The Weeknd Name Change

Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, the Canadian artist who goes by the stage name The Weeknd, has updated his social media accounts to display his birth name, as part of his plan to “kill The Weeknd” and shed his old skin.

In a recent interview, he stated that his upcoming album may be The Weeknd’s last hurrah, as he feels he has said everything he can say under that moniker. In March, The Weeknd set two Guinness World Records for having the most monthly listeners on Spotify and being the first artist to reach 100 million monthly listeners.

This surge in popularity was partially due to a viral TikTok remix of his song “Die for You,” featuring Ariana Grande, which reached the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100.