Four-time Grammy Award winner Abel Tesfaye, better known by his stage name The Weeknd, headlined at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium on August 6. Taking place in the heart of Florida, this alluring performance was the eighth stop on the artist’s After Hours til Dawn tour.

Since the early 2010s, The Weeknd has grown to fame with his contemporary blend of R&B and hip-hop music. He gained prominence with hits like “Starboy,” “Can’t Feel My Face,” and “Save Your Tears.” Fans of the artist are intrigued by his mystical persona and vocal versatility. 

After Hours til Dawn is a promotional tour highlighting The Weeknd’s 2020 hit album After Hours as well as his 2022 album Dawn FM. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the acclaimed artist was not able to tour in 2020 when After Hours was initially released. Instead, he performed the tour’s first show in July of this year. 

The tour includes venues across North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and South America. Award-winning producers Mike Dean and Kaytranada open for the majority of the tours’ shows 

After Hours is the Toronto-native’s fourth studio album. Its production was predominantly done by The Weeknd himself, with help from hip-hop legend Metro Boomin. The album explores themes of debauchery, self-image issues, and heartbreak. A notable aspect of The Weeknd’s work, his lyrics tend to be uplifting despite the songs’ sad themes, such as heartbreak.

Three singles on the album reached the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 list: “Heartless,” “Blinding Lights,” and “In Your Eyes.” After Hours received the largest amount of global album pre-adds in history. 

“I was surprised to see no features on the album,” claimed Olympic Heights junior Artyom Medved. The album was controversially noted for its lack of featured artists. However, a remixed version of the album features famed rapper Lil Uzi Vert.

His performance at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium began with “Gasoline,” a funk song dedicated to his current lover. He followed this strong opener with “Sacrifice” and “How Do I Make You Love Me?” from Dawn FM. OH sophomore Risith Kancherla explained that ”He had a very strong start to the show.”

The Weeknd’s began to perform several hit songs from albums including Beauty Behind the Madness, Starboy, and Dawn FM. The industry star even played his famed feature verses on singles by Kanye West and Drake. When performing “The Hills,” the crowd went absolutely crazy. The first song played from After Hours was the hit “Heartless.” He followed this with more of his features on singles by Future and Ty Dolla $ign. He also included his 2013 throwback hit “Kiss Land.” 

After performing additional songs from Dawn FM, The Weeknd even performed his famed throwback hit “Party Monster.” This song explores the love-hate relationship he has with his nightlife activities. He then continued with more songs from After Hours, including the title track itself.

Many concert-goers were surprised to hear “Less than Zero,” an infrequently streamed single on Dawn FM. The artist finished his concert with “Blinding Lights,” a sensation in the pop industry.

With the final show taking place in his hometown of Toronto, it is safe to say that After Hours til Dawn has been a successful tour. If the remaining shows on the tour are anywhere close to his Miami performance in terms of overall energy and quality, then The Weeknd has taken a major win.