Birthday: February 16, 1990
Birthplace: Scarborough, Ontario
Zodiac Sign: Aquarius
Toronto-native and Abel Tesfaye, otherwise known as The Weeknd, has been building a name for himself in the R&B world as a singer, rapper, producer and musician has been heralded by music critics and fans everywhere as a rising star to watch. Find out more in his Kidzworld Bio!
Online to Onstage
Born on February 16th, 1990, Canadian musician Abel Tesfaye is of Ethiopian descent but grew up in Toronto, Ontario. He first began recording songs with his friend Jeremy Rose and uploading them to YouTube under the name The Weekend, but after he went solo he decided to drop that extra “e” and perform as The Weeknd, initially keeping his identity a secret and allowing fans online to judge the quality of his music themselves.
House of Balloons
In March 2011 The Weeknd released a 9 track free album online called House of Balloons that blew music critics and fans away! Using classic songs like Siouxsie and the Banshees “Happy House” as a starting point The Weeknd would layer his own lyrics and sounds on top of the tracks, creating a wholly new and unique sound, according to tastemaker Pitchfork:
"all the thematic and sonic pieces fit together - these weird, morning-after tales of lust, hurt, and over-indulgence ... are matched by this incredibly lush, downcast music.
That wasn’t the only praise he received, The Weeknd was championed by established artist and fellow Torontonian rapper Drake, who publicly stated how much he loved The Weeknd’s sound, and helped raise awareness about the under-hyped artist.
The Weeknd was featured on The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Soundtrack
Thursday to Trilogy
The Weeknd started to sell out shows in venues across North America, but that didn’t stop him from putting out a mixtape Thursday and another album Echoes of Silence in 2011, and has plans to release yet another album in November of 2012 called Trilogy.
Despite becoming a recognizable name he remains somewhat elusive, The Weeknd mostly interacted with fans and artists via Twitter, and regularly refuses to do interviews. It's safe to say, he's a pretty private guy.
The Weeknd released Kiss Land in 2013
50 Shades and Beauty Behind the Madness
With fans like Drake and collaborators like Ariana Grande and Sia, staying under the radar and out of the spotlight just wasn't going to happen. In 2013 The Weeknd released his studio album Kiss Land, which shot straight to the number 2 spot on the Billboard charts. He was featured on The Hunger Games: Catching Fire soundtrack with "Devil May Cry," on Sia's single "Elastic Heart" and in 2014 he remixed Beyonce's "Drunk in Love," in a way that really caught listeners' attention.
Later that year he really started sweeping the charts with his contributions to the 50 Shades of Grey soundtrack - collaborating with diva Ariana Grande on "Love Me Harder," and on the track "Earned It."
Listen to "I Can't Feel My Face" below!
In May 2015 he released Beauty Behind the Madness, featuring the tracks "I Can't Feel My Face," and "The Hills," officially taking over the airwaves for the summer!
Have Your Say
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