Starboy (album)
Starboy is the third studio album by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd, released on November 25, 2016, through XO and Republic Records. It features guest appearances from Daft Punk, Lana Del Rey, Kendrick Lamar, and Future. As the album's executive producers, the Weeknd and Doc McKinney enlisted a variety of producers such as Diplo, Cashmere Cat, Metro Boomin, Frank Dukes, and Labrinth, among others.
Starboy
November 25, 2016
2016[1]
- Conway
- Henson
- MXM
- Westlake Beverly (Los Angeles)
- Downtown
- Matza Ball (New York City)
- Gang (Paris)
- MXM
- Wolf Cousins (Stockholm)
- The Treehouse X (Suffolk)
68:40
- Ali Payami
- Ali Shaheed Muhammad
- Ben Billions
- Benny Blanco
- Bobby Raps
- Cashmere Cat
- Cirkut
- Daft Punk
- Diplo
- Doc McKinney
- Frank Dukes
- Jake One
- Labrinth
- Max Martin
- Mano
- Metro Boomin
- Swish
- the Weeknd
Starboy was supported by eight singles, including the US Billboard Hot 100 number-ones "Starboy" and "Die for You" (which topped the chart following a remix with Ariana Grande), and the top-five single "I Feel It Coming". It received generally favorable reviews from critics and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 348,000 album-equivalent units (209,000 of which were pure sales), becoming the Weeknd's second consecutive number-one album. It also debuted at number one on Billboard's Canadian Albums Chart. Starboy won Best Urban Contemporary Album at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards in 2018, marking the Weeknd's second win in that category. As of April 2022, the album is certified four-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In 2023, the Weeknd released a deluxe version that contains three additional previously remixed releases: "Starboy" (Kygo remix), "Die For You" (with Ariana Grande), and "Reminder" (featuring ASAP Rocky and Young Thug).
Composition[edit]
Primarily a R&B[2] and pop album,[3][15] Starboy incorporates elements of new wave,[4] disco,[16] dance-punk,[17] electro-rock,[18] electropop,[19] electro-dance,[3] 2-step,[20] trap,[15] and disco-house.[21] Lyrical themes include celebrity extravagance, braggadocio, romance and materialism.[22]
Promotion[edit]
Singles[edit]
On September 21, 2016, the album's lead single, "Starboy", was released digitally on music stores and streaming services. The song features guest appearances from French electronic duo Daft Punk.[23][24] The music video for the song premiered on September 28.[25] The song peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100.[26]
"False Alarm" was released digitally as the album's second single on September 29, 2016.[27][28] The song peaked at number 55 on the Billboard Hot 100.[26]
"I Feel It Coming" was serviced to British contemporary hit radio on November 24, 2016,[29] and later to rhythmic contemporary radio on December 6, 2016, as the album's third single.[30][31] The song peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100.[26]
"Party Monster" was released to urban contemporary radio on December 6, 2016, as the album's fourth single.[32] The song peaked at number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100.[26]
"Reminder" was released to rhythmic contemporary radio on May 9, 2017, as the album's fifth single in the United States.[33] The song peaked at number 31 on the Billboard Hot 100.[26]
"Rockin'" was released to contemporary hit radio in France on May 9, 2017, as the album's sixth international single.[34] The song peaked at number 44 on the Billboard Hot 100.[26]
"Die for You" was released to rhythmic contemporary radio on September 19, 2017, as the album's sixth single in the United States.[35] The song peaked at number 43 on the Billboard Hot 100 during its original run and achieved a new peak of number six in January 2023.[26][36] Following a remix with Ariana Grande, the song peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 2023.[37] Directed by Christian Breslauer, the music video of "Die For You" was surprise-released in 2021, as part of the 5th anniversary of Starboy's release.[38]
"Secrets" was released to radio in Italy on November 10, 2017, as the album's eighth and final international single.[39] The song peaked at number 47 on the Billboard Hot 100.[26]
Performances[edit]
The Weeknd was a musical guest on the season 42 season premiere of Saturday Night Live. He promoted the album by performing both "Starboy" and "False Alarm" and starred in a brief cameo on the "Weeknd Update" sketch, where he acknowledged his new haircut.[40] On November 20, 2016, the Weeknd sang "Starboy" at the 2016 American Music Awards.[41] Four days later, the Weeknd appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to perform both "I Feel It Coming" and "Starboy".[42] On December 6, he performed at the 2016 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show on CBS.[43] On February 12, 2017, the Weeknd and Daft Punk performed at the 2017 Grammy Awards.[44]
On November 25, 2016, all of the album's tracks played throughout the Weeknd's interview with Zane Lowe for Beats 1.[45]
Short film[edit]
On November 23, 2016, the Weeknd released a 12-minute-long short film in promotion of the album, directed by Grant Singer, who also directed the "Starboy" music video. Named Mania,[46][47][48][49] it features the songs such as "All I Know" featuring Future, "Sidewalks" featuring Kendrick Lamar, "Secrets", "Die for You", "Party Monster" and "I Feel It Coming" featuring Daft Punk.[46][47][48][49] It stars French model Anais Mali as the female protagonist.[50]
Commercial performance[edit]
In the United States, Starboy debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with 348,000 album-equivalent units, calculated from 209,000 pure album sales and 175.2 million on-demand streams. It marked the Weeknd's second consecutive number-one album and the third-largest debut sales week of 2016.[74] At the time, Starboy had the second-largest streaming week for an album ever behind Drake's Views.[74] All 18 songs from the album charted on the Billboard Hot 100. It marked the second-best total simultaneous Hot 100 entries at the time, after Drake charted 20 songs at the same time in May 2016.[75] Starboy was ranked as the third most successful album of 2017 on the Billboard 200.[76] It was the fourth most-streamed album of 2017 on Spotify.[77]
On April 5, 2022, Starboy was certified four-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined sales and streams in excess of four million units in the United States.[78]
Notes
Sample credits