Blinding Lights

The Weeknd Is Releasing A Series Of NFT Collectibles On Tom Brady’s Autograph Platform

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This past October, The Weeknd said on his Apple Music show Memento Mori that his next album is “complete,” but that some additions needed to be made before release. “Some exciting features coming out in the fall before the album drops,” he said. “We’ll slowly be unraveling that info in the next couple months.” Well, we just caught wind of an exciting feature, although it seems as though this is more closely related to the recent diamond certification of “Blinding Lights” than the next album.

In a newly-announced NFT collectibles series, The Weeknd and Billboard are releasing a 7-piece animated series that celebrates the song’s designation as “The No. 1 song of all time.” At 90 weeks, the song became the longest charting song on the Billboard Hot 100 and the news was announced on the cover of Billboard magazine. The cover is one of the seven collectibles, which is available to view on the NFT platform, Autograph, which was co-founded by Tom Brady of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It’s being auctioned off on OpenSea, which dubs itself “the world’s largest NFT marketplace.” A statement on the collection elaborated on each piece in the collection:

“The 7-piece, animated collection is composed of four designs, including a single NFT featuring The Weeknd’s recent cover on Billboard Magazine, which first announced the news of his record-breaking achievement, and three digital trading cards creatively inspired by the iconic “Blinding Lights” music video. The digital trading cards will be released in three tiers of rarity, and each of the collection’s unique, culturally-significant collectibles is individually signed to allow fans the opportunity to own a defining moment in music history as never before, from one of today’s most influential artists.”

For what it’s worth, The Weeknd is now a part of the Board of Directors at Autograph. The auction began on December 20 and continues until December 23 at 1 PM EST. All of the bidding is done via the ETH cryptocurrency. Take a look at the magazine cover NFT below and view the whole collection here.

The Weeknd NFT
The Weeknd

The Weeknd Credits ‘Grand Theft Auto: Vice City’ For His ’80s Music Influence

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Billboard recently declared that The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights” is the top song in the long history of their storied Hot 100 chart. The song is heavily inspired by synth-forward ’80s music, and in a new Billboard interview pegged to the Hot 100 news, The Weeknd gave credit to the 2002 video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City for fostering in him an interest in ’80s music.

In the piece, co-producer Max Martin notes of the song, “Abel came with the vision of what the song should be, which was a very different tempo and vibe than what is usually done. He took a risk, and that was very impressive to us. We all felt this song was very special even early on in the process.” The Weeknd then added, “GTA: Vice City really opened my eyes to a lot of ’80s music, so there was a nostalgia for when I was a kid playing video games and listening to Hall & Oates and Michael Jackson while driving through the city.”

The Grand Theft Auto games are well known for their soundtracks, which players experience through in-game radio stations. Vice City has nine stations and they all cycle through their own playlists of about 15 songs each (except for the one station that doesn’t play music). Since the game is set in 1986, all of the songs included are from that year or earlier. Hall & Oates has one song in the game, “Out Of Touch,” while Jackson has two: “Billie Jean” and “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’.”

Check out the full interview here.

The Weeknd’s ‘Blinding Lights’ Is Now The ‘No. 1 Song Of All Time’ According To ‘Billboard’

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It has felt like at least once every couple months or so, there was news about some chart record that The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights” broke or set. The latest of those came in August, when the single officially became the longest-charting song in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Now, unsurprisingly, there’s more chart news for “Blinding Lights”: Billboard has declared that the single is the No. 1 song of all time, as it is now on top of the Billboard Greatest Songs Of All Time Hot 100 Chart. It dethroned the previous chart-topper, Chubby Checker’s 1960 hit “The Twist.”

Billboard notes, “[The chart] factors in total weeks on the chart as well as exact chart positions, with weeks at No. 1 earning the greatest value and weeks at No. 100 earning the least. (Due to changes in chart methodology over the years, eras are weighted differently to account for chart turnover rates during various periods.)”

The Weeknd told Billboard, “I don’t think [the success of ‘Blinding Lights’] has hit me yet. I try not to dwell on it too much. I just count my blessings, and I’m just grateful.”

