The Weeknd sets new Spotify listening record

The star's hits include Can't Feel My Face, Blinding Lights and Starboy

The Weeknd has become the first artist in Spotify history to hit 100 million monthly listeners, the streaming service has confirmed.

The star already has the service's most-played song of all time, Blinding Lights, which has been played a staggering 3.4 billion times.

His latest accolade comes a few days after he dropped a new remix of Die For You with Ariana Grande.

The 2016 track has enjoyed a new lease of life after going viral on TikTok.

A minor hit when it was first released, reaching number 74 in the charts, it re-entered the Top 40 last week and is set to be a high climber this Friday.

Who is The Weeknd?

The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, has become one of the biggest chart stars of the last decade, with more than 45 platinum and singles and albums.

Born in Toronto to Ethiopian immigrants, he uploaded his first songs to YouTube in 2010, showcasing a dark, explicit strand of R&B that delved into drug use, casual sex and alienation.

His popularity exploded after Canadian rapper Drake posted those early demos to his personal blog; allowing Tesfaye to produce a nine-song mixtape, House of Balloons, which he released as a free download.

Despite critical acclaim, he seemed an unlikely candidate for mainstream success but by the mid-2010s, Tesfaye had achieved a stunning run of hit singles.

These included a duet with Ariana Grande (Love Me Harder), a Michael Jackson-inspired disco-funk smash (I Can't Feel My Face), and a futuristic collaboration with Daft Punk (Starboy).

His fourth album After Hours topped the charts on both sides of the Atlantic, while the lead single Blinding Lights became the longest-running top five single on the US Hot 100.

After Hours was a concept album, themed around a character whose hedonistic night out takes a dark turn - involving alcohol, a fight and ultimately possession by an evil spirit. Tesfaye stayed in character throughout the publicity campaign, with his face masked in bandages.

Last year's follow-up, Dawn FM, continued the story, with the character travelling through purgatory to the afterlife.

It became the star's third number one album in the UK, adding to a list of achievements that includes four Grammy Awards, two MTV Awards and an Oscar nomination for Earned It, his contribution to the Fifty Shades of Grey soundtrack.

How big a milestone is 100 million listeners?

The star performed at the Super Bowl half-time show in 2021

The Weeknd is the first star to achieve 100 million monthly listeners on Spotify - which has a 50% market share in the UK and about 30% worldwide.

To put that in perspective, The Beatles have 27 million monthly listeners, Madonna has 23 million and Michael Jackson has 34 million.

Tesfaye's closest competition is Miley Cyrus, who languishes behind on 82.5 million, despite the record-breaking success of her current single, Flowers.

If the star's 100,450,642 listeners had each played just one of his songs, he would have earned $239,072 (£198,176) last month.

Why is Die For You suddenly popular?

Overlooked on release, Die For You has gained a new lease of life on TikTok, where it soundtracks more than 150,000 videos.

Unusually, the song doesn't have a viral dance or meme associated with it... People have simply hooked onto its overwrought R&B groove, using it to illustrate wedding videos, clips of cute cats, and compilations of Disney kisses.

The unexpected resurgence has propelled the song back into the US charts, where it's currently at number seven.

Capitalising on the situation, The Weeknd has released a remix featuring his four-time duet partner Ariana Grande.

Grande teased the release last week, with a video of her working on the track in the studio.

"Wrote and recorded a verse for my friend after a 14-hour day on set," she said, referring to her role in the upcoming movie adaptation of Wicked. "This certain exception had to be made…."

What is The Weeknd doing next?

TV show The Idol is set to premiere later this year

Over the weekend, the star released a concert film - The Weeknd: Live at SoFi Stadium - shot during the American leg of his ongoing After Hours 'Til Dawn Tour.

The show is due to arrive in Europe this summer, with UK dates at Manchester's Etihad Stadium and both Wembley Stadium and the Olympic Stadium in London.

Meanwhile, the musician is preparing the release of his first TV drama, The Idol, which he created with Euphoria's Sam Levinson.

The show is set to follow the story of "a self-help guru and leader of a modern-day cult, who develops a complicated relationship with an up-and-coming pop idol."

A release date has yet to be set, but a trailer dropped last October, showcasing an all-star cast that includes Lily-Rose Depp, Troye Sivan, Schitt's Creek star Dan Levy, Blackpink singer Jennie and The Simpsons' Hank Azaria.

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