Abel Tesfaye, popularly known as The Weeknd,"released a lengthy visual entitled 'Mania' that features tracks from his album "Starboy." The surreal imagery and savage aspect of the short film stretch 12-minutes. "Mania" elements show a deja vu effects, thanks to the excellent work of production designer Jeffrey Higinbotham.
The short movie's surreal imagery comprises a bloody, dynamic and mind-gripping scenes which seem to be taken from The Weekend's "False Alarm" music video. The part where The Weeknd drives a sleek red Acura NSX is similar to his "Starboy" video. The Weeknd's "Mania" was directed by Grant Singer using clips from the 26-year-old's earlier music videos.
According to D&AD, the music video director of "Mania" has a track record of working with artists from the electro music genre such as Daft Punk, Sky Ferreira, and Skrillex. He is known for his stark, stimulating aesthetics and intriguing styles, which perfectly complements The Weeknd's music style.
The video begins with an all-white backdrop, flickering lights and the addition of a black panther sitting on a white pedestal. It is the same pedestal used at the end of the video, showing the bloody-faced singer and French model Anais Mali.
It seems like there is no stopping The Weekend's rise to stardom. According to Rolling Stone, the singer's pulp-horror videos for songs like "I Feel It Coming" could be associated with Daft Punk's "Party Monster."
The Canadian singer first rose to pop fame when his song "Earned it" was used as a soundtrack for the "Fifty Shades Of Gray." He also had a number of successful collaborations with other artists, including his fellow Canadian "Hotline Bling" hitmaker, Drake. One of his memorable tracks is "Wicked Games" from the album "The Trilogy."
The singer's transition from his mixtapes to funky pop tunes which are slightly mainstream works very well with his future projects with other artists from the electro pop category. Watch The Weekend's "Mania" below and share your thoughts about it in the comments below!
