My Dear Melancholy | ||||
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EP by | ||||
Released | March 30, 2018 | |||
Recorded | October 2017–2018 [1] | |||
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Genre | ||||
Length | 21:50 | |||
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Producer | ||||
The Weeknd chronology | ||||
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Singles from My Dear Melancholy | ||||
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My Dear Melancholy (stylized as My Dear Melancholy,) is the first extended play by Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd. It was released on March 30, 2018, through XO and Republic Records. Primarily produced by Frank Dukes, who serves as an executive producer alongside the Weeknd, it features contributions from Gesaffelstein, as well as Mike Will Made It, DaHeala, Skrillex and Daft Punk's Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, among others.
My Dear Melancholy is described as a return to the darker style of the Weeknd's earlier work, evident in Trilogy (2012) and Kiss Land (2013). The extended play was supported by the single, "Call Out My Name", which peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100. It received generally favourable reviews and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200.
Prior to My Dear Melancholy, the Weeknd had a whole album written and done, "which wasn't melancholy at all because it was a different time in my life.", he told Time in 2018. However, he scrapped it because he moved past that part of his life. [8]
On March 3, 2018, American rapper Travis Scott teased a new project by the Weeknd on Twitter, referring to it as "scary", and comparing it to when he "first heard" his music. [9] Later that month, the Weeknd suggested that he was in the finishing stages of completing a new project, sharing multiple silent videos on Instagram of a recording studio, with the caption "mastering". This followed several months of in-studio pictures shared on the platform. [10] [11]
On March 28, the Weeknd teased the release of a new project, posting a screenshot of a text-message conversation between creative director La Mar Taylor and himself, concerning whether or not they should "drop [a new project on] Friday". [12] The next day he announced the project to be released that night, sharing its cover art and title. [13] On February 22, he had previously shared an image of the EP's title written on a notepad. [14]
Following the EP's release, vertically-orientated music videos for "Call Out My Name" and "Try Me" were released exclusively through Spotify. [15] [16]
During an interview with GQ in 2021, the Weeknd said of the EP, "I made it in like three weeks. I knew exactly what I wanted to say. I knew how I wanted it to sound—and that was it." [17]
The EP has been described as "darker" than the Weeknd's previous studio releases Beauty Behind the Madness and Starboy , and has been described as a return to his earlier work though with more electronic music based production [4] with Israel Daramola from Spin describing it as him "returning to the darkened drug den sounds of his earlier work". [18] My Dear Melancholy is characterized as an alternative R&B, [2] R&B [4] and electropop [6] record with production credits from Skrillex and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo from Daft Punk. [19] My Dear Melancholy's only feature is techno artist Gesaffelstein who produced the tracks "I Was Never There" and "Hurt You". [20]
Lyrically, My Dear Melancholy focuses on heartbreak and anger related to a breakup. [21] [22] The lyrics focus around the Weeknd's past relationships, mainly his highly publicized romances with model Bella Hadid [23] and singer and actress Selena Gomez. [24] In an interview to Esquire in 2020, the Weeknd described the EP as a "cathartic piece of art". [25] The theme is a complete change from the Weeknd's past two projects which were pop-based and more mainstream. [26] The Weeknd sings in relation to Gomez's kidney transplant operation and her relationship with Justin Bieber with CNN's Lisa Respers France labelling Gomez as the Weeknd's "muse". [27] The Weeknd reworks Gomez's lyrics from the song "Same Old Love" on the song "Wasted Times" in a way that Billboard described as "tormenting". [28]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 5.7/10 [29] |
Metacritic | 63/100 [30] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [31] |
The A.V. Club | C [32] |
Consequence | C+ [22] |
Exclaim! | 8/10 [33] |
The Guardian | [21] |
HipHopDX | 4.0/5 [5] |
NME | [34] |
Pitchfork | 6.5/10 [6] |
PopMatters | 5/10 [35] |
Rolling Stone | [36] |
My Dear Melancholy was met with generally favourable reviews. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 63, based on 16 reviews. [30] Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 5.7 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus. [29]
Alex Petridis of The Guardian stated that My Dear Melancholy "abandons the pick'n'mix and indeed hit-and-miss approach of previous album Starboy in favour of something more cohesive: uniformly downbeat and twilit, it flows really well", but criticized its lyrical content. [21] In a positive review, Ryan B. Patrick of Exclaim! commented that the project serves "as a soft reset of sorts, a musical palette cleanser that takes stock of what the Weeknd has accomplished thus far". [33] For NME , Jordan Bassett called the album "thrilling", praising its tight and concise nature and "notable moments of stylistic brilliance" evident in Gesaffelstein's contributions, however criticizing its lack of character, noting that the Weeknd's predictability has led to his "impact [becoming] increasingly scattershot". [34] Online publication HipHopDX commented that the EP "doesn't break any new ground, and — as he's done in the past — revisits elements of previous projects. However, without the bloated tracklist of Starboy, and any attempt to please an audience outside of his core, the lack of innovation doesn't seem take away from the concise, focused, conceptual nature of this well-produced R&B gem". [5]
