The Weeknd believes his upcoming music would not be here without the failure of debut album Kiss Land.
Opening up in an interview with GQ magazine, Tesfaye said the negative response strengthened his future choices and actually "encouraged" him to make better music.
"It reminded me that I'll never stop taking chances," the Canadian musician commented to the publication after previewing tracks from his next release. "If it wasn't for Kiss Land, I wouldn't have been able to make this new album. That song that you just heard? That's Kiss Land, man. It's just me understanding how to use Kiss Land now, in my craft.
"But it's definitely my most honest record. I was the most naked. Most vulnerable. And it is what it is."
Following three successful mixtapes, Kiss Land was Tesfaye's highly anticipated follow-up, the first on his deal with Republic Records.
However, the 31-year-old admitted: "Kiss Land is not a label's type of record. Especially since it's the debut album. As a debut record, there was an expectation for it. I guess, for me, it was the fourth album. I feel like I said everything I needed to say on (2012 compilation album) Trilogy and that sound and whatever I wanted to put out into the universe."
He noted that Kiss Land's authenticity came from being made on the road, as Tesfaye left his native Toronto to tour for the very first time.
Those lessons have strengthened his next endeavour, which he told GQ is "the album I've always wanted to make".
