The Weeknd Quotes

'Kiss Land' is the story after 'Trilogy'; it's pretty much the second chapter of my life. The narrative takes place after my first flight; it's very foreign, very Asian-inspired. When people ask me, 'Why Japan?' I simply tell them it's the furthest I've ever been from home. It really is a different planet.

- The Weeknd

My Life, Flight, Very, Chapter

'Thursday' is a conceptual album. Whatever that situation was, I spent the whole album focusing on that situation.

- The Weeknd

Thursday, Spent, Whole, Album

For my generation, the bomber jacket is like a replacement for the suit jacket. It's a piece that men wear every day, and it's something that I would wear for any occasion, whether it's on the street or going to an awards ceremony.

- The Weeknd

Every Day, Occasion, Bomber, Jacket

'Kiss Land' wasn't about what people wanted to hear on the radio. It was the state of mind I was in - introverted, like David Cronenberg's 'Naked Lunch.' You didn't know if you were hearing a chorus or a verse. It was just my thoughts.

- The Weeknd

Kiss, Lunch, About, Introverted

I'm all about surprises. If you watch a horror movie, and it's called 'Kiss Land,' it's probably going to be the most terrifying thing you've ever seen in your life.

- The Weeknd

Movie, Horror, Terrifying, Horror Movie

'Kiss Land' is like a horror movie.

- The Weeknd

Movie, Horror, Like, Horror Movie

When you're traveling constantly, every day you become inspired, and it shows in my work, sonically, lyrically, visually. Conversations with women with different accents and stories told in those accents. I like to create characters based on different people I've met, and relationships. I like to tell stories loosely based on real-life events.

- The Weeknd

Every Day, Tell, Constantly, Lyrically

It's almost schizophrenic who I portray in my music.

- The Weeknd

Music, Portray, Almost, Schizophrenic

The Joker that Christopher Nolan created in 'The Dark Knight' had the scar across his mouth, and the first time you heard his explanation for it, he makes you believe that's how he got it. But then you get into the film, and every time he talks about his scar, it's a totally different story.

- The Weeknd

Believe, About, Had, Knight

Thanks to my fans that have been with me from the beginning, I was able to sell out arenas on my own.

- The Weeknd

Beginning, My Own, Been, Arenas

I was 14, and I fell in love with Pink Floyd.

- The Weeknd

Love, Fell, Pink Floyd, Floyd

Going home helps the content.

- The Weeknd

Going Home, Content, Going, Helps

I feel like the way I was raised was to be able to see through all the titles in this world - from religion to race.

- The Weeknd

Through, Race, Like, Titles

'House of Balloons' was special because I had no deadlines, and nobody knew me, so there were no expectations. Spent a year making it perfect. Every song had at least, like, 7 different versions to them before picking the right one.

- The Weeknd

Perfect, Year, Balloons, Deadlines

You aren't normal if you sing to people. You aren't a normal person. It's nerve-racking.

- The Weeknd

Person, Normal, Sing, Nerve-Racking

'Trilogy' was more of a claustrophobic body of work. Before it was released, I hadn't left my city for 21 years, and I had never been on a plane, not once. I spent my entire life on one setting; that's probably why pieces of the album feel like one long track, because that's what my life felt like. It felt like one long song.

- The Weeknd

My Life, Been, Plane, Trilogy

I knew the second I finished the first record - 'House Of Balloons' - and had all this material leftover that a trilogy would be best.

- The Weeknd

Balloons, Knew, Finished, Trilogy

I probably could have toured off 'Trilogy' for the rest of my life. It definitely changed the culture. No one can do a trilogy again without thanking The Weeknd.

- The Weeknd

Rest, My Life, Could, Trilogy

We're all insecure, aren't we? I'm not walking around like I'm macho man or anything.

- The Weeknd

Walking, Like, Insecure, Macho

The effect of music on fashion has been immense, especially hip-hop and urban music.

- The Weeknd

Music, Been, Urban, Immense

The Joker is my favorite villain of all time: You don't know his past; you just know what his plans are.

