Dawn FM
Dawn FM is the fifth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter the Weeknd. It was released on January 7, 2022, by XO and Republic Records. The album contains guest appearances by Tyler, the Creator, Lil Wayne, and Swedish House Mafia and narration by Jim Carrey, Quincy Jones, and Josh Safdie. Production was primarily handled by the Weeknd alongside a variety of producers, including Max Martin, OPN, Oscar Holter, and Calvin Harris, among others.
Dawn FM is a generally upbeat record containing dance-pop and synth-pop songs heavily inspired by 1980s new wave, funk, and electronic dance music. Conceptually, the Weeknd described the album as reflecting purgatory, while critics noted it explores psychedelic and existential themes. It is also the second instalment in a trilogy of albums, following After Hours and preceding Hurry Up Tomorrow.
Dawn FM was supported by four singles—"Take My Breath", "Sacrifice", "Out of Time" and "Less than Zero"—with "Take My Breath" peaking at number six on the US Billboard Hot 100. The album opened with first-week sales of 148,000 album-equivalent units in the U.S. and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200. Internationally, it peaked at number one in 11 countries, including Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Dawn FM received acclaim from critics, with praise for its production, song structures, and melodies.
Background and release
On March 20, 2020, the Weeknd released his fourth studio album After Hours during the beginning of COVID-19 restrictions. It was a commercial success and received mostly positive reviews from music critics, some of whom named it his best work yet. Shortly after, the Weeknd began working on his next studio album; in an interview with Rolling Stone in September 2020, he stated that he "might have another album ready to go by the time this quarantine is over." The Weeknd later explained that he was originally working on an album inspired by the depressive state he was in during the COVID-19 pandemic, but scrapped the project because it was "emotionally detrimental" and began working on Dawn FM.The Weeknd began to tease a new album in May 2021 in an interview with Variety, when he stated "if the last record is the After Hours of the night, then The Dawn is coming". He continued to tease the album with the tentative title, The Dawn, during his acceptance speeches at the 2021 Billboard Music Awards and the 2021 iHeartRadio Music Awards. On August 2, the Weeknd released a teaser on his social media accounts titled "The Dawn Is Coming", which contained a snippet of a then-unreleased song. Later that day, in a partnership with NBC Sports and the 2020 Summer Olympics, he announced the album's lead single "Take My Breath", which was released on August 6. On October 4, 2021, during an episode of his Apple Music 1 radio show, Memento Mori, the Weeknd announced that the album was complete, and that he was waiting on a "couple characters that are key to the narrative." He then described the characters as "some people that are near and dear to me, some people that inspired my life as a child and some that inspire me now."
On January 1, 2022, the Weeknd teased a possible surprise release of the album in an Instagram post, which featured a screenshot of a text conversation he had with his best friend and creative director La Mar Taylor. After exchanging New Year's greetings, the Weeknd messaged that "Everything feels chaotic again. Music can heal and that feels more important than another album rollout. Let's just drop the whole thing and enjoy it with the people... XO." The next day, the Weeknd hinted at the album's arrival, tweeting "wake up at dawn tomorrow". On January 3, he announced the album's official title through a trailer video and announced that it would be released on January 7, 2022. He subsequently revealed the track listing through a second trailer on January 5. On January 11, the Weeknd announced an expanded edition of the album subtitled Alternate World including two remixes and previously released single "Moth to a Flame" with Swedish House Mafia.
Composition
Dawn FM has been primarily described as pop, synth-pop, dance-pop, and R&B. Recalling 1980s electronic bands such as Depeche Mode and Duran Duran, the album significantly incorporates new wave, funk, and EDM, alongside elements of disco, electropop, hip hop, city pop, soft rock, psychedelia, blues, boogie, electro, and techno.During an episode of Memento Mori, the Weeknd cited Britney Spears, Nas, Swedish House Mafia, Kid Cudi, Kanye West and Tyler, the Creator as the artists who have inspired the album. Influences of Michael Jackson's Off the Wall and Thriller are also present in Dawn FM.
Concept and themes
Dawn FM was noted for incorporating a "psychedelic radio" aesthetic with existential themes, similar to American experimental record producer Oneohtrix Point Never's album Magic Oneohtrix Point Never, which the Weeknd appeared on and executive produced under his formal name. The "103.5" station tag that the album frequently uses is a nod to the Toronto radio station Z103.5, known for their dance-heavy playlists. In an interview with Billboard on November 23, 2021, the Weeknd elaborated on these themes, saying:Further speculation on the album's concept arose following the Weeknd's announcement that Dawn FM was the second part of a trilogy of albums.
Artwork
The standard and Alternate World editions' album cover of Dawn FM was shot by Matilda Finn. It features a "dramatically aged version" of the Weeknd as an elderly and overweight bearded man in a dark background setting with a small ray of light shining behind the back of his shoulder. The collector's and limited editions of the album, as well as the limited edition boxset CDs of the album, listed on the Weeknd's online store, feature five alternate Dawn FM covers designed by American artist Robert Beatty.Promotion
Singles
On August 6, 2021, the album's lead single, "Take My Breath", was released digitally on music stores and streaming services. The song peaked at number six on the US Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top ten in 21 other territories. Its music video was premiered alongside its release and was directed by Cliqua. An official remix by Italian house music group Agents of Time was released with the original version of the Alternate World edition of the album on January 11, 2022."Sacrifice" was released as the second official single in tandem with Dawn FM on January 7, 2022. Its music video was released on the same day, and was directed by Cliqua. The song was sent to contemporary hit radio in the United States on January 11, 2022.
"Out of Time" was released to American urban adult contemporary radio on January 25, 2022, as the third official single from the album. Its music video was released on April 5, 2022, and was directed by Cliqua. An official remix of the song by Haitian-Canadian music producer Kaytranada was released on April 22, 2022, and later included on the streaming reissue of the Alternate World edition of the album.
"Less than Zero" was given a limited single release in France, with it being sent to contemporary hit radio on July 7, 2022, as the album's fourth single in the country.
Promotional singles
On July 1, 2022, an official remix of the album's eleventh track "Starry Eyes" by Mike Dean was released as the first promotional single from the streaming re-issue of the Alternate World edition of Dawn FM.An official remix of the album's title track by Oneohtrix Point Never was released as the second promotional single from the streaming re-issue of the Alternate World edition of the album on July 8, 2022.
On July 22, 2022, a remix of the album's third track "How Do I Make You Love Me?" by Swedish House Mafia members Sebastian Ingrosso and Salvatore Ganacci was released as the third promotional single from the streaming re-issue of the Alternate World edition of the album. Simultaneously, an animated music video for the original version of the song was released that same day. It was directed by Jocelyn Charles with some creative direction from Cliqua.
An official remix of the album's ninth track "Best Friends" with American R&B singer Summer Walker was released as the fourth and final promotional single of the streaming re-issue of the Alternate World edition of the album on August 5, 2022.