On a cold Saturday night in 41-degree weather (Dec 18), Los Angeles feels like another city as lucky ticket holders who stood in line the week prior (Dec. 10) to score exclusive access to a free show wait once more in a three-block long line to get into the LA Hangar Studios. Setting up shop on the eastside of L.A., the music and entertainment platform Vevo filmed Vevo Presents: The Weeknd, turning the warehouse into a tricked out performance space for the superstar. In an elaborate production featuring a full 360 LED screen of rotating images and content as well as a full bar available to patrons, Vevo gave real fans of the Weeknd (who were willing to camp out not once, but twice, in the cold for him) a treat for the night.
Emerging onto the stage just past 9 p.m., the Weeknd quickly got straight into the hits, starting off with "Starboy." The crowd went wild as he took them through the highlights of his catalogue and cuts from his new album Starboy, including "Party Monster," "Reminder," "False Alarm," "Often," "Acquainted," "The Hills," "I Can't Feel My Face" and "Sidewalks" -- for which he brought surprise guest Kendrick Lamar to the stage. It was evident by loud screams, phones in the air recording every minute and anxiousness to get as close to the stage as possible that Abel knows what the youth wants in music.
Far from the 2011 dark and emo version of himself, the Toronto singer no longer has to wander through his hometown getting into trouble, instead opting to accept and walk fully into the path of an international superstar (who was congratulated by legendary hitmaker Quincy Jones on Twitter for being No. 1 in 80 countries upon the release of Starboy). Here's five reasons why the Weeknd is not his hair, and his "star" continues shining ever bright.