The Weeknd: The Evolution of a Toxic Lover | Video Essay

⚠ EPILEPSY WARNING at 21:50-21:57 and 26:05-26:10 ⚠
In this video, I examine The Weeknd’s discography to better understand the recurring toxic themes/elements of his music. I go through his early days as an unknown artist releasing his mixtapes for free (House of Balloons, Thursday, Echoes of Silence), to his ascension towards mainstream superstardom (Kiss Land, Beauty Behind The Madness, Starboy), to his more recent albums delving into performance art (After Hours & Dawn FM).

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Intro music by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

0:00 Intro
1:04 1 - The Mystery
6:07 2 - The Star
14:31 3.1 - The Performance (After Hours)
21:13 3.2 - The Performance (Dawn FM)

Sources mentioned:
The Weeknd vs. Abel Tesfaye | GQ
https://www.gq.com/story/the-w....eeknd-september-cove

The Weeknd: Kiss And Tell (2013 Cover Story) | Complex
https://www.complex.com/music/....2013/07/weeknd-inter

The Weeknd: A Rising Starboy | WSJ
https://www.wsj.com/articles/t....he-weeknd-a-rising-s

The Weeknd Reveals the Significance of His Full-Face Bandages | Variety
https://variety.com/2021/music..../news/the-weeknd-ban