The Weeknd and Playboi Carti's Timeless gamble
The Weeknd and Playboi Carti debuted their collaboration Timeless before it was even finished and fans absolutely loved it.
The Weeknd and Playboi Carti debuted their collaboration Timeless before it was even finished.
The duo decided to perform the track at The Weeknd’s One Night Only concert in São Paulo in September 2024, just hours after they had been working on it together.
XO co-founder Amir “Cash” Esmailian told Variety that The Weeknd surprised them all when he said: “Let’s perform the song we worked on today.”
Republic’s Marleny Reyes said: “We knew we had to capitalise. For us, it’s always about following Abel’s lead and augmenting his vision,” she says. “Nobody is better at organically building buzz than he is.”
While the track was unfinished, they had been working on it for months.
Producer Mike Dean explained: “I got the rough track early on, before Abel even laid down vocals. Backstage in São Paulo, the vibe was right.”
So, Dean he added “piano chords, lead lines and some layers” to piece it all together.
He went on: “You can see me in the video asking Carti who started it. That’s when I found out it was Pharrell [Williams].
“We don’t really have to talk much anymore. It’s pure flow.”
Reyes added: “The song has continued to thrive for well over a year. We’re always looking beyond the first day, week and month.”
Meanwhile, last month it was revealed that The Weeknd's After Hours Til Dawn tour has grossed more than $1 billion across 153 shows, making it the highest-earning tour by a male solo artist to date.
Following the announcement of new 2026 dates in Mexico, Brazil, Europe, and the UK, the tour has sold more than 7.5 million tickets globally. Since launching in 2022, it has covered North America (twice), Europe, the UK, Latin America, and Australia.
The tour has also generated over $8.5 million in donations to the XO Humanitarian Fund and Global Citizen. Proceeds from the 2026 leg will continue to support the World Food Program.
The 2025 North American stadium run - which included more than 40 sold-out shows - broke multiple venue records, including highest-grossing Black male artist in venue history in New York, Denver, Santa Clara, Seattle, Edmonton, Montreal, Orlando, Arlington, and Houston.
