The Weeknd has shared two new songs from his HBO series The Idol: “World Class Sinner / I’m a Freak” and the show’s theme song, “The Lure.” The former track is performed by Lily-Rose Depp and appeared in the first episode of The Idol. Co-written by the Weeknd and Asa Taccone, it’s the comeback single by pop star protagonist Jocelyn (Depp). “The Lure” is by the Weeknd and Mike Dean. Listen to both below.
Tesfaye teased the new singles on Instagram earlier this week. “I was planning on dropping the whole soundtrack for idol by the finale, but I’m too hyped,” he wrote in the post. “Instead, I wanna drop new music from the show every week with each episode. I’m excited for you guys to hear what we’ve been cooking and all these incredible artists that are a part of this show…this week… Jocelyn’s pop song ‘World Class Sinner’ and ‘The Lure’ (theme score)… episode 2 this Sunday ????”
Prior to The Idol’s premiere on June 4, the Weeknd released “Double Fantasy,” which features Future and was produced by the Weeknd, Mike Dean, and Metro Boomin. The song appears in the series, and it arrived with a music video featuring clips from the show.
Last week, Tesfaye released The Idol track “Popular,” featuring Madonna and Playboi Carti. The song was also produced by the Weeknd, Mike Dean, and Metro Boomin. All of the songs from the HBO series will appear on the soundtrack album, The Idol, Vol. 1, which lands June 30.
The Idol has been mired in controversy ever since a Rolling Stone exposé published in March outlined several allegations that the show’s production had gone off the rails due to rewrites, personnel changes, and an alleged shift from the original “feminist lens” of the script.
Read Pitchfork’s review of the HBO show’s first episode, “Is The Idol Really That Bad?”