At midnight on January 7, The Weeknd dropped his long-awaited album “Dawn FM”. Snippets of his song “Is There Someone Else?” have been circulating TikTok and have dominated the current trends. Due to the eerie synths and the electric beat, many of his fans speculated that “Dawn FM” would be similar to his other projects like, “Trilogy” or “Kiss Land”, but his album has more of any 80’s vibe to it.
Personally, I was a little disappointed with the album, and I was very surprised with the cover photo he chose. To me, the songs were a little repetitive and they lacked The Weeknd’s usual luster. “Dawn FM” includes features from Tyler, The Creator and Lil Wayne, and he includes the single he released in August, “Take My Breath”. I’m surprised that he didn’t include his most recent single with Post Malone, “One Right Now” which has already gained more than 100,000,000 steams on Spotify since November 2021.
My current favorite on the album has to be, “Is There Someone Else?” due to its memorizing beat and it will surely hit the charts in the near future. It encapsulates The Weeknd’s toxic, dark and lyrical tunes, and it matches his iconic sound.
In pop culture, the 80’s have a strong hold on current music, clothes and trends. Mom-jeans, white shoes, hairstyles, bright clothes, and colors are making a comeback, and these effects have leaked into the music industry. The Weeknd’s new album isn’t the first to copy the 80s disco theme, and many R&B fans are already comparing “Dawn FM” to Tory Lanez’ album “Alone At Prom”. Both albums have hints from this era, and it is evident that 2022 will continue to embody parts of the 80s. Although pop culture seems to want more from this time period, many of The Weeknd’s fans were disappointed at this album’s release because his eerie tunes were lost. “Dawn FM” is more mainstream and pop sounding than his previous projects, and I believe that it isn’t some of his best work.
As a Weeknd fan, I am excited to see how this album will age. According to Apple Music, “Dawn FM” is the #1 global album today, and I am curious to see how other people will react to it. Did he kill it or is this a flop?