Pop Icon The Weekend! ( Photo Credit – Instagram )
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The mystery behind The Weeknd’s stage name has long fascinated fans, with its peculiar spelling and ambiguous meaning sparking endless speculation. Many have wondered over the years if it actually refers to the weekend or if there is something deeper at play.
The Weeknd’s Rise to Fame
Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, the Canadian singer-songwriter and actor behind the moniker, first emerged on the music scene in 2009, releasing songs anonymously before skyrocketing to global fame.
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Now 35, he’s responsible for chart-topping hits like ‘Can’t Feel My Face,’ ‘The Hills,’ and ‘Blinding Lights,’ proving time and again that his ability to craft compelling music is undeniable. Yet, for all his success, the origins of his stage name continue to spark curiosity.
A recent Reddit thread resurfaced the debate, with fans claiming they’ve finally uncovered the truth. A social media user wrote, “We finally find out the truth behind The Weeknd’s name.”
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A post featuring an interview snippet suggests that The Weekend was originally the working title for his House of Balloons project. “That’s what the album House of Balloons used to be called. The Weekend. I was still Abel. I didn’t love my name, so I called myself The Weeknd,” Abel said.
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However, other theories continue to circulate. “Didn’t he leave his mom’s home on a weekend and there was another Canadian band called ‘The Weekend’ so he chose The Weeknd as his name??” one replied.
Another penned, “He chose Weeknd instead of Weekend because there was a band that went by the name ‘The Weekend’, so he changed it.” A third said, “I’m assuming HoB used to be called The Weeknd. Wild though, always thought it was based off of when he left his mom’s home one fateful weekend.”
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Then there’s the practical explanation. “What I know is he left his house on a weekend and there was a Canadian band called ‘The Weekend’, so Abel removed the ‘e’ because it sounded cool,” wrote a fourth.
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Abel Makkonen on How He Chose His Stage Name
The popular singer previously opened up on how he came to decide his stage name.
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“I left home when I was about 17 dropped out of high school and convinced Lamar to do the same lol,” referring to another member of the XO crew, which is reported to be a group of rappers and various people who helped him gain success,” he said at the time. “We grabbed our mattresses from our parents, threw it in our friends s****y van and left one weekend and never came back home. It was going to be the title of HOB (House of Balloons). I hated my name at the time though so I tried it as a stage name. It sounded cool.”
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Abel also explained why there’s no ‘e’ in ‘The Weeknd,’ stating that it was due to potential copyright issues with a company from his home country called “The Weekend.”
