The Weeknd will almost certainly release his sixth album at some point this year, but its arrival could come sooner than later. The singer first announced the album at last year’s Billboard Music Awards, and since then he’s been teasing it through interviews, tweets, Instagram posts, and more. His last update came back in October, when he said it was “complete.” He added that the only thing that’s missing is “a couple characters that are key to the narrative.” He kicked off 2022 with another update on the project.
On New Year’s Day, The Weeknd shared an Instagram post showing a text message conversation between him and La Mar Taylor, the co-founder of XO Records as well as the singer’s creative director. “Happy New Year brother! What we thinking ??” Taylor asks. In response, The Weeknd says, “Happy new year! Everything feels chaotic again. Music can heal and that feels more important than another album rollout.” He added, “Let’s just drop the whole thing and enjoy it with the people… XO.”
The news comes after The Weeknd delivered a pair of guest features to end 2021. The first was “Tears In The Club” with FKA Twigs, from her upcoming third project, and the second was “Poison” with the late Aaliyah, which will appear on the singer’s posthumous album Unstoppable.