The Weeknd shows off Toronto Reference Library, UTSC in new music video

The Weeknd sheds light on Toronto in new video Scarborough's own The Weeknd shed a positive light on some of Toronto's architectural gems in his new music video. Colin D'Mello reports.

Scarborough’s own The Weeknd has given his home turf the ultimate nod -- showcasing two of Toronto’s architectural wonders in the backdrop to his new music video.

The video for ‘Secrets,’ off his 2016 album Starboy, shows off the unique architecture of both the Toronto reference Library and the University of Toronto’s Scarborough campus.

Dressed in all black, the video begins at the Toronto Reference Library where The Weeknd is seen peering over the banister of one of the library’s many floors and occasionally descending from its crimson elevators.

The Weeknd inside an elevator at the Toronto Reference Library. (TheWeekndVEVO/YouTube)

Toronto Reference Library manager Ana-Maria Critchley said the library is flattered the Forbes list-maker chose their library as a location for the video.

Designed by Raymond Moriyama, the library opened in 1977 and has long been admired for its open-concept layout and atmosphere.

Critchley said while the library is inarguably one-of-a-kind, the magic of filmmaking exaggerated some aspects of the building.

“We’ve got two elevators, not eight, and the carpeting isn’t quite as red as in the video, but the lines of the building and the open space was absolutely spot on,” she said.

“Maybe now people are going to want to come in and see the space for themselves.”

Through the lens of director Pedro Martin-Calero, the library’s massive atrium and numerous staircases are highlighted.

The Grammy-award winner eventually takes the video’s love-triangle narrative even closer to his roots – University of Toronto’s Scarborough campus.

The Weeknd walks around Scarborough's U of T campus. (TheWeekndVEVO/YouTube)

Walking through the snow-covered ground outside the campus, the video shows off the school’s distinct concrete architecture.

“It’s Brutalist, which doesn’t sound very good from the descriptor, but from a Hollywood point of view – it is gold,” University of Toronto Scarborough’s retail and conference services manager Frank Villiva told CTV News Toronto.

Villiva also acknolwedged that the video put a special touch on reality.

“Some of the iconic features, such as the smokestacks outside and the stairwells, you can tell its UTSC,” he said. “But, then again, you still do a double take.”

The video’s release shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to diehard Weeknd fans though, as his brief appearance shooting the scenes made their way to social media back in February.

CTV News Toronto's Colin D'Mello visited the spots where The Weeknd shot 'Secrets.' Here's a 'before-and-after' look at both locations: