The Weeknd released a new album on January 7th, 2022 for the first time in nearly two years. The album was met by an excited and hopeful audience. The last time the Weeknd released an album was March 20th 2020. Just a few days after the start of the COVID-19 lock down.
That album was called After hours and did not disappoint. The album displayed the Weeknd at his emotional rock bottom. The album was dark and represented the hard times that he faced. The new album Dawn FM is slightly less dark and has some optimistic aspects.
Opposed to After Hours, Dawn FM is more peaceful. The overall sound of the album is much lighter. Dawn FM has a very 80’s R&B vibe to it, with lots of synths and futuristic sounds. Dawn FM is a more upbeat album compared to After Hours. It has more tracks on it then Dawn FM, which fans seem to love, as it is the perfect length. It is not too long to the point where the listener loses interest.
The masters behind the amazing sounds of this album are Max Martin and Daniel Lopatin aka Oneohtrix Point Never, these also helped to produce the last album. After hours had far more producers on it.
Dawn Fm has fewer features as well. The only two people that are featured on Dawn FM are Tyler the creator, Lil Wayne and Jim Carrey. Tyler features on the track “Here we go again”. On this track both artists speak about past relationships and how they’re now ready to move on.
Lil Wayne features on the track, “I heard you’re married ”. This track is about the narrator falling in love with a girl only to find out that she’s already married. Jim carrey acts as radio dj in the first track on the album. He speaks in a very calm, inviting and warm way, saying that “You’ve been in the dark for way too long, it’s time to walk into the light and accept your fate with open arms”. This hints at the transition from the dark hard times to the lighter and softer new reality that The Weeknd is trying to establish with this album.
The Weeknd wanted the album to feel like a pop dance radio station that makes you want to dance, He achieved that. Adding Jim Carrey to the album as a radio dj was the effective cherry on top. This really finished off the album and made it truly feel like a radio station.
On January 10, 2022, The Weeknd posted a short message on his twitter account saying “I wonder…did you know you’re experiencing a new trilogy?” The Weeknd is hinting that there will be a third album. Let’s see how amazing the next one is.
