Sex, drugs, and loft music: Abel Tesfaye is officially a rock star.
During the sold-out hometown kickoff of The Madness Tour at Toronto’s Air Canada Centre, The Weeknd set himself apart from the squeaky clean set he now rubs elbows with on top of the charts. Cellphone and apology pop be damned—Mr. Tesfaye writes hit songs about cocaine and being fucked up. But we love it.
Until you see it live, you might be tempted to reduce The Weeknd’s discography to that of a mood-setting boudoir soundtrack. You probably don’t think of slow tempos, minor keys, and reverb-soaked crooning when you envision a sold-out arena show. Going into his biggest and most pivotal tour to date, you might have expected vibes in the Air Canada Centre to be more “I’m chilling in a big comfy bed with 20,000 people” versus “I’m about to summon the beast from within.” Well, you’d be wrong about all of these things. Backed by a three-piece band, these arrangements are massive. Pyro lights up the building, and Abel thrashes the mics stand like Cobain in ‘92. When loft music becomes arena music, the power in these songs becomes painfully obvious, like something you should have known all along. In front of 20,000 people, a once reluctant, borderline reclusive talent reaches his true potential.
As the lights went down in the ACC, The Weeknd emerged, shrouded by a nearly-opaque screen that would serve as a moving backdrop for projections throughout the night. Starting with Beauty Behind The Madness opening track “Real Life,” Tesfaye showcased expert command over his voice and the audience, remaining relatively stoic behind flashes of abstract visuals. When the screen finally rose, Abel brought the crowd to life with “Often,” the first in an onslaught of fan favourites and features that included “High For This,” “King Of The Fall,” “Crew Love,” and “Or Nah.” Despite the lyrical assertions in “Crew Love,” it was, without a doubt, a fuckin’ singalong. The only problem with singalongs with The Weeknd, is no one else in the building can nail the falsetto quite like Abel.
The night continued to be an amped-up rager, until things got a little more intimate during the Kanye West-produced track “Tell Your Friends.” A woman’s bra flew on stage, eliciting screams from the crowd. Unfazed, Tesfaye picked it up and tossed it backstage. Let’s not trivialize it—this was an acute reminder of the embedded sensuality that’s a vital part of The Weeknd’s success. For many people in the room, this music makes them feel sexy. It’s no small feat to bring that energy to an arena where grown men fight while wearing ice skates for six months of the year.
During a run of tracks from BBTM, Abel put his dance moves on full display, hitting some impressively intricate footwork. Paired with the rich tone of his voice, these flourishes make it hard not to draw Michael Jackson comparisons. Once a massively popular artist has a couple of albums and a handful of hits under their belt, they tend to cite MJ’s as-of-yet unreachable God level as their only objective—think Kanye West, Justin Bieber, and even Taylor Swift. The King Of The Fall cites the King of Pop as a prime influence, though he admits he “can never be Michael Jackson.” As he launched into his rendition of “Dirty Diana” last night, it almost seemed plausible that he could come close.
On stage, The Weeknd is a man of few words, but when he does speak, his sentences resonate. Before a show-stopping rendition of “Earned It,” he sent a message to the XO faithful in attendance. “We’re going to try to make this bigger every year,” he beamed. “From now on, I promise you that every year is the year of XO." By the sounds of it, 20,000 people believed him. “Next year, hopefully we’ll do the Rogers Centre, ok?” Toronto didn’t seem to mind that he didn’t call it by its appropriate name, the SkyDome.
Enough talking. A hit parade closed out the show, with a strobe-happy dance party in “Can’t Feel My Face,” and a white hot pyro-fueled finale in “The Hills.” He was joined onstage by two over-enthusiastic fans, who were quickly laid out by security like something out of Wrestlemania, while Abel kept his cool amongst the flames. An encore performance of “Wicked Games” closed things out, and put the night in perspective. This can’t be reduced to loft music. It’s not merely party music, nor is it after party music. This is the most popular music in the world for a reason.
There’s an element of danger in The Weeknd’s songwriting. It draws you in, like looking over the edge and living to tell the tale. For fans of Abel Tesfaye, that encompasses the beauty behind the madness.
But we love it.
The Weeknd is currently performing a run of sold-out dates on The Madness Tour, presented by PAX Vapor:
11-05 Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre
11-06 Chicago, IL - United Center
11-07 Detroit, MI - Palace of Auburn Hills
11-11 Newark, NJ - Prudential Center
11-12 Boston, MA - DCU Center
11-14 Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun
11-15 Washington, DC - Verizon Center
11-16 New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
11-18 Brooklyn, NY - Barclays Center
11-24 Montreal, Québec - Bell Centre
11-27 Winnipeg, Manitoba - MTS Centre
11-29 Calgary, Alberta - Scotiabank Saddledome
11-30 Edmonton, Alberta - Rexall Place
12-02 Vancouver, British Columbia - Rogers Arena
12-05 Oakland, CA - Oracle Arena
12-08 Los Angeles, CA - The Forum
12-13 Houston, TX - Toyota Center
12-15 Atlanta, GA - Philips Arena
12-17 Tampa, FL - Amalie Arena
12-19 Miami, FL - American Airlines Arena