To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Hot 100 in 2018, Billboard unveiled the full Greatest Songs of All Time Hot 100 Chart. At the time, the top ten featured, from No. 1 to No. 10, “The Twist” by Chubby Checker, “Smooth” by Santana featuring Rob Thomas, “Mack The Knife” by Bobby Darin, “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars, “How Do I Live” by Leann Rimes, “Party Rock Anthem” by LMFAO featuring Lauren Bennett and GoonRock, “I Gotta Feeling” by Black Eyed Peas, “Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix) by Los Del Rio, “Shape Of You” by Ed Sheeran, and “Physical” by Olivia Newton-John.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The Weeknd’s ‘Blinding Lights’ Is Now The Longest-Charting Song Of All Time

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When last week’s Billboard Hot 100 chart was released, it was noted that The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights” had tied Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive” for the most time spent on the chart, and it was therefore one week away from claiming the record outright. Sure enough, on the latest Hot 100 (dated August 21), “Blinding Lights” is on it for the 88th week and is now the longest-charting song in the history of the Hot 100. The song was released on November 29, 2019, and despite all the time that has passed between then and now, it’s still high up on the charts, at No. 18 this week.

Additionally, aside from the new feat, “Blinding Lights” also holds the record for most weeks spent in the top 5, top 10, top 20, and top 40 of the chart.

It was a good week on the chart for The Weeknd beyond that as well: His latest single, “Take My Breath,” makes its debut on the chart at No. 6, making it his 13th top-10 song on the chart.

Meanwhile, The Weeknd is gearing up for a new album, of which “Take My Breath” is the first look. He recently said of the album, “The music hit the studio like a Mack truck. The new project is packed with party records. Like real-deal, illuminated-white-tiles-on-the-floor party records. Quincy Jones meets Giorgio Moroder meets the best-night-of-your-f*cking-life party records.”

The Weeknd’s ‘Blinding Lights’ Is Now The Longest-Charting Solo Song In ‘Billboard’ Hot 100 History

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The Weeknd’s is still winning awards for and setting new records with his 2020 album, After Hours. From nearly sweeping at the 2021 Billboard Music Awards to leaving with an armful of trophies at this year’s Juno Awards, the singer has been a force to reckon with. If that weren’t all, the singer’s continued presence on the Billboard singles chart has also been extremely noteworthy.

“Blinding Lights” recently became the longest-charting solo song in Billboard Hot 100 history after registering its 78th week, passing the previous record-holder, Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours,” to take the crown. Now the song sits behind Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive” and Awolnation’s “Sail” to claim the overall record. The former leads the way with 87 weeks spent on the singles chart while the latter trails behind with 79 weeks.

The After Hours highlight and the album itself controversially failed to land any recognition at this year’s Grammys, but other award shows have honored the record. The track won Top Hot 100 Song, Top Radio Song, and Top R&B Song at last month’s Billboard Music Awards, which also saw him win Top Artist, Top Male Artist, and Top Hot 100 Artist. Elsewhere in 2021, “Blinding Lights” won Song Of The Year, Titanium Song Of The Year, and TikTok Bop Of The Year at the iHeartRadio Music Awards as well as Single Of The Year at the Juno Awards.

The Weeknd Won Five 2021 Juno Awards Including Artist Of The Year

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After excoriating the Grammys for leaving him locked out this year, The Weeknd got some measure of redemption over the… ahem… weekend at his home country’s analogue awards ceremony, the Juno Awards. Sunday night, he was awarded two wins, Album and Artist Of The Year, after taking home awards for Contemporary R&B Recording Of The Year for After Hours, Single Of The Year for “Blinding Lights,” and Songwriter Of The Year. All told, he took five awards out of the six for which he was nominated, only missing out on the Juno Fan Choice Award, which Shawn Mendes won.

The Weeknd lashed out at the Grammys committee after the nominees were announced last year, revealing that he wasn’t nominated for any awards, astonishing fans who assumed he’d be a shoo-in with one of the biggest records of both the year and his career. The Weeknd himself accused the committee of corruption, a claim which the Recording Academy denied. However, that didn’t stop him from boycotting the show, proclaiming he’d no longer submit for consideration — even after the Academy worked to address some of the issues that caused him to be snubbed.

Meanwhile, he also led the nominations for the 2021 Billboard Music Awards, taking home ten, and has been teasing a new era, putting the controversy — for the most part — in the rear view.

The Weeknd Is Boycotting The Grammys And Will No Longer Submit His Music For Consideration

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The Weeknd has been abundantly clear and forthcoming about his displeasure with the Grammy Awards and the Recording Academy after his critical and commercial hit After Hours and its popular singles somehow earned no nominations for the 2021 awards. Now it looks like anything else The Weeknd makes won’t be up for consideration at future Grammy ceremonies either, but this time, it’s his choice: The Weeknd has declared that he is boycotting the Grammys.

In a statement made to The New York Times, The Weeknd said, “Because of the secret committees, I will no longer allow my label to submit my music to the Grammys.”

In response to The Weeknd’s statement, interim Recording Academy president/CEO Harvey Mason Jr. told the publication, “We’re all disappointed when anyone is upset. But I will say that we are constantly evolving. And this year, as in past years, we are going to take a hard look at how to improve our awards process, including the nomination review committees.”

