The Weeknd and Anitta pulled no punches with the promo for their upcoming collaborative single. In an Instagram post on Sunday (October 27), Brazilian pop queen Anitta wrote, “Isn't he handsome?” along with an image that appeared to be an ultrasound of a baby with sharp teeth and a forked tail.
The Weeknd (who now goes by his birth name, Abel Tesfaey), responded “WOW! IT LOOKS SO BEAUTIFUL [crying face emoji].” While the post didn't offer much more information, eagle-eyed fans noticed that the date on the image was Wednesday morning (October 30), which seemed to indicate when the pair's anticipated collaborative single will drop. Abel's label, Republic Records, commented, “sweet baby angel,” while several other artists were also involved, including Saweetie (“Good bye”) and Ryan Tedder (“Whoaaaa”), among others.
The pregnancy promo came two days after Anitta posted a photo of herself in a black bikini rocking one giant baby belly and an infrared face mask with the caption, “It was meant to be kept a secret…”, to which Tesfaye responded with: “OMG… CONGRATULATIONS [crying laughing emoji]; on X, Tesfaye reposted the pregnant photo and wrote, “@Anitta you hid it so well in Sao Paulo”.
As of press time, representatives for Tesfaye and Anitta had not returned calls Bulletin boardrequest for comments on posts or confirmed release date for the song.
The dynamic duo performed their as-yet-unreleased new song “Sao Paulo” during a massive Weeknd show in Brazil on Sept. 7, and Abel spoke to Billboard Brazil about working with Anitta on the upcoming Hurry up tomorrow album. After Abel visited Sao Paulo, Brazil in October 2023 on his After Hours Til Dawn tour, producer Mike Dean asked Anitta for a vocal track to complement the singer's special performance set “Blinding Lights”.
“Anitta is a great friend. What he sent was so awesome that we created the song,” Tesfaye said of the vocal tracks that were so far beyond his expectations that he composed a song that became the focus of the new live show. “We knew it was very special to play on stage. We saw great potential in the song and found the beat, which is the heart of the show,” he said.
Anitta was equally excited by the group, saying: “I wrote some lyrics as a joke and I didn't think they would get serious. Suddenly, I received the finished song. I loved it! I felt very honored and flattered. I've always been a big fan of him and his work. I never imagined this would happen, and now it's a dream come true. It's a bit more Brazilian funk, as promised, all over the world.”
See Anitta's post below.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/weeknd-anitta-tease-collaboration-devil-baby-ultrasound-pic-1235812794/
