11 January 2025
The Weeknd suffered a "mental breakdown" after losing his voice during a 2022 concert.
The Weeknd lost his voice during a concert in 2022
The 34-year-old music star lost his voice while performing the final show of his tour, and he admits that the experience left him feeling "defeated".
The Weeknd - who returned to the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles a few weeks later in order to fulfil the tour date - told Variety: "I knew that I really needed to sit the f*** down and figure out my life. To understand what happened, face it, learn something new and start again."
The singer's new album, 'Hurry Up Tomorrow', has actually been inspired by the experience.
The Weeknd - whose real name is Abel Tesfaye - said: "I’d had a kind of a mental breakdown, which is pretty much what this new album’s about."
The 'Can't Feel My Face' hitmaker was actually working on the album before he lost his voice. But his subsequent troubles prompted the singer to "go right back to the drawing board".
The music star - who has previously dated the likes of Bella Hadid and Selena Gomez - shared: "I had a good chunk of the album done, but then [SoFi] happened, and other things happened after, and you go right back to the drawing board. Because this was a really important, pinnacle moment in my life. How could it not be?
"And as an artist, you’re telling a story, so you get under the hood and try to figure out what’s going on. In the process, I got closer, and I became more grateful - I know it sounds cliche and soft or whatever, but it’s the truth. I’ve been working on myself to not push people away."
English (US) ·