It’s more a commentary on how his celebrity status makes him vulnerable to a prying gaze at all times. It’s not that he fears his fans will hurt him. In both cases, he seems to be comparing fandom to an unsettling loss of privacy, one where his very safety is at stake. In all the videos, people are constantly watching him, whether it’s the crowd of stiff, masked fans in the “ Save Your Tears” music video or the frantic crowd reaching out to grab him as he tries to escape at the end of “ Until I Bleed Out.” However, another key emerges in the videos from the “After Hours” album. Thompson, played by Johnny Depp, often hallucinates or spirals out of control. He’s noted that, when scripting his music videos for “After Hours,” he was inspired by the film “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” in which writer Hunter S.
Initially, I’d assumed the bruises and bandages were a metaphor for The Weeknd’s struggle with drug addiction, a topic he has long explored in his music. When those bandages came off for the “Save Your Tears” music video, a face disfigured by excessive plastic surgery was revealed – a carefully constructed visage created using makeup and prostheses that made him nearly unrecognizable.Īs an anthropologist who has been analyzing the societal implications of plastic surgery for over 15 years, I was struck by The Weeknd’s use of this medical practice. He took the performance a step further at the 2020 American Music Awards, showing up with his whole head covered in bandages, which worried some fans who assumed the they were real. Later that March, the bloodied nose and lips appeared on the cover of “After Hours,” his most recent album. He sported a bandaged nose for performances on “ Jimmy Kimmel Live” in January 2020 and “ Saturday Night Live” in March 2020. The Weeknd's grisly facade seems to trace back to his "Blinding Lights" music video, released at the top of last year.Initially, there were facial bruises at the end of his “ Blinding Lights” music video, in which an all-night bender ends in a car accident. “I suppose you could take that being attractive isn’t important to me but a compelling narrative is,” he also said.Īnd what a narrative it is. The Weeknd doesn’t have a problem with appearing bruised and scarred either. “It’s all a progression and we watch The Character’s storyline hit heightened levels of danger and absurdity as his tale goes on,” he added to the outlet. “The significance of the entire head bandages is reflecting on the absurd culture of Hollywood celebrity and people manipulating themselves for superficial reasons to please and be validated,” he told Varietythis week.Īnd while the idea of a night in Vegas gone wrong might’ve partially inspired his look, the concept has progressed. Though the singer has typically left these displays up to our own interpretations, he recently offered a (brief) explanation of his latest visual approach, ahead of his headlining performance at Sunday’s Super Bowl Halftime Show. Usually dressed in a red jacket, black shirt, and slacks, he’s cycled through cosmetic bruises, bandages, and otherwise bloodied appearances while adhering to a dark, retro vibe. Through his appearances, performances, and visuals in the past year or so, The Weeknd has displayed an eerie and, at times, gory aesthetic to accompany his After Hours album era.
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