The rollout for The Weeknd’s upcoming album, After Hours, has been months in the making but the wait is almost over. With just three days until its release, The Weeknd has revealed the tracklist for the album via his Instagram. Any guests will be a mystery, as none are listed on the “back cover” photo the Torontonian singer shared, but mystery is pretty much his modus operandi, so don’t be surprised if someone like Drake shows up to contribute a guest verse, especially since the two Canadian superstars finally made up recently.
Ever since teasing the album as his “chapter six” way back in the autumn of 2019, The Weeknd has released each piecemeal portion of his album’s promotion with increasing regularity, but also somehow managed to keep just as much information shrouded in murky obscurity. First, he told fans he was in full “album mode,” without revealing so much as a title, which was still months away from being shared via a surreal teaser trailer. Then, he released “Heartless,” his first single, following in short order with “Blinding Lights.” The video for the latter was next in the pipeline, followed by an innovative live performance on late-night TV.
The video for “Blinding Lights” landed just before another late-night performance of that same song and this past weekend, he performed both singles on Saturday Night Live after sharing an expanded look at the gritty world of the album’s alternate universe in a dark short film. It’s been a wild ride so far, but the destination is finally in sight — we’ll see if the album itself lives up to the extended rollout this Friday.
After Hours is due 03/20 on Republic Records. Pre-order it here.
