The Weeknd, Wicked Games | Midnight Heat 🕛 🔥

In the 32^nd edition of Midnight Heat 🕛 🔥 (2023), we explore the naughty, sexy vibes behind “Wicked Games” by The Weeknd.

Ah, bring on Midnight Heat 🕛 🔥! Wait – it is not usually hot at midnight! Well, it is steaming hot 🥵 at midnight when it comes to this naughty, innuendo and sex-laden column featuring songs intended for nighttime. Yeah, we are talking about that after dark, bedroom boom $hi†, ya dig? These unapologetic records often raises both eyebrows and temperature alike. Woo! In the 32^nd edition of Midnight Heat (2023), we explore the naughty, sexy vibes behind, 🎵 “Wicked Games” by 🎙 The Weeknd. 

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“I left my girl back home / I don’t love her no more / And she’ll never fucking know that / These fucking eyes that I’m staring at.” Woo! So, the 🎵 “Wicked Games” of which 🎙 The Weeknd speaks begin with cheating.  Keep on truckin’ in the first verse alone and it is crystal clear that the 🏆 Grammy-winning Canadian R&B singer/songwriter is paying for sex (“Let me see that ass / Look at all this cash / And I emptied out my cards too”) and using substances (“Now I’m fucking leaning on that”).  That is a jam-packed opening verse on this record that helped make The Weeknd a star.  Peaking at a modest no. 53 on the Billboard Hot 100, “Wicked Games” wouldn’t come close to being the biggest hit of Tesfaye’s career, but the highlight from his  2011 mixtape, 💿 House of Balloons (re-released in the commercial, triple-disc compilation, 💿 Trilogy), is an important stepping stone in his career.

What stands out about “Wicked Games” is the voice. At the time it picked up traction on radio, there was no one who sounded like The Weeknd.  His high tenor was ear-catching (it still is). Furthermore, his bluntness added another dimension, including profanity, as well as themes that paint him authentically as rough around the edges. “Bring the cups, baby, I could bring the drank / Bring your body, baby, I could bring you fame,” he sings in the pre-chorus, adding, “And that’s my motherfucking words too / Just let me motherfucking love you.” WOO! Clearly, this is a #BIG MOOD! Also, adding to the allure was the lethargic pace – “Wicked Games” is the ultimate slow jam. It’s all parts seedy, sexy, sketchy, and unapologetic. Shout out the colorful, moody production work by The Weeknd, 🎛 Martin “Doc” McKinney, and Carlo “Illangelo” Montagnese.

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🎙 The Weeknd • 💿 Trilogy • 🏷 XO&co., Inc.• 📅 2012

The Weeknd, “Wicked Games”: Midnight Heat 🕛 🔥 No. 32 (2023) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; XO&co., Inc.; Ash via Pexels; Clker-Free-Vector-Images, Dorothe, Stefan Schweihofer via Pixabay]