That was the initial idea for “Rockin’,” which is one of the first ones I finished for the album. I even wanted to make an entire album where it was all very “Vogue”-inspired, music like Frankie Knuckles and Chicago house. I’ve played it for people, and they have no idea it’s me. I sang a lot of low stuff on songs like “Secrets” and “Rockin’,” almost like Toni Braxton. I tried to find different registers that I hadn’t sung in before. There was a lot of thought behind it, but I did it frantically, very fast, off the fumes of Beauty. I wanted to drop Starboy as soon as possible just to show that this is what I love doing: making music. Well, a lot of people think “The Hills” is pop now, but when it came out, the reaction was, “What is this?” People’s definition of pop just means whatever’s playing on the radio 24/7. Were you consciously going for something more pop? We started six months ago, and then we shut down the entire studio for four months. How long have you been working on the album?

But you know they’re my label, they’re my partners, they ride for me. My deal with the label is pretty much a partnership, it’s like a distribution deal. The label would rather me never tour, and my touring agents rather that I do. My agents will be really happy to hear me say that. I never thought I’d love going onstage, but I do now. Go back to my first show at the Mod Club in Toronto, and I was terrified. Trilogy was hot, no radio, all word-of-mouth. gig, playing the second main stage at dusk. I looked at the tape and said, “I have to do better. I hear them scream my name, so I know I’ll be fine. You could hear a pin drop in some of those TV stations. Before, I was just some indie R&B singer and I had to prove myself. Now, when I step out at the American Music Awards or on Saturday Night Live, I have fans. People who become famous for signing are usually pretty good at singing. It’s usually just nerves when somebody sounds bad. I used to be very nervous, especially about performing on TV. Kevin Winter/Getty Imagesĭo you feel more confident now than when you started? Tesfaye performed “Earned It,” which was nominated for best original song, at the Academy Awards in February. music producer and you’ll likely hear, “Oh, I just saw him at a party.” A professional hitmaker, he’s radically different from the self-centered character at the heart of so many Weeknd songs, but after dating model Bella Hadid for much of 2016, he’s now single and living in Beverly Hills. Tesfaye is around 5-foot-10, calm and not given to small talk, though he answers questions openly and at length. “If Adele stole our hearts by singing the stories of our life, Abel sings the story of the life you wish you had.” (One woman from Houston reigns over them all.) “Abel is a genius,” says Halsey, who opened for Tefaye on tour in 2015. Tesfaye’s only real creative competition is a young woman who moved from country to pop a few years ago, a friend from Toronto who helped Tesfaye find his audience and a Chicago rapper who recently took a medical leave from touring.

Couresy PhotoĮvery year, the cohort of A-list pop stars seems to get smaller.

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