3 Songs That Show The Weeknd is Just Like Mike
Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, That Is
I’m of fan of The Weeknd’s music. I’m also a fan of Michael Jackson’s music. If by some chance you aren’t familiar with either, stop what you're doing and go listen immediately.
While The Weeknd doesn’t like to hear the comparisons to Michael Jackson, there are reasons people compare the two. They are both great artists. Listening to the songs below, I easily heard the resemblance between the two.
Twenty Eight | Billie Jean
The Weeknd’s first studio album, “Trilogy” is long. 30 songs, and 2 hours 39 minutes long. One of the many hidden gems from the album though is the song “Twenty Eight.” The song is The Weeknd expressing his frustration that he is now famous and how he won’t be able to live his life the way he used to anymore, especially regarding his interaction with women.
“Billie Jean” is on Michael Jackson's “Thriller” album, arguably the greatest album of all time. The album is loaded with great songs. “Billie Jean” is about a woman who claims Michael is the father of her newborn child, which he denies.
Starting at the 1:29 mark of “Twenty Eight” when The Weeknd says “Did you have to tell the world,” The Weeknd’s voice sounds eerily similar to Michael’s in “Billie Jean.” Both singers are frustrated with women trying to use them for their fame and the inflection in their voices expresses such perfectly.
Take a listen to the Weeknd’s song yourself.
Party Monster | Get on the Floor
Partying with either of these artists would be a wild night. In one of MJ’s earlier albums “Off the Wall,” he provides plenty of hits for any 80's club. This album is pop-heavy with songs great for having a good time and possibly none of them do it better than “Get on the Floor.” The song is all about dancing and having fun, particularly with a girl on the dance floor. I especially love the ending of it, as there are about thirty seconds of buildup culminating with him returning to singing around 3:35.
The Weeknd is known for his partying lifestyle, often singing about women, drinking, and drugs. On his song “Party Monster” off his “Starboy” album he also sings about having a good time. While not on the dance floor, the song is about The Weeknd looking for a girl who can party and live a similar lifestyle to him. Strangely enough, near the end of the song, he also has a build-up, albeit much shorter, that ends with him returning to singing (around 2:53)
Blinding Lights | Beat it
Both of these songs were smash hits.
The Weeknd released “Blinding Lights” in late 2019 as a single before his latest album “After Hours.” It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” was also released as a single, from “Thriller”, and also reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100.
Both songs start with a slow build-up before the beat changes. There are reasons why these songs had so much commercial success. The Weeknd and Michael Jackson show off how electrifying they are as artists in their respective songs. They make it tough to not sing along.
While both artists are different and unique in their own ways, both have a record of great songs. If only we had the chance to hear the two together on one song.
And if you completely disagree with my comparisons, here’s an easy counter-argument to everything I just laid out, the lyrics from The Weeknd’s song “Reminder”
I just won a new award for a kids show Talking ‘bout a face numbing off a bag of blow I’m like, goddamn, bitch, I am not a Teen Choice
Don’t think MJ would’ve ever said something like this.