In a mixed review for Pitchfork , Larry Fitzmaurice wrote that the project "finds him in limbo between the bleary-eyed vibe of his early mixtapes and the bulletproof pop stylings of his last two albums", praising the album's production and "Tesfaye's still-sharp ear for cool, contemporary sounds", but criticizing similarities to his earlier work – specifically between "Call Out My Name" and "Earned It", as well as "Hurt You" and "I Feel It Coming" – and concluding that "it's too early in this stage of Tesfaye's career to so obviously attempt to replicate past glories". [6] Israel Daramola of Spin criticized the album's lyrics as "mopey" and "whiny", and its production as "endlessly sludgy and murky", writing that the album "is incredibly self-involved and self-pitying, nothing but surface-level introspection that shows a lot of emotion but none of it in the service of anything but the singer's ego". [18]
Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
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ABC News | 50 Best Albums of 2018 | 20 | |
Complex | 50 Best Albums of 2018 | 46 | |
Vulture | 15 Best Albums of 2018 | 13 |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2019 | Billboard Music Awards | Top R&B Album | Nominated |
My Dear Melancholy was streamed more than 26 million times on its first day of release on Apple Music, [41] double the amount of streams that were obtained on Spotify according to Republic Records, [42] though Spotify claims that My Dear Melancholy was able to rake up 29 million streams in 24 hours. [43] The EP was projected to move between 165,000-180,000 album-equivalent units first week [44] and eventually moved 169,000 album-equivalent units with 68,000 being pure sales, hitting number one on the US Billboard 200. My Dear Melancholy was also the shortest album, by track count, to top the Billboard 200 in eight years, a feat previously done by Glee: The Music, Journey to Regionals . [45] As of July 2018, it has sold 117,000 copies in the US. [46]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Call Out My Name" | Frank Dukes | 3:48 | |
2. | "Try Me" |
|
| 3:41 |
3. | "Wasted Times" |
| 3:40 | |
4. | "I Was Never There" (with Gesaffelstein) |
|
| 4:01 |
5. | "Hurt You" (with Gesaffelstein) |
| 3:50 | |
6. | "Privilege" |
|
| 2:50 |
Total length: | 21:50 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
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7. | "Call Out My Name – A Cappella" |
| Frank Dukes | 3:44 |
Total length: | 25:34 |
Notes
Credits adapted from Tidal. [48]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [93] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
Canada (Music Canada) [94] | Platinum | 80,000‡ |
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [95] | Platinum | 20,000‡ |
Italy (FIMI) [96] | Gold | 25,000‡ |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [97] | Platinum | 15,000‡ |
Poland (ZPAV) [98] | Platinum | 20,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [99] | Gold | 100,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [100] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Mike Lévy, known professionally as Gesaffelstein, is a French music programmer, DJ, songwriter and record producer from Lyon. He has worked alongside artists such as the Weeknd, Daft Punk, Kanye West, A$AP Rocky, Electric Youth, Haim, Miss Kittin, The Hacker, Jean-Michel Jarre, Lil Nas X, Charli XCX, and Pharrell Williams.
Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter and actor. Recognized for his unconventional musical production, artistic reinventions, and signature falsetto register, Tesfaye is one of the most innovative and influential artists of his generation.
Canadian singer-songwriter The Weeknd has released five studio albums, one live album, three compilation albums, three mixtapes, nine extended plays, 79 single releases and seven promotional singles. According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), he has accumulated 20.5 million certified album-equivalent units and 132 million certified digital single units in the US, based on sales and on-demand streaming, as of December 2024.
Kiss Land is the debut studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd. It was released on September 10, 2013, through XO and Republic Records. The album was supported by the lead single of the same name, as well as "Belong to the World", "Love in the Sky", "Live For", "Pretty", and "Wanderlust". The album's production was primarily handled by DannyBoyStyles, the Weeknd himself and DaHeala, among others.
Beauty Behind the Madness is the second studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd. It was released on August 28, 2015, through XO and Republic Records. It features guest appearances from Labrinth, Ed Sheeran and Lana Del Rey. The album was executive produced by the Weeknd, DaHeala and Illangelo, and includes production from Kanye West, Stephan Moccio, Ben Billions, DannyBoyStyles, Max Martin, and Ali Payami, among others.
Revelación is the fourth extended play by American singer Selena Gomez. It was released on March 12, 2021, by Interscope Records. Gomez collaborated with various producers, such as Albert Hype, DJ Snake, Jota Rosa, Maro, Neon16, and Tainy, to achieve her desired sound. She stated that the EP centers on themes of "strength, love, forgiveness and moving on".
"Starboy" is a song by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd featuring the French electronic duo Daft Punk. It was released on September 21, 2016, through XO and Republic Records, as the lead single from his third studio album of the same name (2016). The artists wrote and produced the song with Doc McKinney and Henry "Cirkut" Walter, with Jason "DaHeala" Quenneville receiving additional credits. It is an R&B and electropop song that reflects themes of extravagance and celebrity life.
