Given recent statements and interviews, we all knew that The Weeknd will soon be no more, and instead Abel Makkonen Tesfaye will continue his career. However, we're sure that many out there didn't expect it to manifest so soon, albeit in a small way. Moreover, the Canadian superstar recently changed his social media handles to display his real name instead of his stage name. With that, he seems to hav begun the process of shedding his persona's skin in favor of his birth name, which makes sense considering his future endeavors. After all, his series "The Idol" will premiere on HBO soon.
"I’m going through a cathartic path right now," the 33-year-old remarked. "It’s getting to a place and a time where I’m getting ready to close the Weeknd chapter. I’ll still make music, maybe as Abel, maybe as The Weeknd. But I still want to kill The Weeknd. And I will. Eventually. I’m definitely trying to shed that skin and be reborn." In addition to his media ventures, he also reportedly became part of a bidding war for the Ottawa Senators hockey team.
The Weeknd Becomes Abel Tesfaye On Social Media
Regardless, this is kind of sad news for longtime fans of The Weeknd, but only because of the nostalgic factor. While his career will continue to flourish, fans will never forget just how impactful, influential, and groundbreaking those first few projects were. Still, Abel is arguably at his artistic peak right now, with critical acclaim catching up to his gargantuan commercial success and popularity. For example, he recently provided executive production on Mike Dean's latest album, a role that one would expect them to swap. But to box the "Double Fantasy" star in like that would be a travesty.
Meanwhile, we still have that third album in the After Hours and Dawn FM trilogy to look forward to. Given those albums' themes, sonic fusions of all his past styles, and their astonishing presence in pop culture when they dropped, its final installment would be a fitting send-off. It'll be bittersweet, but all great things must come to an end, even The Weeknd. The truly important thing here is that there's only more greatness on the way after that. For more news and the latest updates on Abel Tesfaye, check back in with HNHH.
