History YMMV / TheWeeknd

* AwardSnub: Fans and pop music nerds alike were shocked when the 2021 Grammy nominations were announced and Abel was completely shut out, even though 2020 was a major year for him with ''After Hours'' and "Blinding Lights" from the album becoming huge critical and commercial successes. Because of this, [[https://genius.com/a/the-weeknd-says-he-will-no-longer-allow-his-label-to-submit-his-music-for-grammys-consideration?utm_source=twitter he has completely excluded his future label releases from being submitted for Grammy consideration entirely]]. This was amplified somewhat when the eventual winner of Record of the Year, the Grammys' biggest award, was Music/BillieEilish. As [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1371326767722459143 this tweet]] by WebVideo/ToddInTheShadows points out, the Grammys didn't nominate the Weeknd for ''anything'' yet gave their biggest award to the one artist who neither needs it or even actually wants it.

* AwardSnub: Fans and pop music nerds alike were shocked when the 2021 Grammy nominations were announced and Abel was completely shut out, even though 2020 was a major year for him with ''After Hours'' and "Blinding Lights" from the album becoming huge critical and commercial successes. Because of this, [[https://genius.com/a/the-weeknd-says-he-will-no-longer-allow-his-label-to-submit-his-music-for-grammys-consideration?utm_source=twitter he has completely excluded his future label releases from being submitted for Grammy consideration entirely]]. This was amplified somewhat when the eventual winner of Record of the Year, the Grammy's biggest award, was Music/BillieEilish. As [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1371326767722459143 this tweet]] by WebVideo/ToddInTheShadows points out, the Grammy's didn't nominate the Weeknd for ''anything'' yet gave their biggest award to the one artist who neither needs it or even actually wants it.

* AwardSnub: Fans and pop music nerds alike were shocked when the 2021 Grammy nominations were announced and Abel was completely shut out, even though 2020 was a major year for him with ''After Hours'' and "Blinding Lights" from the album becoming huge critical and commercial successes. Because of this, [[https://genius.com/a/the-weeknd-says-he-will-no-longer-allow-his-label-to-submit-his-music-for-grammys-consideration?utm_source=twitter he has completely excluded his future label releases from being submitted for Grammy consideration entirely]].
** Amplified somewhat when the eventual winner of Record of the Year, the Grammy's biggest award, was Music/BillieEilish. [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1371326767722459143 As this tweet points out]], the Grammy's didn't nominate the Weeknd for ''anything'' yet gave their biggest award to the one artist who neither needs it or even actually wants it.

* SignatureSong: "Can't Feel My Face", although "Earned It" and "The Hills" are not far behind. “Blinding Lights” has the distinction of being seen by many as the SignatureSong of 2020 itself given it was the biggest hit song released before the COVID-19 pandemic and remained near the top of the charts for the remainder of the year, even after other hit songs would see release.

** Amplified somewhat when the eventual winner of Record of the Year, the Grammy's biggest award, was Billie Eilish. [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1371326767722459143 As this tweet points out]], the Grammy's didn't nominate the Weeknd for ''anything'' yet gave their biggest award to the one artist who neither needs it or even actually wants it.

* AwardSnub: Fans and pop music nerds alike were shocked when the 2021 Grammy nominations were announced and Abel was completely shut out, even though 2020 was a major year for him with ''After Hours'' and "Blinding Lights" from the album becoming huge critical and commercial successes.

* AndYouThoughtItWouldFail: "Earned It"'s runaway success on radio was completely unexpected, as it was rather unlike anything heard on pop radio. Additionally, the song was on the ''Film/FiftyShadesOfGrey'' soundtrack and looked like it would be dubiously overshadowed by the cleaner and more radio-friendly "Love Me Like You Do" by the much more established Music/EllieGoulding.

* HarsherInHindsight: His song "Blinding Light" features the line "I look around and Sin City's cold and empty". Just four months later, Las Vegas, along with the rest of Nevada, would be locked down due to the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic.
* IAmNotShazam: An inversion, in his early days many people thought The Weeknd was a band.

** His [[CosmeticHorror face]] in the "Save Your Tears" music video has fans refer to him as [[WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants Handsome Squidward]]. His appearance and mannerisms have also drawn parallels to [[Film/TheMask The Mask]] and [[Film/Joker2019 The Joker]].
** Him going around in the bright, narrow, house of mirrors-like hall under the stage in the UsefulNotes/SuperBowl LV halftime show looking around like he's lost, and holding the camera like a selfie cam bringing it back and forth away and towards him.
* MisaimedFandom: As with most music that features copious drug abuse and an UnreliableNarrator, there's a certain subset of the fandom that takes the whole thing at face value. Abel himself lampshades this trope in "Reminder", talking how he was nominated for a Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award for "Can't Feel My Face".

* OneSceneWonder: The mysterious appearance of [[spoiler: Music/DaftPunk]] in TheStinger of the video for "I Feel It Coming" is one of the most-talked about things of said video, with many demanding to know [[MindScrew what it means from them.]]

* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids: He is a perennial favorite of Nickelodeon’s Kids Choice Awards despite his work containing strong language, explicit sexual content and pervasive themes of drug abuse. He even talks about this phenomenon in “Reminder”.

* HarsherInHindsight: His song "Blinding Light" features the line "I look around and Sin City's cold and empty". Just four months later, Las Vegas, along with the rest of Nevada, would be locked down due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

** Him going around in the bright, narrow, house of mirrors-like hall under the stage in the UsefulNotes/SuperBowlLV halftime show looking around like he's lost, and holding the camera like a selfie cam bringing it back and forth away and towards him.

* MemeticMutation: His [[CosmeticHorror face]] in the "Save Your Tears" music video has fans refer to him as [[WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants Handsome Squidward]]. His appearance and mannerisms have also drawn parallels to [[Film/TheMask The Mask]] and [[Film/Joker2019 The Joker]].

** "Blinding Lights" is basically Rod Stewart's "Young Turks" with the drum track from A-ha's "Take On Me".

* UncannyValley: His face in the "Save Your Tears" music video is quite unsettling, with bloated facial features and scarring on the sides implying he had extensive botox/plastic surgery procedures.

* UncannyValley: His face in the "Save Your Tears" music video is quite unsettling.

* MemeticMutation: His [[CosmeticHorror face]] in the "Save Your Tears" music video has fans refer to him as 'Handsome Squidward'. His appearance and mannerisms have also drawn parallels to The Mask and The Joker.

* MemeticMutation: His [[CosmeticHorror face]] in the "Save Your Tears" music video ends up making fans refer to him as 'Handsome Squidward'.

* MemeticMutation: His [[CosmeticHorror face]] in "Save Your Tears" ends up making fans refer to him as 'Handsome Squidward'.

* SignatureSong: "Can't Feel My Face", although "Earned It" and "The Hills" are not far behind.