The Weeknd Explains the Meaning Behind Facial Bandages | 22 Words

The Weeknd's new look was not well-received by his fans so he's finally decided to explain it to us all...

The news comes after The Weeknd revealed a shocking appearance at last year's AMAs...

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 And no, it wasn't because of his wild suit choice.

It was because his entire face was covered in bandages.

I'm not kidding, his entire face.

And then, he debuted an entirely new look after taking the face coverings off...

And it has definitely overwhelmed his fans who can't get over the massive "enhancements."

Keep scrolling to have a look for yourselves... But be warned ladies and gentlemen, prepare for a wild ride.

Now, if you didn't know, The Weeknd (also known as Abel Tesfaye) is an R&B sensation.

The Canadian-born singer-songwriter is one of the leading figures in the music industry.

The star broke into the music scene in 2011 with his mixtape, House of Balloons.

Even in the early days, he managed to work with some pretty high profile artists including Drake and Wiz Khalifa, while still finding his feet within the industry.

His musical success skyrocketed with his 2015 album, Beauty Behind the Madness.

The album brought us the global hit single "Can't Feel My Face," which has drawn in comparison to the likes of Michael Jackson, hit no 1 on the Billboard chart, and went on to rank as the best song of the year.

His follow-up album, Starboy, also enjoyed critical success.

In late November 2016, the Weeknd released his third album, Starboy, featuring star-studded guest appearances from the likes of Lana Del Rey, Future, and Kendrick Lamar. There's absolutely no denying that the star is a hitmaker!

But he has also been in the public eye for his turbulent love life.

The star has been in an on-off relationship with model, Bella Hadid, since the pair linked up in 2015. According to E! News, the pair made it official in May 2015 after hanging out together at Coachella the previous month.

But it didn't take long for their relationship to hit a rocky patch.

The same year they made it official, they reportedly took a break due to their busy schedules and opted to celebrate Christmas separately.  Yikes.

It was the first of many hurdles for the famous pair...

And in February 2016, the couple appeared to be back on when they hit the Grammys red carpet together, and then the following month, looked extremely loved-up as they posed for snaps at the Daily Front Row’s Fashion Los Angeles Awards. But it wasn't to be after the couple were reported to have split again shortly afterward.

The pair had an awkward post-breakup reunion on the Victoria's Secret runway stage.

Just 2 weeks after their breakup, The Weeknd released his highly acclaimed album, Starboy, and took to the stage at the annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, where his ex happened to be strutting her stuff. When asked about the reunion, Bella claimed that it wasn't awkward at all: "He is my best friend, and I am excited because I am walking during his performance."

This time, the split was serious...

And The Weeknd even moved on, coupling up with singer Selena Gomez. But it didn't take long for the R&B star and Bella to get on friendly terms again when in late-2017, the singer was pictured leaving Bella's apartment.

Throughout 2018, the couple were rumored to be back on.

The pair were spotting kissing on various occasions and were even spotted going on a date. But after a number of strong months, the couple called it quits (again) and this time, it seemed to be for good.

And in true post-breakup style, The Weekend showcased a drastic makeover last year.

In a rare red carpet appearance, the R&B powerhouse attended the premiere of his feature film debut, Uncut Gems, at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival.

But the star was looking notably different...

The "I Feel It Coming" singer made quite a few changes to his signature look, which has hardly changed over the years - opting to trade his usual full-grown beard for a mustache and swapping out his hairdo completely. He still rocked it, of course...

And with an appearance change up...

Always comes new music.

The star had been teasing his latest album over his socials...

And let us tell you, when After Hours finally dropped, it was definitely worth the wait.

And to make things even better...

The singer announced that he’ll be performing at the iconic Super Bowl half-time show this year.

However, it seems as though he's going through something currently...

Because his appearance at the AMAs back in November has left us all speechless.

Not only was the singer sporting a brightly colored 2-piece, but his entire face was also covered with bandages...

And we couldn't forget about the dramatic eye bags, could we? It was truly shocking.

At the time, he explained his bizarre outfit.

"Blinding Lights" [is about] how you want to see someone at night, and you’re intoxicated, and you’re driving to this person, and you’re just blinded by streetlights," he told Esquire.

"But nothing could stop you from trying to go see that person, because you’re so lonely. I don’t want to ever promote drunk driving, but that’s what the dark undertone is."

But while a lot of us hoped it would just be an "aesthetic" he was using to promote an important social issue, it seemed to have gone on for a surprisingly long time.

And then we were graced with his new "post-surgery" look in his latest music video "Save Your Tears."

And we weren't on board with it...

Many are speculating whether or not this is real surgery or if it's just prosthetics...

Either way, it's pretty grotesque if you ask me.

Have a look at all of the pictures for yourselves:

This was the official picture posted on Instagram for the promotion of the new song. As you can see, his cheek gives us a glimpse into his new look but the next photograph...

...Is a wild close-up.

This is what I'll see in my nightmares from now on.

But after all the backlash, the singer has now come out to explain the thought process behind his new face in an interview with Jem Aswad at Variety.

She asks the singer: "What does this mean/symbolizes?" to which he replied: "The significance of the entire head bandages is reflecting on the absurd culture of Hollywood celebrity and people manipulating themselves for superficial reasons to please and be validated."

She then asks: "What can we take from the fact that you seem to be intentionally making your face increasingly unattractive while promoting your biggest album?"

"I suppose you could take that being attractive isn't important to me but a compelling narrative is."

"Sometimes you appear in photos or on TV and videos in character, sometimes not. Why?" She continues.

"Why not play with the character and the artist and let those lines blur and move around?"

So there we have it, he's playing a character in a continuous storyline...

We're just wondering if this act is going to continue all the way to the Super Bowl on Sunday...

In the mean time, keep scrolling for more music news...