THE WEEKND: Cross-media vulnerability and how to sell frog-shaped lollies in 2020
- albertodsb97
- Jun 26, 2020
- 5 min read
Updated: Nov 14, 2020
Worldwide worshipped Abel Tesfaye, aka The Weeknd, has done it again. Even in times of Covid 19, he has managed to break streaming records and redefine his already chart-topping success. Regardless of his catchy 80’s-revamped instrumentals, there is a deeper magnetic force in his approach to art that drags his fandom every time closer to him, longing for additional minutes of their life-soundtrack, celebrating the ironies of a self-destructive lifestyle where egos and emotions clash in a spiraling battle.
Beyond his commercial appeal, the bond with his fandom is key for the health of what they (he and his fans) call the XO family. XO is the name of The Weeknd’s record label as well as how he refers to his friends, creative team and close associates. It is the equivalent to Lady Gaga’s Little Monsters’ community. Just like a church, XO family’s main purpose is to exist as a safe ground for people sharing a profound admiration for the Weeknd’s artistic performance. Due to the themes behind the songs revolving around a love-hate relationship with one self’s vulnerabilities, Abel’s fans tend to feel a personal deep connection to The Weeknd’s phenomenon beyond musical affinity.
In light of such a deep-rooted bond, Tesfaye takes care of his relationship with his fanbase through direct interactions on social media or unplanned real life encounters. Indirectly, his best way of paying back the unconditional support and respect he gets, is to create elaborate narratives around his musical body of work and offer his fans a rich, dynamic and cross-media experience.
The well-articulated message of his latest long-play ‘After Hours’, is gracefully presented as part of a coherent, multi-platform universe. Following an artistically holistic approach, he integrates lyrics, graphic artworks, music videos, live-broadcasted TV performances and social media content into a solid storyline. Additionally, he takes the chance to seize commercial opportunities as seen on the Mercedes-Benz tv ad or the Doja Cat surprise remix on his third single which meets its promotional purpose while positively complementing the original content (the German car appears throughout all the music video of Blinding Lights and both the aesthetics, voice register and recurrent themes of Doja fit ‘In Your Eyes’).
In order to achieve such cohesion, art director Anton Tanmi was in charge for the first four music videos. Both the main narrative and the accompanying aesthetic are given a follow-up chapter through each piece of audiovisual material: Starting from Heartless and culminating in ‘Until I Bleed Out’.
Nevertheless, due to the currently undergoing global pandemic, there is one element that has a significant impact on the fandom’s experiencing of Abel’s new material. In a time where concerts, clubs, festivals and parties have been cancelled, music becomes less tangible. There are no scenarios where the essence, vibe and communal celebration of music can materialize. In simpler terms: it is as if the music would not have a place to exist or naturally belong to.
Given that situation, merchandising items are the only palpable, touchable thing providing the fandom with an offline present experience.
Regardless of typical merch items including tees, hoodies and caps featuring popular lyrics in bold fonts, The Weeknd’s creative team has gone beyond the stablished standards: they sell limited-edition atrezzo of the ‘After Hours’ fictional universe. They literally sell key elements that help the fans recreate the ‘mood’ of the record by placing them in their rooms.
Including unique ashtrays, clock walls, zipo lighters and cards’ decks, which aesthetically and conceptually fit the theme, XO go one step further offering actual items replicating significant objects of the music video. This brings fans to a whole new level of experiencing, allowing them to eventually own a copy of a minuscule portion of that universe they fantasize about from the sitting bench. It is a way of pushing them into the match.
Besides the kitsch keychain featuring the decapitated head of the singer after being murdered on the MV of ‘In your Eyes’, there is an even more special must-have: ‘After Hours Heartless Lollipops’. Breaking through the usual borders of touch, sight, smell and sound, The Weeknd offers taste, and not only one, but two.
Let’s dig deeper into what the frog-shaped suckers actually stand for: During the ‘Heartless’ MV, the Canadian singer licks a toad while the lyrics ‘I lost my heart and my mind,
I tried to always do right’ are crooned in the background. Coming from a character who falls to all available temptations in Las Vegas to overcome his loneliness and depression, Abel plays a pessimistic man who attempts to evade himself through substance abuse.
That scene offers different decodings to fans from different generations and backgrounds: on the one side, licking a toad to get psychedelic hallucinations through bufotenine and forget about his self-rejection regardless of the high risks it entails and on the other side, metaphorically kissing an amphibian. The latter one would present The Weeknd rewriting the classical fairy-tale narrative where a princess kisses a toad to find love in an enchanted prince.
That scene summarizes the leitmotif of Abel Tesfaye: losing control in the name of a forever broken heart that can never be healed by anybody because his impulses, needs and mistakes make him toxic for anyone (also seen when he is making out with a sculpture in the same MV).
For that reason, crafting frog-shaped ‘mystery’ flavour lollipops (customized by Californian brand Sparko Sweets) gives the fans access to the most personal moment of the ‘After Hours’ narrative. The Weeknd is selling a celebration of vulnerability and unstable self-rejection in form of apple-flavour (matches the green toad color) candy. Ironically, calling the second flavor ‘mystery’ allows the consumer to unbiasedly experience a sensorial adventure for the first time, just like with drugs. Having him condensing a bitter feeling like ‘self-destruction’ into the sweetest recipient, is per se the most honest reflection of his art: a living contradiction, an oxymoron by nature.
Taking into account that in the era of streaming, money is mostly obtained from merchandising and touring (and the latter one got cancelled), The Weeknd’s team has cleverly used limited-time offers to encourage fans to empty their wallets before it is too late. Moreover, given the fact that the idea was initially suggested by a fan on Twitter, 2020 seems to be the year where artists, desperately attempting to survive economically, are finally starting to actively listen to fans before making management decisions. Due to the fandom really knowing what they fantasize with, they might also be the best indicators of commercial master-moves to take. Let us see if this case’s success sparks the very-needed change in how the music industry approaches consumers.
Top-artwork and text by Alberto Méndez
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