The Truth About The Weeknd's Relationship With Bella Hadid
The Weeknd and Bella Hadid's turbulent relationship has inspired some of the musician's best hits, and some speculate that their story might not be over yet. According to Life and Style, the two first started hanging out in April 2015, sparking rumors after they were spotted together at Coachella. The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, told Rolling Stone in October 2015 the relationship "just kind of fell into my lap."
"If I'd met someone two years ago, I probably would've f–ked it up. But I'm more — how do I say it? —clear-thinking now," The Weeknd continued. The pair was seen on plenty of red carpets the following year, and Hadid appeared in his music video for "In The Night." His more mature "clear-thinking" ways didn't stand in the way of their first breakup in November 2016, however.
In January 2017, it was revealed The Weeknd was dating singer Selena Gomez. The couple went public at the Met Gala four months later. Supermodel Hadid told Teen Vogue the breakup was the first real heartbreak she ever experienced, besides the tragic loss of a pet horse, Lego, that she'd been forced to give away.
"It was my first breakup — or second, next to the horse — and so public. As an outsider, you might think I handled it so well, but it's always in your heart, and you always feel it very heavily," she revealed. "It'll be hard for a while. Love hurts, but you have to pull through."
Bella Hadid and The Weeknd reunited, only to split up again
The musical pairing of The Weeknd and Selena Gomez didn't last a full year, as the two split in October 2017. Us Weekly then reported in April 2018 that The Weeknd reconnected with Bella Hadid at Coachella, the festival where their romantic connection first hit headlines. Hadid denied a report E! published about their PDA, simply replying, "It wasn't me," to their Instagram account.
Summer 2018 saw the celebrity couple become exclusive again, according to E! News. Later that year, they celebrated Hadid's birthday together and attended Heidi Klum's legendary Halloween party dressed as Lydia and Beetlejuice, per Elle. That November, Us Weekly reported they were even moving into The Weeknd's New York apartment together.
But by August 2019, the pair drifted apart once more. E! reported they'd officially broken up, and The Weeknd focused on creating his fourth studio album Blinding Lights. When the singles "Heartless" and "Blinding Lights" dropped in November, many suspected his lyrics might contain references to Hadid (per Elle).
Fans also thought his recent bizarre plastic surgery look, created through prosthetics for the music video "Save Your Tears," might have been a dig at Hadid's appearance, according to BuzzFeed. He also makes references to plastic surgery and all L.A. girls "looking the same" in the lyrics. Despite all the rumors, neither ex has publicly commented. The Weeknd is performing at the 2021 Super Bowl and releasing a greatest hits album to celebrate, according to Billboard.