Individuals have adorned tattoos for thousands of years, often getting them to showcase beliefs, honor someone or something or allow their personality to shine through art.

In the past, perfectly qualified candidates would be turned away because of the ink covering their skin. Employers often associated tattoos with their long history on sailors, bikers and criminals. Now, employers less often look upon tattoos as an act of rebellion, but rather as an art form. What was once considered trashy is now classy and unique.

Although tattooing has a long and rich history, many people still judge the act. Whether it’s your parents asking you why you would do that to yourself or a classmate saying you’ll regret it when you’re older, people can still be judgemental of the art of inking.

Tattoos have a controversial history in the world of fashion too. Many models were forbidden from having tattoos and were required to be “a blank canvas” to walk down the runway. Models in the high fashion world now showcase their tattoos with the fashion they wear, allowing their individuality to shine through. 

In recent years, tattoos have become a sort of permanent accessory in the fashion world. More people are choosing to express their individuality through permanent ink. Tattoos seem to take on their trends, similar to the ebb and flow of fashion fads. 

Certain styles of tattoos have become popularized in recent years. Rather than hiding small tattoos where people couldn’t see them, people are choosing to let their tattoos be shown. Full sleeves becoming more and more common, allowing people to wear their hearts on their sleeves. 

Patchwork tattoos have become more widespread. Also known as sticker sleeves, the patchwork style contains smaller individual tattoos that work together to create one cohesive piece of artwork. 

Although it is within current trends to sport permanent ink, it is easy to still show individuality with tattoos that have special meaning to you. Each tattoo artist has a different style and every person with tattoos has something different they choose to permanently display on their body. 

The permanency of tattoos is a factor that stops many from going through with the tattoo they want. They wonder if they’ll regret it later in life, if it will age well, if the color will fade or if it will go out of style. With the accessory of tattoos. Yes, you may grow to regret your tattoos, but you may also look upon them as a permanent time capsule, showcasing who you were when you got them, adding to your skin as you grow and change.

If you’ve turned on the radio in the last few years, I’m sure you’ve heard of The Weeknd, born Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, and his unique sound, ranging from R&B to pop and even hip-hop. What you might not know is the immense influence Halloween has on his music and his style. 

The Weeknd shows his love for this time of the year by going all out for his Halloween costumes. Let’s take a look at some of his most popular costumes. 

In 2018, The Weeknd and his then-girlfriend Bella Hadid dressed up together for a Halloween party and wowed the crowd with their take on Micheal Keaton’s Beetlejuice and Winona Ryder’s iconic character Lydia Deetz.

This beautifully executed couple costume features Hadid in a vintage red dress adorned with lace and plump with layers. She paired the look with black combat boots, a matching red handbag, and wilting roses to truly encapsulate the Tim Burton character. 

The singer is costumed in a similarly-vintage maroon suit and matching bow tie. His white shoes match his ghost-white makeup covering all his exposed skin. The couple went all out, including professional makeup looks and hair executed perfectly to match the characters they’re portraying, complete with a wild wig on The Weeknd’s part. 

In 2019, The Weeknd portrayed one of Jack Nicholson’s most iconic characters, the Joker, and was almost completely unrecognizable.

This costume was a hit among fans, as he chose a culturally relevant one with the release of Tod Phillips’ “The Joker” that same year. The costume features multiple shades of the iconic Joker purple, lots of layers, plaid pants, a bright orange undershirt and purple accessories. 

The next year, in 2020, is perhaps The Weeknd’s most well-known Halloween costume. He took on “The Nutty Professor,” one of Eddie Murphy’s iconic characters, using not only fashion, but makeup and even prosthetics to truly transform himself. 

Upon first glance, this looks nothing like the well-known artist we know to be behind the costume. This is because he used a wig, makeup, prosthetics on his face and hands, fake teeth and even a fat suit to hide himself within the costume. 

In 2021, the Weeknd took on the iconic Marlon Brando character, Don Vito Corleone, from Francis Ford Coppola’s 1972 film, “The Godfather.”

The Weeknd once again executed an iconic portrayal through his continued use of makeup, wigs, and prosthetics, allowing him to transform into a different person for just one night each year.

His clothing choices have become secondary to the other tools he uses to become his characters, but he continues to use fashion in a subtle, yet effective way. This black suit with a matching black bow tie and deep red rose in the front pocket looks straight out of the 1972 film. 

Last year, while we missed out on seeing The Weeknd in one of his extravagant costumes, we got a new experience entirely. 

The Weeknd’s “After Hours Nightmare” at Universal Studios, Orlando was just one installment in the haunted house event, “Halloween Horror Nights.” 

The Weeknd’s haunted house was modeled after the music and videos from his album “After Hours,” and featured the same unsettling feelings as the album, only ramped up to truly encapsulate the Halloween experience. The musician used Halloween 2022 to spread his music around the world through his haunted house experience and to share how influential the holiday is on his art. 

It is hard to say what the musician will do next to top his past looks and events and what new music and videos he will create with Halloween as his influence and inspiration. Maybe this year we’ll see more people dressing up as The Weeknd, trying to top his well-known Halloween style.