The Weeknd says his upcoming album is nearly complete
This follow-up to 2020’s ‘After Hours’ will be The Weeknd’s fifth studio album
By Grace Almond
The Weeknd has teased that his new album is nearly complete, and will usher in what he has dubbed The Dawn era.
The exciting update came during the most recent (Oct. 4) episode of his Apple Music show ‘Memento Mori’, in which the singer told fans the record was “complete”, but awaiting a few key elements.
“Only thing missing is a couple characters that are key to the narrative,” The Weeknd said, adding that “some people that are near and dear to me, some people that inspired my life as a child, and some that inspire me now.”
The singer, real name Abel Tesfaye, further teased that more details would “come in the following months”, and promised that some “exciting features” would be released before the album drops.
He also apologised for taking a break from ‘Memento Mori’, saying ”I felt like I let a lot of you down by not continuing the weekly episodes I promised, but a lot has been going down, a lot of moving pieces.”
He continued: “I’ve been settling in a new home, been shooting videos, been working on pre productions for another world, working on music for the pre productions for the other world, taking time to myself so I don’t completely lose my mind.”
The Weeknd started his new era with the release of ‘Take My Breath’ in August this year, and told GQ that “it’s the album [he has] always wanted to make”, describing the era as “Quincy Jones meets Giorgio Moroder meets the best-night-of-your-fucking-life party records.
He has also previously mentioned that this new era is inspired by artists including Britney Spears, playing two of her tracks on his episode of ‘Memento Mori’ on Aug. 11.
The Weeknd’s new album is the highly-anticipated follow-up to his 2020 release, ‘After Hours’ which garnered strong reviews and debuted at the top spot in the UK Albums Chart.
The Toronto artist is also set to tackle a new project in the world of television, with his upcoming HBO series, ‘The Idol’, which will see The Weeknd join forces with ‘Euphoria’ creator, Sam Levinson. Lily-Rose Depp has been cast as the show’s lead.