The Weeknd has released a collaborative new single with Anitta – you can listen to ‘São Paulo’ below.
The Canadian singer debuted his team-up with the Brazilian artist last month at his one-off live show in São Paulo, where Anitta joined him on stage.
Read More: The Weeknd – ‘Dawn FM’ review: soulful star meets a new day with hope and hindsight
It was revealed that Anitta had initially recorded a vocal to complement the special performance. However, The Weeknd – real name Abel Tesfaye – said what she sent him “was so awesome that we created the song”.
Today (October 31), the pair have shared the studio version of the collaboration along with a creepy and bizarre music video – just in time for Halloween.
Helmed by visionary director Freeka Tet, the dark visuals see Anitta portray a pregnant character who is walking the streets at nighttime in nightmarish scenes. She soon removes her spooky face mask, throws up on the street and gets into a water fountain.
Here, a sinister face begins to emerge from her large and protruding baby bump before it sings The Weeknd’s ‘São Paulo’ verse – its mouth positioned where her bully button is. Watch the unusual story unfold here:
Speaking previously about the single, Anitta explained: “I wrote some verses as a joke and never imagined they would become serious. Suddenly, I received the finished song. I loved it! I felt very honoured and flattered.”
“I’ve always been a big fan of [The Weeknd] and his work. I never imagined this would happen, and now it’s a dream come true. It’s a little more Brazilian funk, as promised, around the world.”
‘São Paulo’ follows on from The Weeknd’s previous collab with Playboi Carti, ‘Timeless’, which was co-produced by Pharrell. Another new track called ‘Dancing In The Flames’ arrived last month too.
Both singles are set to appear on Tesfaye’s upcoming sixth studio album, ‘Hurry Up Tomorrow’. The record will serve as the third and final chapter in a trilogy that began with ‘After Hours’ (2020) and ‘Dawn FM’ (2022).
The Weeknd has been previewing various unreleased songs recently, including ‘Wake Me Up’, ‘Take Me Back To LA’ and ‘Open Hearts’.
The post Watch The Weeknd’s creepy video for new single ‘São Paulo’ featuring Anitta appeared first on NME.
