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Who Is The Weeknd?
Abel Tesfaye, also known as The Weeknd, is a Canadian singer and producer. He’s one of the world’s best-selling musicians, having won three Grammys and sold over 100 million albums.
When asked why he chose to forgo the ‘e’ and be known as The Weeknd instead of The Weekend, the singer revealed in a Reddit AMA that it was due to copyright issues. He wanted a stage name and thought The Weekend sounded perfect, but a Canadian band already had that name, so he omitted the vowel. It definitely makes his stage name more memorable!
Who Is Selena Gomez?
Selena Gomez is an American actress and singer. In her early teens, she was one of Disney’s most popular young actresses, starring in the hit series Wizards of Waverly Place as Alex Russo. She moved on to making films like Princess Protection Program and Ramona and Beezus, before taking a more mature turn in the 2012 crime film Spring Breakers.
Selena is also a multi-awarded singer, with top-ten hits like Hands To Myself and Good For You. She has two number-one albums, 2013’s Stars Dance and 2015’s Revival. On top of selling millions of albums worldwide, she’s also an executive producer of the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why.
Their Famous Exes
Before The Weeknd and Selena became an item, they were both in long-term, very public relationships! The Weeknd had been dating Victoria’s Secret supermodel Bella Hadid in early 2015, and she starred in the video for his single In The Night. The two were spotted at Coachella and went to the 2016 Grammy Awards together, then suddenly broke up in November 2016 due to scheduling problems.
Selena was half of the famous Jelena, having had an on-and-off relationship with singer Justin Bieber since 2010. They were one of Young Hollywood’s power couples, and despite their rocky history, many fans were heartbroken that the two didn’t end up together. Justin and Selena often blew hot and cold due to Justin’s reported cheating, and they broke up multiple times over the years before she started dating The Weeknd in 2017.
A Whirlwind Romance
The Weeknd and Selena Gomez first sparked dating rumours back in January 2017, when they were seen kissing outside a restaurant in Santa Monica. He then dropped the video for his song Party Monster, where all the lookalikes of the actress confirmed that these lyrics were about her and not Latina chanteuse Selena Quintanilla: “Ooh, she mine, ooh girl, bump a line. Angelina, lips like Angelina, like Selena, ass shaped like Selena.”
The Weeknd posted stories on Instagram featuring the Selena as they travelled in Italy. Selena even flew to Paris in February to support him during a gig! Despite these cute snaps, the two didn’t comment on whether they were an item at this point.
They finally confirmed the relationship in April 2017, when The Weeknd posted a picture of Selena kissing his cheek, then stepped out in public at Coachella. The two were engaged in some super-sweet PDA after The Weeknd’s set, and fans were supportive of their budding romance.
They Tried To Take The Relationship Slowly
The Weeknd and Selena made another appearance as a couple at the Met Gala in 2017, where the pair snuggled up to each other and had their first red carpet kiss! It seemed like everything was going perfectly between them, with Selena bringing her family to one of his concerts, and The Weeknd supporting her new tracks and gigs. He even scheduled his tour to have a break in the summer of 2017, so he would be around to support his girlfriend as she recovered from her kidney transplant. Now that’s love!
Despite moving in together temporarily in Greenwich Village, the two kept separate mansions in Los Angeles. Though they bought those homes separately, they still had date nights and made another red carpet appearance for the Harper's Bazaar Celebration of Icons in September 2017.
Love On The Rocks
Fans were shocked when the pair split up in October 2017. Their lovey-dovey posts on social media meant everyone was clueless when they allegedly split up due to the challenge of a long-distance relationship. It didn’t help that just a day after the news broke, Selena was spotted grabbing breakfast with ex Justin!
The Weeknd soon got back together with his own ex, Bella Hadid, before they finally called it quits in 2019. Similarly, Selena may have been seen with Justin, and they only reunited briefly and broke up again in March 2018. Justin has since gotten married to model Hailey Baldwin, and the two are expecting their first child.
Musical Disses: The Weeknd Hints At Drama
Nobody really bought it when the two said scheduling was the problem, so when The Weeknd took the stage at Coachella in 2018 for a performance of post-breakup song Call Out My Name, fans were quick to scrutinise the lyrics of the song and see if they were about his Selena.
Some of the emotionally-charged lyrics seemed to hint that there was no hope of reconciliation between them, and that he felt like a rebound. “Tell me why you let me come inside for real. Nevermind, you were never mine for real,” and, “Honestly, I think this shit excites you, all that drama that you're tied to” were lines that people interpreted to be about Selena. It didn’t help that the Canadian singer appeared to be distraught and crying throughout the performance!
We’ll never know for sure if the song is about her, but we can be pretty certain that they’re not getting back together.
Maybe It Was Never Meant To Work Out Between Them
When you look at their happy posts on social media and paparazzi snaps of their PDA, it’s easy to see why everyone was blindsided by their breakup. And although it might seem like they had the perfect relationship, maybe their issues were just too much to overcome.
Now that they have moved on from the split and are focusing on their future projects, we hope these two talented musicians can keep things civil!
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