- The Weeknd

Past, Villain, His, Joker

I just love Bowie. I think he's the ultimate inventor.

- The Weeknd

Love, Think, I Think, Inventor

For an Ethiopian mother, if you have a chubby kid, it means you're doing something good.

- The Weeknd

Mother, Doing, Means, Chubby

'Eastern Promises' is great.

- The Weeknd

Great, Eastern, Promises

For the chorus of 'Secrets,' we used The Romantics' 'Talking in Your Sleep' and 'Pale Shelter' by Tears for Fears. It's like hip-hop: just grab it.

- The Weeknd

Tears, Shelter, Like, Chorus

A chorus is not easy.

- The Weeknd

Easy, Chorus

Environment is very important to me. Sometimes I have to perform during the day for festivals, and my music does not work in the daytime. It is nighttime music.

- The Weeknd

Work, Festivals, Very, Nighttime

I was very camera shy. People like hot girls, so I put my music to hot girls and it just became a trend. The whole 'enigmatic artist' thing, I just ran with it. No one could find pictures of me.

- The Weeknd

Shy, Very, Became, Ran

The whole 'enigmatic artist' thing, I just ran with it.

- The Weeknd

Artist, Enigmatic, Whole, Ran

I just want to keep pushing the envelope without it feeling forced.

- The Weeknd

Want, Keep, Forced, Envelope

I wrote a song with Ed Sheeran that was kind of spontaneous.

- The Weeknd

Song, Kind, Ed Sheeran, Spontaneous

Nothing is stopping me from doing what I love to do.

- The Weeknd

Love, Doing, I Love, Stopping

The Internet, man, is a beautiful thing.

- The Weeknd

Beautiful, Man, Thing, Beautiful Thing

When I was born, that was the music my mother was listening to. Michael Jackson is a third parent to me.

- The Weeknd

Listening, Parent, Born, None

My inspiration is R. Kelly, Michael Jackson, and Prince - for the vocals, anyway.

- The Weeknd

Michael, Jackson, Vocals, None

My production and songwriting and the environment around those vocals are not inspired by R&B at all.

- The Weeknd

Environment, Production, Vocals

If you ever see young artists, and they're not sounding good, they sound good. They're good singers. They wouldn't be where they are if they didn't sound good. It's their nerves. Any time you see your favorite artist, and he's or she's screwing up or not hitting those notes, it's not because she can't hit it or she can't sing; he or she is scared.

- The Weeknd

Artist, Young, Notes, Scared

Once you've changed who you are or who you've portrayed in your music, the fans, they'll catch it... Once I feel like the world knows me for anything else but my music, then I feel like I failed.

- The Weeknd

Feel, Your, Anything Else, Changed

Image, lyrics, content, storytelling, cohesive body of work - that's Prince to me.

- The Weeknd

Work, Storytelling, Image, Lyrics

I'm pretty laid-back in real life. I just love hanging with my friends and making jokes. The jokes don't stop - literally, all day.

- The Weeknd

Love, Pretty, Making, Jokes

People always say when they meet me that I'm not what they expect. I assume they think I'm this super dark and depressing guy, but I like to channel all of those emotions into my work.

- The Weeknd

Think, Emotions, Always, Assume

I didn't have a father figure in the house.

- The Weeknd

Father, House, Figure, Father Figure

The vibe on 'Starboy' comes from that hip-hop culture of braggadocio, from Wu-Tang and 50 Cent, the kind of music I listened to as a kid.

- The Weeknd

Kind, Vibe, Cent, Hip-Hop

I spend just as much time on how people hear my music as I do the actual music, no matter how long it takes. I'm such a visual artist as well that it always goes hand-in-hand.

- The Weeknd

Artist, Always, Actual, Just As Much

I always hated how I looked on camera. I never put a face to my music, which actually made the music that much more mysterious.

- The Weeknd

Always, Which, Looked, Camera

I didn't like the way I looked in pictures - when I saw myself on a digital camera, I was like, 'Eesh.'

- The Weeknd

Digital, Like, Looked, Camera

My closet is like Bart Simpson's.

