PHOTOSStarboy & Selly’s Story: Everything to Know About Selena Gomez & The Weeknd's Relationship
May 21 2019, Updated 3:03 a.m. ET
The relationship lasted 10 months, but it generated enough heat that we are still obsessed that Selena Gomez and The Weeknd were a thing. The pair’s whirlwind romance seemed to end just as it was getting going. When they were hot, they were hot and heavy. She had extracted herself from Justin Bieber, which had been on and off, and he was fresh from a breakup with Victoria Secret model Bella Hadid.
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Not only did Selena and The Weeknd’s relationship seem to grow before our eyes, but it took the couple around the world during its time. The couple piled on the PDA across Italy during a vacation just after beginning to date. She flew to Argentina to support him as his South American tour was scorching from city to city. He took her to his native Toronto and showed the “Bad Liar” singer some of his favorite haunts. He even flew from Paris, where he had just performed, back to Los Angeles to celebrate her birthday. Selena and The Weeknd were literal jet setters.
MORE: Selena Gomez "shattered" her spotless reputation long before her meltdown.
There is a lot to cover when chronicling the relationship history of Selena and The Weeknd. Let’s answer some intriguing questions — such as when did they first hook up and how did her mother feel about the romance — and cross the globe with two artists finding love quickly before completely burning out.
January 10, 2017.
Selena and The Weeknd were seen having one amazing first date, as chronicled by Us Weekly. They were seen embracing, holding hands and cuddling outside an Italian restaurant, Giorgio Baldi, in Santa Monica. She had just come off an on-off relationship with Justin and The Weeknd was merely months removed from his breakup with model Bella.
January 12, 2017.
Us Weekly dove right into The Weeknd music video for “Party Monster” and noticed the lyric, “Like Selena, ass shaped like Selena.” Hmm … looks like someone had a crush on someone long before the first hookup. Wonder how Bella felt about her former beau writing lyrics about another woman while they were together?
January 24, 2017.
The Weeknd and Selena followed each other on Instagram. This was another clue that these two were progressing romantically. Us Weekly was the first to see that he was following her and that she was following him. That is too cute.
January 26, 2017.
Us Weekly reported that the couple was seen leaving Dave & Buster’s at 3 a.m. after one fun-filled night that included an Instagram shot of him and a friend playing Mario Kart. He was introducing Selena to his pals already? That moved fast.
January 27, 2017.
A true jet set romance. The Weeknd and Selena were spotted oozing romance in Italy. Enjoying some of the greatest artistic works was the plan for the pair, especially at the Accademia Gallery in Florence. OK! Magazine documented the pair’s romantic vacay, from Florence to Venice. Nothing to solidify a budding relationship like a trip to one of the most romantic countries on the planet!
February 2, 2017.
The Weeknd’s manager, Tony Salvo, became a father, and who was by his side? None other than The Weeknd and Selena. Tony posted photos of the happy scene all over Instagram. Life & Style reported that the duo shared the manager’s big moment.
February 11, 2017.
In anticipation of upcoming Valentine’s Day, OK! Magazine spotted the two packing on the PDA with a date on a yacht in Marina Del Rey (Los Angeles marina area).
March 16, 2017.
The couple took their romance north of the border to Toronto. They took in a little shopping and seemed to enjoy each other’s company. Holding hands, stealing the occasional kiss — this was not a couple trying to hide anything. Us Weekly even saw them visiting the city’s famed aquarium, Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada.
March 26 and 29, 2017.
The Weeknd was performing his hits in front of tens of thousands of fans at Autódromo José Carlos Pace in São Paulo, Brazil. The jumbotron caught one incredibly excited fan at The Weeknd’s concert. You guessed it — Selena! Us Weekly chronicled how Selena flew to Brazil and then, on March 29, hopped over to Argentina for his show in Buenos Aires.
April 8, 2017.
Life and Style Magazine found that the rapper/singer made it social media official by adding a photo to his profile of them kissing! Aww, too cute.
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April 15, 2017.
Selena also made it social media official when she posted a picture of the two hugging, smiling and giving off the most adorable of vibes on Instagram.
May 1, 2017.
What better place to make your red carpet debut as a couple than one of the most watched events of the year. That’s right, Selena and The Weeknd attended The Met Gala on May Day and were the picture of collective happiness according to Radar Online. It was this post on Instagram of the two holding hands walking one of the most prestigious red carpets of the year at The Met that found Selena’s mother, Mandy Teefey, commenting on the post, saying “Glowing, smiling, looking health and equal love. Mama is happy XO.”
June 6, 2017.
The actress/singer went on SiriusXM and found it hard to contain her glow. “I love just being there and just kind of having somebody’s back. It feels good,” Selena said. “I haven’t had that feeling in a while.”
June 13, 2017.
Selena continued her interview tour talking up her man when she appeared on On Air With Ryan Seacrest. Us Weekly found that this was a woman in love, who wanted to sing that fact from the tops of mountains. But given her fame, never wanting to reveal too much is a constant struggle. “It's really hard when I would want to spend so much time hiding things. It's too much pressure, and I think everyone gets over everything eventually,” Selena said. “I just want to be happy. If that's me just being myself, then I don't really care.”
July 24, 2017.
Talk about committed! OK! documented how The Weeknd completed his headlining duties of Paris’ Lollapalooza and immediately flew back to Los Angeles to be with his sweetheart and to celebrate her 25th birthday.
August 12, 2017.
Comedy clubs make great date nights with laughter and some drinks. That is exactly where Radar Online reported having seen Selena and The Weeknd — at the Laugh Factory in Los Angeles, for a laugh-out-loud night of love.
September 8, 2017.
The couple made their second official red carpet appearance in early fall with their stylish pairing at the Harper's Bazaar Celebration of Icons by Carine Roitfeld. Us Weekly even reported that the two shared a kiss to the delight of the army of photographers. The musical entertainment that night was provided by … Selena’s man!
October 5, 2017.
Selena showed how much she valued her relationship by jetting to Vancouver to take in The Weeknd’s concert and to show her support, as reported in Elle. After all, nobody knows the taxing nature that being on tour can have on a relationship more than these two. Flying to his concert to show her support and share some one-on-one time was priceless. Anybody in a relationship can attest to that — regardless of your level of fame!
October 30, 2017.
One knew that things between Selena and The Weeknd had gone south when the “Love You Like a Love Song” singer was seen having breakfast with her ex, Justin Bieber, before going to church with him. Nothing slams the door shut on a relationship faster than hanging out with a contentious ex while your most recent boyfriend is out on tour. According to Us Weekly, Selena was proud of how things ended. “I truly have never experienced anything like that in my life,” she said. “We ended it as best friends, and it was genuinely about encouraging and caring for each other, and that was pretty remarkable for me.” In Touch Weekly actually reported that it was The Weeknd who ended things with Selena, not the other way around. Either way, the duo was done.
November 28, 2017.
How quickly things change. OK! reported that The Weeknd had unfollowed Selena on Instagram. It was just nine months prior when the two started following each other. What a difference a few months makes.
April 14, 2018.
Radar Online reported that The Weeknd, during his Coachella-headlining set, was singing songs from his new album (with many reportedly about Selena) and broke down while performing “Privilege.” The singer got emotional as he sang the words, “Enjoy your privileged life ’cause I’m not gonna hold you through the night. We said our last goodbyes so let’s just try to end it with a smile.” Life and Style magazine reported that it was quite the emotional scene with tears running down his face as he belted out the song.
