The Weeknd has officially announced his return to Australia for October 2024, making good on his plans to reschedule the cancelled run of shows from 2023. The caveat, however, is that the tour will now only take in dates in Sydney and Melbourne – previously announced shows at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium will not be rescheduled, nor will his planned New Zealand visit.
Instead, four shows have been announced as the official conclusion to the After Hours Til Dawn world tour. Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium will fittingly host the Canadian popstar over the weekend of Saturday, October 5th and Sunday, October 6th, while Sydney’s Accor Stadium will see The Weeknd take to the stage on Tuesday, October 22nd and Wednesday, October 23rd. Given the proximity between dates, as well as the fact the prospective 2023 tour was to include three Sydney shows and four Melbourne shows at the same venues, it is expected that more shows are to be announced.
Joining The Weeknd on the tour will be his longtime collaborator Mike Dean, as well as Canadian singer Chxrry22 (who is signed to The Weeknd’s XO label) and Australian DJ/producer Anna Lunoe. It will mark both Dean and Chxrry’s first-ever appearances in Australia.
The Weeknd – ‘Save Your Tears’
“I feel a strong pull to perform in Australia before moving on to the next chapter, and want to make sure you all know I hadn’t forgotten about you,” said The Weeknd in a press statement. “When I return now, it will be the right time, and I promise it will be such a special experience. I can’t wait to see you all.”
For those that bought tickets to any of The Weeknd’s cancelled 2023 shows, a past purchaser pre-sale will run on Wednesday, August 21st from 12pm AEST for the Sydney shows and 1pm AEST for the Melbourne shows. The pre-sale can be registered for here. A second presale for the tour will commence from Thursday, August 22nd at 1pm AEST, with the tour’s general sale following on Monday, August 26th – again, from 12pm AEST for Sydney and 1pm AEST for Melbourne. All artist pre-sale and general sale ticketing can be accessed via Live Nation Australia.
The Weeknd’s first – and, until now, only – tour of Australia took place in December 2017. The tour took place in support of his album Starboy, and featured French Montana as its opener. Since he was last in the country, The Weeknd has continued his ascent to becoming arguably the biggest popstar in the world behind Taylor Swift. His 2020 single ‘Blinding Lights’ has become the most streamed song in Spotify history and the #1 Billboard Hot 100 song of all time, while his 2022 album Dawn FM tipped him over the line to have the most monthly listeners on the platform.
In January, The Weeknd teased his sixth – and potentially final – studio album for release in 2024. In recent months, he has also shared video teasers for new music on his YouTube channel.
Further Reading
The Weeknd Donates $2.5m to Palestinian Aid
HBO Cancels ‘The Idol’ After One Season
The Weeknd Suggests He’ll Put Music On Hold After One More Album
