The Weeknd starts changing stage name on social media
The Weeknd
Canadian pop star The Weeknd has started to change his name on social media platforms after he recently expressed a desire to transition back to his given name, Abel Makkonen Tesfaye.
The Canadian artist, famous for his catchy pop tunes like Blinding Lights, Starboy, and more, updated his screen name on Twitter and Instagram on Monday. However, the handle on both remained @theweeknd.
In a recent interview with W Magazine, The Weeknd who won four Grammy awards during his music career, said that he wanted to "kill The Weeknd".
"I'm going through a cathartic path right now. It's getting to a place and time where I'm getting ready to close The Weeknd chapter," he said.
"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."
Last month, he asked his fans in a tweet - "ABEL formally known as The Weeknd?" The post received over one hundred thousand likes.
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The Daily Mail reported that he said that his moniker came about after he walked out of school and stole his mattress, "leaving one weekend and never returning home".
He told the magazine: "As the Weeknd, I've said everything I can say" and" "this is something that I have to do". He had also mentioned that his next album would probably be his "last hurrah" under that name.
The 33-year-old Tesfaye will co-star with Lily-Rose Depp in the upcoming HBO series "The Idol," which will premiere next month.
In March 2023, the Guinness World Records declared him the most popular artist in the world due to the number of monthly listeners he had on Spotify.
As of March 2023, the 33-year-old had 111.4 million monthly listeners on Spotify, and was the first artist to have 100 million monthly listeners on the streaming app.
"The Weeknd currently has almost 30 million more monthly listeners than second-placed Miley Cyrus (82.4 million)" they wrote in a press release.
The Guinness World Records declared him the most popular artist in the world due to the number of monthly listeners he had on Spotify in March 2023.
He had 111.4 million monthly listeners on Spotify as of March 2023 and was the first artist to have 100 million monthly listeners on the streaming app.
"The Weeknd currently has almost 30 million more monthly listeners than second-placed Miley Cyrus (82.4 million)" they wrote in a press release.
(With inputs from agencies)
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