Synthwave musician Astrophysics programmed iconic Japanese vocaloid Hatsune Miku to sing the The Weeknd’s hit track Save Your Tears. The fat electronic sounds are the perfect complement to the synthesized vocals, and fit right in with The Weeknd’s 1980s vibe.
During the 2021 Billboard Music Awards, The Weeknd performed in a live music video that must have taken weeks to plan. The sequence features the singer amid a fleet of vintage cars, as stunt drivers performed precisely choreographed maneuvers – both with the singer inside and outside the vehicles.
Sampling has been a common practice in music production since the 1970s. In this video from musician and vlogger Roomie, he checks out some of the more creative reuses of old music in hit songs by Daft Punk, The Weeknd, Drake, Britney Spears and more. For more sampled sources, head down the rabbit hole at WhoSampled.
We already know that Anthony Vincent is an expert vocal impressionist. He’s also great at rearranging songs into different styles. This time, he took The Weeknd’s hit Blinding Lights and took advantage of its ’80s influenced sounds to turn it into a Depeche Mode song.
Guitarist Luca Stricagnoli takes on The Weeknd f/Daft Punk track I Feel It Coming. While we still love the buttery smooth vocals and electronic grooves of the original, Luca’s masterful plucking and strumming is equally pleasing to our ears.
(PG-13: Lyrics) Anthony Vincent of Ten Second Songs takes on the Radiohead classic Creep, first with an impression of Thom Yorke, then belting out unique interpretations in the styles of David Bowie, Luther Vandross, and more. The Hollies and Lana Del Ray bits were a clever nod to accusations of plagiarism.
What happens when you combine the power rock vocals of DragonForce’s track Through the Fire and Flames with the ’80s-soaked synth beats of The Weeknd’s Blinding Lights? As YouTube commenter Ozan Emre Keser put it, you end up with a Journey song you never heard before. A stellar mashup from William Maranci.
The official music video for “Snowchild” pairs cinematic, anime imagery with The Weeknd’s autobiographical track about his quick rise to fame and fortune, his struggles with drugs, and the challenges that come with celebrity life. Directed by Arthell Isom of D’ART Shtajio.
Musician and blank-starer Seth Everman is an expert at deconstructing songs and figuring out how to replicate them. This time out, he shows us his method for playing The Weeknd’s hit Blinding Lights using his couch, a toilet, and various other things around his house. Naturally, he still needed his keyboard for the ’80s synth bits.
Musician and YouTuber Dan Mace likes to make sounds using mundane objects. After a viewer bet he couldn’t make music using bricks, he rose to the challenge, using the blocks to create all kinds of noises for a cover of The Weeknd’s hit Blinding Lights.
New Zealand indie band The Naked and Famous dropped by Australia’s Triple J studios, where they put their unique spin onto The Weeknd’s 2020 hit Blinding Lights, picking up on the track’s 1980s-inspired electronic sounds, while Alisa Xayalith’s vocals give it a warmer and richer sound.
The guys from Pomplamoose are back with another great mashup, this time combining Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean, Justin Timberlake’s Can’t Stop the Feeling, and The Weeknd’s Can’t Feel My Face into a single seamless track. It’s basically the live equivalent of a dance mix.
(PG-13: Language) Zveki put together this fantastic mashup of music from Phil Collins, Michael Jackson, and The Weeknd. The track blends together Starboy, In the Air Tonight, and They Don’t Care About Us, resulting in They Don’t Care About the Starboy in the Air.
The Weeknd’s second collaboration with Daft Punk has been bestowed with a gloriously retro sci-fi video courtesy of director Warren Fu. The richly layered track and its accompanying video bring back memories The King of Pop himself.
(PG-13: Language) DJ Flipboitamidles mashed up C418’s remix of the Stranger Things title theme with The Weeknd and Daft Punk’s megahit Starboy, resulting in a more textured darkwave track. The lyric video is dope too.
(PG-13: Language) Daft Punk produced the music for The Weeknd’s latest hit Starboy. But what if it was the other way around and Daft Punk invited The Weeknd to sing on their terms? YouTuber samuraiguitarist might have the answer.
Musician Andrew Huang made this clever cover version of The Weeknd’s Can’t Feel My Face using title-appropriate instruments – dental tools. He should think about doing a cover of Novocaine for the Soul using the same gimmick.
