LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: It is an era of the superfans, where every pop star has a dedicated fan base to support them through thick and thin. It thus comes as no surprise that the ‘world’s most popular artist’ in the year 2023 by Guinness World Records will be having a dedicated fan base. However, contrary to the popular trend where fans attach the name of their idol to their name, Canadian singer The Weeknd, aka Abel Tesfaye, has a popular fan base and crew who dedicatedly call themselves the XO Crew.
Abel Tesfaye aka The Weeknd, who is now awaiting the release of his HBO show ‘The Idol’ starring Lily-Rose Depp and co-created by Sam Levinson, enjoys the status of being the idol of millions of music lovers. The four times Grammy-winning artist has in fact named his labeling company XO Records. But, the question arises, Why 'XO', the emoticon that stands for "hugs and kisses"? But it might not be as simple as that.
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The saga of The Weeknd’s love for these two letters, as it happens to be, is not new. The ‘Earned It’ singer who began his career in 2009 by posting music videos on YouTube, started leaving his mark on his social media posts with the signature “XO”. While many fans believe that the signature indeed stands for its traditional meaning of “hugs and kisses”, some fans are of the opinion that the letters stand for something not so innocent. Many fans believe ‘XO’ to be representative of the drugs ecstasy and oxycontin, as per GQ.
‘Drugs were a crutch for me’
While many do contend the theory, given the history of The Weeknd’s involvement with substances from a young age, and the omnipresence of drugs in his music, the claim cannot be entirely disregarded. The ‘Blinding Lights’ vocalist once talked about his teenage years as "Kids without AIDS," according to GQ. The Weeknd reportedly admitted to smoking weed for the first time when he was 11, and tried various drugs like Xanax, cocaine, mushrooms, and ketamine in his later life. He said, "I never needed detox or anything," before adding, "But I was addicted in the sense of 'F**k, I don't want to spend this day without getting high.'"
His reliance on drugs, at least in the initial few years of his career, is legendary. “When I had nothing to do but make music, it was very heavy,” before accepting plainly, “Drugs were a crutch for me. There were songs on my first record that were seven minutes long, rambling — whatever thoughts I was having when I was under the influence at the time,” The Weeknd said to The Guardian in a 2016 interview.
‘XO 'til we overdose’
The Weeknd’s fans are often found quoting the line “XO 'til we overdose” on social media which indicates further to the theory of drugs. Notwithstanding the inkling of drugs, his XO Records has indeed become one of the most successful record brands over the years. Founded in 2011 by The Weeknd, Wassim Slaiby, Amir Esmailian, and La Mar Taylor to release the three mixtapes ‘House of Balloons’, ‘Thursday’, and ‘Echoes of Silence’, has the remarkable feat of debuting six albums at number one on Billboard Top 200.