- The Weeknd

Like, Closet, Bart, Simpson

I've grown accustomed to hotels and drastic climate change.

- The Weeknd

Climate Change, Hotels, Accustomed

I wish I could make music about politics. I feel like it's such an art and a talent that I admire tremendously, but when I step into the studio, I step out of the real world, and it's therapeutic.

- The Weeknd

Politics, Studio, About, Therapeutic

I've had sleep paralysis.

- The Weeknd

Sleep, Had, Paralysis

Taylor Swift's audience can listen to me, but so can the street kids. I want to touch it all.

- The Weeknd

Street, Audience, Taylor, Swift

When I was making the early stuff, I never expected it to be so big. I was in my own kind of bubble. I never wanted to tour; I just wanted to create music and make a diary I could put out into the world. And sometimes, I became the characters.

- The Weeknd

Big, Own, Became, Early

I just kept touring and touring until it became second nature to go onstage, perform, and sing.

- The Weeknd

Nature, Became, Touring, Second Nature

I don't believe in icons.

- The Weeknd

Believe, Icons

Prince turned experimental music into pop music. 'When Doves Cry,' the whole 'Purple Rain' soundtrack - he was inspired by the Cocteau Twins and new wave pop and brought it into R&B when he first started, and then it became this cool, next-level, kind of hard-to-digest music. Which is what I felt 'House of Balloons' was.

- The Weeknd

Became, Brought, Turned, Pop Music

I sang a lot of low stuff on songs like 'Secrets' and 'Rockin',' almost like Toni Braxton. On 'Secrets,' I'm a different person.

- The Weeknd

Like, Almost, Secrets

Bragging just sounds good, man.

- The Weeknd

Man, Bragging, Sounds, Good Man

In the beginning, I was very insecure. I hated how I looked in pictures.

- The Weeknd

Beginning, How, Very, Insecure

My mother, my grandmother, my uncles would play Ethiopian artists like Aster Aweke and Mulatu Astatke all the time in the house.

- The Weeknd

Play, Grandmother, Like, Uncles

My purpose is to make exciting music, and I feel like I'll be doing that for the rest of my life, so there's no pressure.

- The Weeknd

Rest, My Life, Doing, No Pressure

I feel like I'm the kind of guy that would have kids before getting married. The first thing would be kids.

- The Weeknd

Kind, Like, Before, The First Thing

I'm a huge fan of R. Kelly's. He's a musical genius and probably the most prolific artist of the generation before mine.

- The Weeknd

Generation, Mine, Prolific, Huge Fan

I want to produce the music to a movie that I'm working on, like what Prince did with 'Purple Rain.'

- The Weeknd

Music, Rain, Movie, Purple

I'm mainstream.

- The Weeknd

Mainstream

The mind of a 19-year-old is very different from the mind of a 26-year-old. You grow. You get into better relationships. You experience more, meet more people, better people. But when you're in a dark hole at an earlier point in your life - you write about the mindset you're in at that moment.

- The Weeknd

Very, About, Your, Hole

When people meet me, they say that I'm really kind - contrary to a lot of my music.

- The Weeknd

People, Kind, Say, They Say

It's hard to wrap my head around the fact that there are people who can't or won't see what Black Lives Matter is trying to accomplish.

- The Weeknd

Black, Fact, Lives, Wrap

I usually don't like to 'spoon feed' my audience, because I grew up idolizing story tellers who tell stories using symbolism, so it was in my nature to do the same.

- The Weeknd

Audience, Stories, Using, Feed

When I was performing the songs on 'Kiss Land,' it was a great singalong. But there were moments where I realized some parts were catchier than the others. There's maybe two choruses on all of 'Kiss Land.'

- The Weeknd

Some, Performing, Maybe, Parts

Going to a therapist is not something you do when you're growing up as a street kid in Toronto.

- The Weeknd

Growing Up, Growing, Going, Therapist

I'm all about evolution. I'm the first person to judge myself.

- The Weeknd

Myself, Person, About, Evolution

I always use Michael as, first and foremost, a vocal inspiration, and 'Off the Wall' was definitely the one that made me feel like I could sing.

