me, my fans and industry transparency…”
Gain: The Weeknd revealed his bandaged face at the 2020 AMAs was a setup for his latest creepy aesthetic when the Canadian crooner released his Save Your Tears clip on Tuesday
A new look: The 30-year-old Starboy hitmaker appeared in the disturbing video with prosthetics designed to make him look like his face had undergone radical plastic surgery
Insiders have said the Can’t Feel My Face artist camp suspected the lack of nominations was a response to nasty back and forth over whether it would perform in the Super Bowl.
The artist, whose full name is Abel Tesfaye, released the record After Hours in March with strong sales and reviews, and it won the Favorite Album – Soul / R & B award at the American Music Awards last Sunday.
Harvey Mason, acting head of the Recording Academy, jr. responded to the singer’s public complaints in a statement to Rolling Stone.
Popular: The artist, whose full name is Abel Tesfaye, won the Favorite Album – Soul / R & B award at the American Music Awards last year, sporting a bandaged face for the ceremony
“We understand the Weeknd is disappointed not to be nominated,” he said. “I was surprised and I can understand what he is feeling. His music this year was excellent, and his contributions to the music community and the world at large are worthy of everyone’s admiration. ‘
Mason continued, “We would have liked him to perform on the Grammy stage as well the weekend before ‘the Super Bowl.]Unfortunately, each year there are fewer nominations than the number of deserving artists.’
“To be clear, voting in all categories ended long before The Weeknd’s Super Bowl performance was announced, so that in no way could have affected the nomination process. All Grammy nominees are recognized by the voting body for their excellence, and we congratulate them all. ‘
Asked by Variety about the exclusion of The Weeknd, Mason said at the time: “It really depends on the electorate who decides.
Speaking Out: It’s been an interesting year for the star as the Toronto-based star last spring called the Grammys “corrupt” after being snubbed in the nominations