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The Weeknd, a Canadian artist with an Ethiopian heritage has recorded a new musical record and shattered the record held by the late Michael Jackson for a long time.
The artist who recently announced that he uses his real name in music, Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, set a new record, this time surpassing Michael Jackson to hold the title of the highest-grossing tour in the history of a Black artist, the CBC said.
The Toronto R&B star has been on his After Hours Till Dawn tour since summer 2022, and is currently on the European leg of the tour, performing in countries including Germany, France and Spain.
The Weeknd's tour, in support of his two releases of After Hours and Dawn FM, is set to end in Mexico this October. The tour has already earned more than $350 million.
Until now, Michael Jackson held this tour record for his ill-fated 1987 tour, which earned $311 million after adjusting for inflation (as calculated by Hot New Hip Hop).
The Weeknd indirectly acknowledged this new record by posting a video of himself singing Jackson's 1988 hit "Dirty Diana" at his concert in Belgium.
"My King, then, now and forever. Rest easy," he wrote in the caption. Jackson has been a longtime influence on the Weeknd's music.
Back in 2016, he told the Los Angeles Times: "Michael, the man, the man was a star. He discovered a star.
There will never be another Michael. I want to make it clear that I'm not trying to be Michael.
He's everything to me, so you'll hear it in my music." In addition to this latest record, The Weeknd's HBO concert special, Live at Sofi Stadium, earned two Emmy Award nominations today, for lighting design/direction and technical direction/camera.
