The King of the Fall returned to his hometown last night, where he officially unleashed the monstrous new album, Starboy. Still riding on a high of fresh visuals and merch pop-up shops, fans spilled into Toronto's Pinewood Studios to get their first taste of The Weeknd's latest project. After a casual hour of ingesting drinks and vibing along to a DJ set of buzzing hits, attendees were treated to an epic listening party, hosted by the man of the hour himself. Abel Tesfaye made his way onto a small and stupidly crowded stage, surrounded by his XO affiliates, and blanketed by a wave of red light. The theme of the evening was apparent; there were stars everywhere, and the biggest one was about to hit play on one of the year's most anticipated albums.
The Weeknd started his listening session off with the album's titular and Daft Punk-assisted hit, which sounded all the more funky and immersive in a live concert setting. The retrofuturism continued throughout the night, as cuts like "Party Monster", "Rockin", and "Secrets" were all blatant nods to 80s new wave and throwback pop. Perhaps the biggest responses, however, was the debut of Starboy's significant features, including Lana Del Rey's short but sweet interlude, and Kendrick Lamar's vicious verse on "Sidewalks". The latter of which, was consistently teased, and when it eventually played out in its entirety, Abel made sure to feed the audience with a much-deserved rewind.
The evening was also a blatant reminder of Toronto's evergrowing scene, as members of Halal Gang made a cameo appearance, followed by Full Circle crooner, SAFE. Meanwhile, amongst the absolute mess of people on stage, Nav, Belly, and Derek Wise all showed their support for the XO team captain. While less visible, The Weeknd was also sure to shout out his behind-the-scenes players, including superproducer Doc McKinney, and graphics guru Drop Life.
Abel was able to spin the album in its entirety, and included playback for some of his favourite cuts. For three hours, the singer had everyone's undivided attention. There was a brief pause in the evening, when the singer announced to his fans that Starboy was now available for purchase and streaming. It was somehow disappointing knowing that the next time we listened to the project, we wouldn't have Abel as our personal DJ. Regardless of his personal curation, the LP shot up the charts this morning, and currently sits at #1 in 80 countries.
You can now listen to Starboy on all major music services, and you can purchase tickets to The Weeknd's upcoming tour by visiting his official website.
