The Weeknd redefines his artistic identity and returns to using the name Abel Tesfaye

The singer changed his stage name "The Weeknd" to "Abel Tesfaye", his real name, on social media. He revealed in an interview with 'W Magazine' that the change is part of his plan to "kill" The Weeknd.

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The Weeknd's real name is Abel Tesfaye - Photo Reproduction Emma McIntyre / NBC / NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

The Weeknd, one of the biggest names in contemporary music, recently decided to redefine his artistic identity and return to using the name Abel Tesfaye. Canadian pop singer The Weeknd has returned to using his birth name, Abel Tesfaye, on his social media accounts. The singer, famous for his catchy pop songs like Blinding Lights, consulted his fans on Twitter in April about making a change.

"ABEL formally known as The Weeknd?" he asked his fans in a tweet.

The name change comes after the award-winning artist revealed he wanted to "kill The Weeknd" for the North American magazine. W Magazine. "I'm going through a cathartic path right now," said the artist. "There's a place and time where I'm getting ready to close the chapter on The Weeknd."

The singer achieved success as The Weeknd, a name he chose after dropping out of school with a classmate, picking up his mattress and "getting out of the house for a weekend ("weekend", in English) and never coming back". But he told the magazine that "As the Weeknd, I've said all I can say", adding that his next album would likely be his "last hurrah" under that name.

Born in Toronto to Ethiopian immigrants, Tesfaye rose to fame after sending his first songs to YouTube in 2010. Their R&B music featured a dark and explicit style, addressing topics such as drug use, casual sex, and alienation. Canadian rapper Drake posted these early demos on his personal blog, allowing Tesfaye to produce the nine-song mixtape House of Balloons, released as a free download. During his music career, he has won four Grammy Awards, had over 45 platinum singles and albums, and has broken many music records.

In March 2023, Guinness World Records proclaimed him the most popular artist in the world due to his high number of monthly listeners on Spotify. In the same month, the 33-year-old singer reached the mark of 111.4 million monthly listeners on the music platform, becoming the first artist to reach 100 million monthly listeners on the streaming application. He currently has nearly 30 million more monthly listeners than runner-up Miley Cyrus (82.4 million), they claimed in a press release.