- The Weeknd

Always, Like, Use, Wall

For me, bomber jackets are smart, but they are also street and have a lot of attitude.

- The Weeknd

Street, Lot, Bomber, Jackets

Alternative R&B is in my soul. It's not going anywhere.

- The Weeknd

Soul, My Soul, Going, Alternative

I mean... in life... what relationship is easy?

- The Weeknd

Life, Relationship, Mean, Easy

I get naturally uncomfortable when I'm put under a magnifying glass.

- The Weeknd

Glass, Get, Naturally, Uncomfortable

When I write, I write about my surroundings. Sometimes it's light, and sometimes it gets very dark.

- The Weeknd

Sometimes, Very, I Write, Gets

I feel like I'm changing pop culture.

- The Weeknd

Culture, Feel, Like, Pop

I want to make pop cool again, and the only way I can do that is by being ambitious and grand.

- The Weeknd

Cool, Want, Ambitious, Pop

I couldn't ever go back home without being something. I probably would never have gone back home. That was definitely a big motivation. To get back home, and not empty-handed.

- The Weeknd

Motivation, Big, Go, Gone

Me not finishing school - in my head, I still have this insecurity when I'm talking to someone educated.

- The Weeknd

Finishing, Talking, Still, Insecurity

Nothing feels better than going onstage and everybody is singing every word - and actually wanting to see you.

- The Weeknd

Everybody, Wanting, Feels, Onstage

'House of Balloons' was actually supposed to have more songs than it does.

- The Weeknd

More, Balloons, Actually, Supposed

From when I was born to when I was 21, I never left Toronto. That's why I'm such a city cat.

- The Weeknd

City, Toronto, I Was Born, Cat

I wanted to drop three albums in a year because no one had done it. It was bold, unheard of.

- The Weeknd

Drop, Wanted, Albums, Bold

Marriage is scary to me, man.

- The Weeknd

Marriage, Man, Me, Scary

The last thing you want is to not be recognized for all of the hard work you put in.

- The Weeknd

Work, Want, Last, Recognized

To be recognized for the hard work my team and I put into 'Starboy' is an honor.

- The Weeknd

Work, Hard Work, Honor, Recognized

The game is changing with songs like 'Earned It' as opposed to it changing me.

- The Weeknd

Game, Like, Opposed, Earned

I want to be remembered as iconic and different.

- The Weeknd

Remembered, Want, Different, Iconic

I'm the most boring person to talk to.

- The Weeknd

Person, Boring, Most, Talk

When you come to my show, I want it to feel like opera, like a theatre.

- The Weeknd

Want, Opera, Like, Theatre

I feel like everything we do comes down to how it looks. Even no branding is branding. For example, you had no face or image to put to my music at first. That was branding.

- The Weeknd

Feel, Like, Image, For Example

Let's be honest. Canada wasn't ever cool.

- The Weeknd

Cool, Honest, Ever, Canada

I don't think I'd ever apologise for music I make, no.

- The Weeknd

Music, Think, Ever, Apologise

Literally wrote 'Starboy' in 30 minutes.

- The Weeknd

Minutes, Literally, Wrote, 30 Minutes

All of my music is honest.

- The Weeknd

Music, Honest

Even though I've been putting out bodies of work for years, 'Beauty Behind the Madness' felt like the beginning.

- The Weeknd

Behind, Been, Though, Madness

I'm a studio rat.

- The Weeknd

Studio, Rat

I make good music for long journeys.

- The Weeknd

Music, Good, Make, Journeys

I was everything an R&B singer wasn't. I wasn't in shape. I wasn't a pretty boy.

- The Weeknd

Everything, Pretty, Shape, Singer

I'm trying to get to Mars before everyone else.

- The Weeknd

Trying, Everyone, Before, Everyone Else

I love trying new things.

- The Weeknd

Love, New Things, New, I Love

I think that's why my career is going to be so long: Because I haven't given people everything.

- The Weeknd

Think, I Think, Given, Career

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