‘SNL’: The Weeknd’s Bloody Face Confuses Fans

The Weeknd returned to Saturday Night Live for the Daniel Craig-hosted episode on Saturday, but more than just his music made an impression on fans. The R&B singer took two songs, “Blinding Lights” and “Scared to Live,” from his upcoming album After Hours to the SNL stage, and dressed in line with his visual aesthetic for the projects. He wore a black outfit paired with a red suit jacket along with a bloody bandage on his face, just like his recent music videos. However, many fans were not clued in and were worried about the 30-year-old singer’s health.

“I’ve never seen you (The Weeknd) before. Why did you have bandages around your face in blood? I saw you tonight on SNL,” one viewer asked on Twitter.

“Is that #Blood running down the side of his (The Weeknd’s) face?” a second viewer wrote.

“[The Weeknd] need to have the #snl Team. Change his Bandages&Clean his FACE UP!” a third onlooker wrote.

“OK…I guess I’m too old, but what’s with the blood all over [The Weeknd’s] face?” another viewer tweeted. “I’m sure it means something, but I have no clue what. That being said, he sings great live.”

“Wait, why is the Weeknd performing like he’s broken his nose with other blood coming down his face?” yet another wrote.

“are you (The Weeknd) okay? You sounded so wonderful on snl but I couldn’t get past the blood on your face,” a sixth Twitter user wrote said.

“Why does The Weeknd have blood on his face?!” another user wrote.

While the blood was confusing to some, anyone who has seen the visuals accompanying After Hours understood why the singer, whose real name is Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, was bloody.

All the music videos for the album (as well as a short film) tell a connecting story that, in a nutshell, shows Weeknd dealing with a wild night out on the town. In the “Blinding Lights” video, he gets in brawl with some bouncers, seemingly causing the injuries shown in other parts of the story.

While there are parts of the experience that show Weeknd unbloodied and sharp as ever, the bloody face creates a striking visual that stands out, hence why Weeknd is using it as the driving visual aesthetic for this era of his career.

Photo Credit: NBC