#the-weeknd

#the-weeknd

The Grammy nominations are here, and with it the realization we have no great pop juggernauts like we did last year. No Charli, no Beyoncé, and no Taylor. Still, there's a lot of Lady Gaga and Sabrina Carpenter and even a good showing for Justin Bieber - but the big narrative of this year's noms is the enthusiasm for this past year in rap: Kendrick, Bad Bunny, Clipse, and yes ... even Drake.

We learn that the song Blinding Lights, by Canadian singer/songwriter The Weeknd, became the first song in the history of Spotify to play five billion streams. That eye-popping milestone was reached on August 31. The song itself - packaged on The Weeknd's After Hours album, was released in November, 2019, so it took a little less than six years to accumulate those plays.

An investor group called Chord Music Partners currently owns 50% of his publishing. The once-and-future Abel Tesfaye (he said he plans to retire the name The Weeknd) now wants to cash out $250 million in equity from what's left of his catalog, plus raising $500 million in senior debt (lower interest, must be paid back first) and $250 million in junior debt (higher interest, must be paid back second). Lyric Capital Group is leading the discussions to find investors for the $1 billion.

"Music has always been my way of connecting with people and leaving a mark on the world. I can't wait to perform, unite, and inspire action."

Singing "Call Out My Name" with over 60,000 people allowed attendees to unleash their souls, experiencing the melancholic pulse of the synth beats and heartfelt lyrics.

"My body was telling me to sit down. It was telling me, 'you have nothing else to say.'"

Cinema has always, for me, it's always kind of been my number one passion. I happen to sing and make music and it kind of felt like a little detour, a little cheat code to kind of get into this.