"I Feel It Coming" is a song by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd from his third studio album, Starboy (2016), featuring the French duo Daft Punk. The three wrote and produced the song with Doc McKinney and Cirkut, with additional writing from Eric Chedeville. XO and Republic Records released the track for digital download on November 17, 2016, as the album's third single. Written in an hour and conceived during separate sessions in Paris and Los Angeles, "I Feel It Coming" is a disco-pop and funk track where the Weeknd convinces a woman to not be scared of falling in love again.
"Secrets" is a song by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd from his third studio album Starboy (2016). The song was written and produced by the Weeknd, Martin "Doc" McKinney, and Henry "Cirkut" Walter, with Dylan Wiggins, Roland Orzabal, Coz Canler, Jimmy Marinos, Wally Palamarchuk, Mike Skill, and Peter Solley receiving writing credits for the sampling of the new wave songs "Pale Shelter" by Tears for Fears and "Talking in Your Sleep" by the Romantics. "Secrets" was released to radio in Italy on November 10, 2017, as the album's final international single.
"I Was Never There" is a song by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd and French DJ Gesaffelstein, from the former's first extended play, My Dear Melancholy (2018). The song was written by the Weeknd, Gesaffelstein, and Frank Dukes, and was produced by the latter two. The song is the first of three collaborations between the two artists and the second of the songs to go viral on TikTok in the early 2020s, after "Lost in the Fire".
"Call Out My Name" is a song by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd from his debut extended play, My Dear Melancholy (2018). The song was co-written by the Weeknd and producer Frank Dukes, with musician Nicolas Jaar receiving writing credits for the sampling of his 2016 song "Killing Time". The song was sent to rhythmic contemporary radio on April 10, 2018, as the EP's only single.
"Try Me" is a song by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd from his debut extended play, My Dear Melancholy, (2018). The song was written by the Weeknd, Ahmad Balshe, Jason Quenneville, Adam Feeney, Michael Williams and Marquel Middlebrooks. It was produced by Mike Will Made It, Marz, Frank Dukes, and DaHeala.
"Wake Up" is a song by American rapper Travis Scott featuring Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd. It was released on March 26, 2019, as the fourth and final single from Scott's third studio album, Astroworld (2018).
Hyperion is the second studio album by French DJ Gesaffelstein, released on 8 March 2019. The album includes the singles "Reset", "Lost in the Fire" with the Weeknd, and "Blast Off" with Pharrell Williams.
"Lost in the Fire" is a song by French DJ Gesaffelstein and Canadian singer the Weeknd, released on 11 January 2019 as the second single from Gesaffelstein's second studio album, Hyperion (2019). Nate Donmoyer assisted the artists in writing and producing the song, with additional writing from Ahmad "Belly" Balshe and Jason "DaHeala" Quenneville.
The Weeknd in Japan is the first greatest hits album by Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd. It features singles from his first three studio albums: Kiss Land (2013), Beauty Behind the Madness (2015) and Starboy (2016), his 2015 feature, "Might Not", from Belly's eighth mixtape, Up for Days (2015) and the songs "Call Out My Name" and "Wasted Times" from his EP My Dear Melancholy (2018). It was released, digitally and physically, exclusively in Japan on November 21, 2018, by Universal Music Japan. The album's release occurred shortly before the start of the Weeknd Asia Tour (2018).
After Hours is the fourth studio album by the Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd. It was released on March 20, 2020, by XO and Republic Records. Primarily produced by the Weeknd, it features a variety of producers, including DaHeala, Illangelo, Max Martin, Metro Boomin, and OPN, most of whom the Weeknd had worked with previously. The standard edition of the album has no features, but the deluxe edition features Ariana Grande and the remixes edition contains guest appearances from Chromatics and Lil Uzi Vert. Thematically, After Hours explores loneliness, self-loathing, and escapism.
The Highlights is the second greatest hits album, and first one released globally, by Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd. It was released on February 5, 2021, and follows the release of his fourth studio album After Hours (2020) and his first greatest hits album The Weeknd in Japan (2018). It was released in anticipation of his performance at the Super Bowl LV halftime show.
"Hurt You" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd and French producer Gesaffelstein. Released as the fifth track from the Weeknd's debut extended play My Dear Melancholy (2018), it was written by the Weeknd, Gesaffelstein, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo of Daft Punk, and Cirkut, with the latter three producing the track.
Live at SoFi Stadium is the first live album by Canadian singer the Weeknd. It was released on March 3, 2023, through XO and Republic Records. The album was recorded during two November 2022 concerts at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, as a part of After Hours til Dawn Tour. A week earlier, the concert film of the same name was released on HBO Max and became the highest debut for a music special in the history of HBO Max. The set list includes songs from the Weeknd's previous projects: Dawn FM (2022), After Hours (2020), My Dear Melancholy (2018), Starboy (2016), Beauty Behind the Madness (2015), Kiss Land (2013), and House of Balloons (2011), along with multiple songs he was featured on.