The Weeknd teased new music Sunday night, simultaneously announcing a new era in his music. At the 2021 Billboard Music Awards, the Weeknd (born Abel Tesfaye) told fans, “The dawn is coming.†Apparently the dawn is now, as Tesfaye tweeted, “fuck it … IT STARTS TONIGHT†and dropped a nearly two-minute teaser video half an hour later. The video depicts a CGI horizon at sunrise. Little pixelated snowflakes (or stars, or li’l cocaine nugs) rush past the camera as it chases the dawn. The music is synth-y and bumping. The Weeknd described it as “pbj for your ears.â€
What does this new era mean for Tesfaye? Unclear. As NME recounts, the Weeknd expressed joy that the new phase would include a new look, saying he’d “like to thank God that I don’t have to wear that red suit any more.†Tesfaye tweeted that he’d made this new music during quarantine, and that all that was left to do was “piecing it together.â€