In the scissor snip heard 'round the world: The Weeknd cut his hair. Understandably, the Internet freaked out and demanded answers as to why the future Mr. Bella Hadid would do something so batshit insane. His braids-tied-into-a-topknot situation (I think that's what you'd call it) was as much as part of his signature look as his smoldering stare and propensity toward leather jackets, and seeing him without them on the cover of his new album is hella jarring.
Considering how angry his fans were at the singer for doing this to them (2016 is a magical time in history when a celebrity cutting their hair is a personal attack on their Twitter following) the Weeknd had some 'splainin to do. In an interview with WSJ, he gave a hilariously honest (and for anyone who's ever worn curlers to bed, relatable) answer: “It was actually very uncomfortable,” he said. “I could only sleep on one side of my face. Now the sleep is amazing.”
... For someone who churns out number one hits like it ain't no thang, it's understandable that he wants to get in a full, uninterrupted eight hours every night.
The star goes on to say that, “It didn’t feel right anymore, because it ended up becoming a trademark. I told everybody I was getting rid of it, and everybody—literally, unanimously—they were like, ‘No, don’t do it! That’s your whole thing, that’s you.’ And the way they said that, I was like, ‘Oh, I’m definitely cutting it now.’”
For anyone who has ever changed their haircut as a means of getting a fresh start (i.e., revenge hair), this makes total sense. The Weeknd's talent stands on its own — he doesn't need a signature 'do to define him.
Obviously, even with all of the good reasons The Weeknd has for his chop, the Internet still has mixed feelings. Some people love it:
And others most definitely do not:
Whatever your #feels are on the matter, I for one am prettttty excited to see what kind of work he'll put out now that he's sleeping through the night.
I mean, dayum.
