The Weeknd had another reason to “Remember the Alamo” as crowds roared just seconds before he took the stage in San Antonio wearing his glowing-eyed mask.
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Minutes into what would be his final U.S. show at the Alamodome for the After Hours Til Dawn tour, the multi-award-winning artist, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, removed the mask—revealing himself and signaling a shift from character to candid creator. For fans, those moments carry weight: when The Weeknd takes off the mask, it feels like the real him emerging—a rare moment of genuine connection. Tesfaye let it linger, taking several beats to breathe it in alongside the crowd.
Overwhelmed with emotions, Tesfaye occasionally fought back tears as the crowd screamed his name and he made sure to reciprocate the love.
“It’s been way too f***ing long, man,” Tesfaye told the crowd early on. “I want to say the Starboytour, that’s the last time we came out here. I think it was 2016-2017, almost 10 years, and look at it now: we packed a stadium all the way behind the screen. I think it’s safe to say you guys are not mad at me for taking so long to come back to y’all now.”
According to Live Nation DFW, The Weeknd made Texas history as the highest-grossing Black male artist in Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio.
The Weeknd makes history in Texas: #1 in tickets sold this year, top-grossing black male artist at NRG Stadium and AT&T Stadium, and the first R&B artist to sell out the Alamodome!
Posted by Live Nation DFW on Thursday, September 4, 2025
It shouldn’t be a surprise how much love Tesfaye has for Texas.
The state has long been part of Tesfaye’s creative orbit. Houston’s own legendary music producer, Mike Dean, affectionately called the “Synth God,” opened the show, and the two share producer credits on several of their respective songs. Missouri City’s Travis Scott also appears on the Hurry Up Tomorrow track “Reflections Laughing,” referencing a 2022 Arlington performance. And the accompanying film, which shares the same name, was directed by Montgomery County native Trey Edward Shults.
MORE: After ‘The Idol,’ Abel Tesfaye’s new movie ‘Hurry Up Tomorrow’ brought ‘joy back into filmmaking’
It should be no wonder then that The Weeknd would want to conclude his U.S. tour in a state that makes one feel at home. And despite touring different cities and countries back-to-back, one can only imagine how exhausted Tesfaye might be, which he also admitted to the crowd at the Alamodome.
“Just so you guys know, it was my idea to end this whole tour in Texas because I know when you tour all summer, naturally, we get tired; we’re human,” Tesfaye said. “But when you’re in Texas, you guys give me so much f***ing life.”
Therefore, it was unsurprising how he was able to keep the crowd on their feet and leave his mark on the stage before bowing out gracefully.