The Weeknd is retiring his stage name after a decade of chart-topping dominance
In short: From his 2011 underground mixtapes to his 2025 release Hurry Up Tomorrow, The Weeknd has reshaped modern pop. With over 36 million album consumption units in the U.S. alone, the artist behind record-breaking hits like Blinding Lights is now preparing to move beyond the persona that defined his career.
The Weeknd's trajectory began in 2011 with the release of three mixtapes: House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence. By 2012, he signed with Republic Records and packaged these works into the compilation Trilogy, which achieved multi-platinum status in the U.S. and Canada. His debut studio album, Kiss Land, followed in 2013, setting the stage for a rapid ascent that saw his subsequent records consistently topping international charts.
His commercial peak arrived with Beauty Behind the Madness in 2015 and Starboy in 2016, both of which secured number-one spots across multiple countries. The 2020 album After Hours produced Blinding Lights, a track that shattered Billboard Hot 100 records for longevity and was eventually named the greatest Hot 100 hit of all time. These successes were bolstered by high-profile collaborations with artists like Daft Punk, Ariana Grande, and Kendrick Lamar, cementing his status as a global streaming powerhouse.
As of late 2024, the Recording Industry Association of America reported that he had accumulated 132 million certified digital single units in the U.S. alone. Despite this massive success, the artist has signaled a potential shift. Following the January 2025 release of his sixth studio album, Hurry Up Tomorrow, he has hinted at retiring the Weeknd moniker. Whether he continues under his birth name, Abel Tesfaye, or maintains his current identity, this transition marks the end of a distinct era in his musical evolution.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: The Weeknd discography
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