The Weeknd—whose real name is Abel Tesfaye—also seemed to confirm that this new career milestone means he is closer to retiring his stage name. The movie, which he co-wrote, stars in and produced, is a companion piece to his January album of the same name. That game- (and possibly name-) changing new contract, the album, and a top-grossing tour helped The Weeknd finish at the top of the Forbes ranking of the highest-paid musicians of 2025. Four of the remaining five are among the top-grossing touring acts of the year: Beyoncé, Coldplay, Shakira, and Kendrick Lamar. The fifth is Swift, whose The Life of a Showgirl broke sales records and finished the year as the best-selling album of 2025, while a documentary deal with Disney+ allowed her to make even more money from The Eras Tour.

Source: Forbes January 02, 2026 02:30 UTC