The Weeknd has revealed that he is back in the studio creating new music less than a year after releasing his latest album, Dawn FM.
The Canadian singer-songwriter has suggested in a new interview that he is in a creative purple patch, having barely slowed down since the release of his fifth album last January.
“I was definitely inspired,” said The Weeknd (real name Abel Tesfaye) The Hollywood Reporter, when asked if he was working on new material. — I was in the studio.
Tesfaye recently celebrated the anniversary of Dawn FM with a new video clip for the track from the album “Is there someone else?”
He didn’t share any details about his next project and instead spent most of the interview talking about “Nothing Is Lost (You Give Me Strength),” an Oscar-nominated theme song he wrote for James Cameron’s film Avatar: The Way. Water.
Tesfaye spoke about how the Avatar franchise has served as a source of inspiration for him since he saw the first film in 2009, when he was “homeless,” a period he called “the darkest time in his life.”
“The best thing about writing a song is to get notes from James and make sure that all the lyrics and melodies match the themes of the film,” he told the publication. “I think I rewrote the song maybe six times to make sure it was perfect.”
He also addressed the song’s potential Oscar nomination, saying it was a “great honor” for him to be recognized. And this is despite the fact that he boycotted other high-profile award ceremonies, including the Grammys, after his 2020 album “After Hours” was rejected.
The Oscars, he said, are “definitely different” from the Grammys. “I’m just grateful,” he said after the interviewer highlighted the fact that he won a Grammy for helping record Kanye West’s “Hurricane” in 2022 after the boycott.
“Any recognition, I am grateful for it. I’m just happy to be in the conversation,” he said.
Meanwhile, earlier this month it became known that The Weeknd’s 2019 single “Blinding Lights” overtook Ed Sheeran and became the most listened to Spotify song of all time.