In an email interview with the publication, The Weeknd’s manager, Wassim Slaiby, said he was unclear why his client didn’t earn any nominations and noted, “We were many weeks and dozens of calls in with the Grammy team around Abel’s performance right up to the day of nominations being announced. We were scratching our heads in confusion and wanted answers.”

He also said, “The Grammys should handle their legacy and clean it up to raise the bar to a level where everyone could be proud to hold up that award. This is Harvey’s chance to step up and have his legacy be the guy who got the Grammys finally right.”

Read the full New York Times feature here.

The Weeknd’s ‘Blinding Lights’ Was The Best-Selling Song Of 2020

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Next week marks one year since The Weeknd released his acclaimed album After Hours. Since then, the singer has had many accomplishments. He was invited to perform at the Super Bowl half time show, and even honored with his own day by Toronto’s mayor. Now, The Weeknd can claim another impressive achievement: “Blinding Lights” was officially the best-selling song of 2020.

According to a year-end report released by the International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry (IFPI), “Blinding Lights” sold more units globally than any other song last year. Coming behind him in second place is Tones And I with her 2019 track “Dance Monkey,” followed by Roddy Ricch’s “The Box,” Saint Jhn’s “Roses,” and Dua Lipa’s “Don’t Start Now.”

While The Weeknd had the highest-performing song of the year, he wasn’t the best-selling artist. That title was recently given to BTS after they had a wildly successful year. The Weeknd did, however, come in at fourth place behind Drake and Taylor Swift.

News of the massive success of “Blinding Lights” arrives shortly after the song secured another feat. On Monday, “Blinding Lights” became the first single to ever spend a full year in the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. “After Hours was always meant to be a very personal project. It’s a story I had to tell,” The Weeknd told Billboard about his chart victory. “The fact I’ve been able to tell it with the world listening is incredible. This Billboard chart record is truly a result of the fans. I’m so humbled and forever grateful to them.”

Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

The Weeknd’s ‘Blinding Lights’ Is The First Song To Spend A Full Year In The Top 10 Of The Hot 100

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As it stands now, it seems to be Olivia Rodrigo’s world: It was just revealed that “Drivers License” is the No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for an eight consecutive week. Looking at the charts a different way, though, the world may actually belong to The Weeknd, as he just pulled off a spectacular feat that has never been done before.

“Blinding Lights” (which, as a reminder, was released as a single way back in November 2019), is No. 3 on the latest Hot 100, dated March 13. This is the song’s 52nd week in the top 10 of the chart, making it the first tune to ever spend a full year in the top 10. If the track can somehow remain in the top 5 spots for another 9 weeks (which doesn’t seem outlandish at this point), it’ll become the first song to spend a year in the top 5 as well. As of now, it has 43 top-5 weeks (which is a record), 52 weeks in the top 10, 58 weeks in the top 20 (which is second all-time), 61 weeks in the top 40 (tied for third all-time), and 65 weeks on the chart overall (tied for seventh-most all-time.)

Simply put, no song has ever dominated the Hot 100 quite like “Blinding Lights” has. On a bafflingly unrelated note, the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony is this weekend, where The Weeknd managed to secure exactly 0 nominations.

The Weeknd Makes More History As ‘Blinding Lights’ Crosses A Rare Streaming Milestone

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The Weeknd released “Blinding Lights” as a single back in late 2019. Remarkably, it hasn’t really left the top of the charts: On the latest Hot 100 revealed on Monday, it’s still at No. 4. The song just keeps on making history and now it has passed another impressive milestone: Chart Data reports that “Blinding Lights” has eclipsed 2 billion streams on Spotify and it did so faster than any other song ever has.

As of now, only three other songs have more Spotify streams that “Blinding Lights,” and they are Ed Sheeran’s “Shape Of You” (about 2.72 billion), Post Malone and 21 Savage’s “Rockstar” (2.12 billion), and Tones And I’s “Dance Monkey” (2.1 billion). Meanwhile, The Weeknd has a handful of other songs in the list of Spotify’s 100 most streamed songs: His Daft Punk collaboration “Starboy” is 19th with 1.52 billion streams, “The Hills” is No. 75 with 1.6 billion, and “Can’t Feel My Face” is No. 91 with 1.11 billion.

Speaking of Daft Punk, The Weeknd talked about the recently disbanded duo in a newly resurfaced interview quote, saying, “Oh my God — that’s different. Those guys are one of the reasons I make music, so I can’t even compare them to other people. Their branding and how seriously they take their craft and image and everything — they’re almost not even real. But seriously, they’re very strategic, they’re very smart, and they don’t attach themselves to anything they feel isn’t right.”

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.