The Weeknd has accomplished something no other artist has done before.
According to Billboard, the “Save Your Tears” singer is the first artist to have more than 100 million monthly Spotify listeners. It comes just days after he released a remix of his song “Die For You” with Ariana Grande.
Miley Cyrus (82.5 million listeners), Taylor Swift (80.3 million listeners), and Drake are all outperformed by The Weeknd (68.6 million listeners).
The Weeknd, named Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, became an instant fan favorite in collaboration with Ariana, marking his fourth collaboration with the “Thank U Next” singer.
His accomplishment came just a few days after the release of his televised performance, “Live at SoFi Stadium,” which documented one of his sold-out Los Angeles shows.
The 33-year-old Canadian singer has had a very successful career.
Among his career highlights are the following:
The Weeknd has received three Grammy Awards: Best Urban Contemporary Album for “Starboy,” Best R&B Performance for “Earned It” in 2016, and Best Urban Contemporary Album for “After Hours” in 2021.
The Weeknd has had numerous Billboard Hot 100 chart-topping hits, including “Can’t Feel My Face,” “Starboy,” “The Hills,” and “Blinding Lights,” which spent 47 weeks in the top 10, breaking the record.
With “After Hours,” The Weeknd set several Guinness World Records, including “Most Streamed Album on Spotify in One Year” and “Most Simultaneous Top 20 Billboard Hot 100 Entries by a Solo Artist”, with 16 entries in 2020.
The Weeknd headlined the Super Bowl Halftime Show in 2021, one of the world’s most-watched television events, and received critical acclaim for his performance.
The Weeknd is among the best-selling musicians of all time, having sold over 75 million records worldwide.
The Weeknd’s music has achieved international success, with number-one albums and singles in countries such as the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia.
The Weeknd was nominated for both an Oscar and an Emmy.
Despite being a three-time Grammy Award winner, The Weeknd announced in March 2021 that he would boycott the Grammys and no longer allow his label to submit his music for consideration.
The Weeknd reportedly boycotted the Grammys due to his dissatisfaction with the nomination process and alleged lack of transparency. Despite commercial and critical success, The Weeknd’s critically acclaimed album “After Hours” was snubbed from all categories at the 63rd Grammy Awards in November 2020.
The Weeknd expressed his displeasure in a statement, claiming that the Grammys “remain corrupt” and that their decision had caught him off guard. He also chastised the Grammys for their lack of transparency in the nominations process, stating that he would no longer attend in the future.
Other artists, including Drake and Kanye West, have since expressed displeasure with the Grammys. The Recording Academy, the organization behind the Grammys, has promised to change its nomination and voting procedures to address these concerns.