Have you ever wondered what the net worth of the Weeknd is? The Canadian singer, songwriter, and producer is worth a fortune.
He has become an icon with countless hits and accolades.
As of May 2023, The Weeknd has a net worth of $300 million.
This post will dive into how he achieved such large amounts of wealth.
Early Life
Makkonen and Samra Tesfaye migrated from Ethiopia to Scarborough, Ontario, in the 1980s, where they had their first and only child, Abel, AKA The Weeknd, on February 16, 1990.
Unfortunately, his father abandoned him as a child, causing Able to be raised mainly by his mother and grandmother.
His mother worked two full-time jobs and attended night school to support the family.
Able attended two schools during his childhood: West Hills collegiate institute and Birchmount Park collegiate institute.
The school wasn’t his strong suit, and he was expelled from one and withdrew from the other after only six months of attendance.
After realizing he no longer wanted to attend school, he moved out to live with some friends in a one-bedroom residence and dedicated his life to music.
Career: Early Stages
His stage name comes from dropping out of high school and leaving his family’s house “one weekend and never returning.”
After a few years of making music on his own, The Weekend met Jeremy Rose, a producer.
Rose had been playing with the concept of “black R&B” for a while and saw The Weeknd as the appropriate superstar to spearhead the movement.
Rose created numerous tracks on which The Weeknd sang on. The Weeknd then uploaded the music to YouTube, where he quickly gained a big following, even catching Drake’s attention.
House of Balloons, The Weeknd’s first notable release, was a mixtape. The CD featured tracks from several producers, including Jeremy Rose.
The project was a great success, and Drake praised him again. Drake also went to The Weeknd’s initial gigs and later approached him about collaborating.
The two Canadian artists subsequently went on tour together, with The Weeknd mostly functioning as Drake’s opening act.
After releasing two additional mixtapes, The Weeknd was approached by many major record labels interested in signing him.
Career: Superstar Status
After touring around the United States and Europe in 2012, The Weeknd signed a partnership with Republic Records, including creating his own, XO.
XO Records, The Weeknd’s record label, is a subsidiary of Republic Records.
Trilogy was published during their relationship, a compilation of The Weeknd’s first three mixtapes. The album performed well, reaching number four on the US Billboard 200.
His first studio album, Kiss Land, was published a year later. The album included Drake on several tracks and debuted at number two on the US Billboard top 200.
The Weeknd spent the next few years touring and working with artists like Justin Timberlake and Ariana Grande.
The Weeknd’s second studio album, Beauty Behind the Madness, was released in 2015. In its first week of release, the album sold 412,000 copies, sending it to the top of the Billboard 200.
It eventually went platinum after selling 1.5 million copies worldwide.
With three platinum-certified singles, The Weeknd became the first male artist to simultaneously hold the top three places on the Billboard Hot R&B Chart.
In 2016 he released his third studio album Starboy. Daft Punk, a well-known French electronica band, made multiple appearances on the album.
After collaborating with various other musicians and touring again, The Weeknd released My Dear Melancholy in 2018.
This is where The Weeknd really saw his net worth start to take off. In 2017, he set a Guinness World Record for the Most Streamed Album on Spotify in a single year.
The Weeknd has since released two studio albums, After Hours (2020) and Dawn FM (2022). The former broke the record for the most pre-adds for an album in Apple Music Industry.
The latter debuted at number 2 on the Billboard 200 and sold 148,000 album units.
Awards
The Weekend has dominated the music industry and has the accolades to show.
He has four Grammys, twenty Billboard Music Awards, six American Music Awards, two MTV Video Music Awards, and seventeen Juno Awards.
He has also received nominations for an Academy Award, a Latin Grammy Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award.
The Weekend received the Allan Slaight Honour in October 2014 from Canada’s Walk of Fame for, “having a beneficial influence in the realms of music, film, literature, visual or performing arts, sports, innovation, or philanthropy.”
To commemorate his Super Bowl halftime performance, Toronto Mayor John Tory announced February 7, 2021, as “The Weeknd Day.”
Business Ventures
In addition to his success as an artist, he has become quite a businessman, and his involvement in various industries has positively contributed to his wealth.
In 2016, a talent agency WME-IMG paid $4 billion for UFC, utilizing celebrity-financed aid to obtain such a high price.
The Weekend and big names such as Calvin Harris, Adam Levine, LL Cool J, Jimmy Kimmel, Conan O’Brien, and others pledged at least $250,000 to the cause.
The Weeknd has collaborated with condom companies, e-cigarette companies, and Marvel. He also serves as a Puma brand ambassador and is one of Apple Music’s “faces.”
The Weeknd is also a fashion enthusiast who offers his own “XO” branded merchandise. He collaborates with brands such as A Bathing Ape and designers such as Alexander Wang.
The Weekend Net Worth
As of May 2023, The Weeknd has a net worth of $300 million. His music sales, touring, merchandise, and streaming have allowed him to accumulate this wealth.
He could then branch into the business world, and his ventures created another income stream for the icon.
As time goes on, his worth will continue to grow, and his name will remain at the top of the charts.
Key Takeaways
Take a risk
The Weekend left his home one Weekend to chase his dreams and never came back. While this is unique and risky, he was willing to put all his eggs in one basket and commit his life to music. The move panned out, and now he’s worth millions.
Sometimes you have to jump and trust your gut. It may be the move that takes your career to another level.
Diversify your income sources
The Weekend has made sure to create several different streams of income. This ensures that if one area of his business declines, he will still have other areas to rely on.
This is an intelligent way to protect your wealth and ensure long-term success.