advertisement
Music News

The Weeknd & Anitta Deliver ‘São Paulo’ Song & Video: Stream It Now

The Weeknd & Anitta finally delivered their "São Paulo" collab on Wednesday night.

Abel 'The Weeknd' Tesfaye performs on stage at MorumBIS on Sept. 7, 2024 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Abel 'The Weeknd' Tesfaye performs on stage at MorumBIS on Sept. 7, 2024 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Pedro Vilela/Getty Images

The Weeknd and Anitta finally delivered their “São Paulo” collaboration on Wednesday (Oct. 30).

The song came along with a new music video, which — as teased in cryptic previews for the collab — featured Anitta with an exaggerated baby bump. In the clip, Anitta’s pregnant belly sings The Weeknd’s parts, with lips emerging where her belly button is. The video ends with the word “Phantasm” flashing, though it’s unclear whether that could be an album or song title or something else entirely.


The Weeknd (real name Abel Tesfaye) previously told Billboard Brazil in his cover story that his frequent collaborator Mike Dean had asked Anitta for a vocal recording to complement The Weeknd’s set last October when he performed two nights in São Paulo during his After Hours Til Dawn Tour. “What she sent was so awesome that we created the song,” the “Blinding Lights” hitmaker said. The two debuted “São Paulo” in the titular city’s Estádio MorumBIS on Sept. 7 during a special one-night-only show that was livestreamed. “We knew it was too special to just play on stage. We saw great potential in the song and found the beat, which is the heart of the show,” he added of “São Paulo.”

advertisement

“I wrote some verses as a joke and never imagined they would become serious. Suddenly, I received the finished song. I loved it! I felt very honored and flattered,” Anitta told Billboard Brazil. “I’ve always been a big fan of his and his work. I never imagined this would happen, and now it’s a dream come true. It’s a little more Brazilian funk, as promised, around the world.”

He premiered other new songs from his upcoming album Hurry Up Tomorrow, including “Dancing With the Flames” and “Timeless” with Playboi Carti that have since been released. The former reached No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100, while the latter peaked at No. 3, making it The Weeknd’s 19th top 10 hit and highest-charting debut on the all-genre songs tally and Carti’s fifth top 10.

advertisement

Listen to “São Paulo” below.

This article was first published by Billboard U.S.

advertisement
Michael Jackson performs in concert circa 1988.
Kevin Mazur/WireImage

Michael Jackson performs in concert circa 1988.

Chart Beat

Michael Jackson Shatters His Best Streaming Week Total After Biopic Release, as Catalogue Floods Charts

The late icon more than doubles his previous best total, as Thriller and "Billie Jean" lead his albums and songs' returns.

Confirming projections reported in late April, Michael Jackson obliterates his personal-best domestic streaming week following the release of the Michael biopic. The King of Pop’s solo song catalogue registered a collective 137.5 million official on-demand streams for the week of April 24-30 in the United States, according to Luminate, up 146% and more than doubling his previous career high.

Before his nine-digit streaming haul, Jackson’s solo catalogue achieved a new personal benchmark last week at 55.9 million song clicks. Prior to the Michael era, the late icon, who died in 2009, recorded a high of 53.7 million for the week of Oct. 25-31, 2019, spurred by the now-annual Halloween resurgence for “Thriller.”

keep readingShow less
advertisement