Contents
The Weeknd
Singing Blinding Lights, Starboy and Can’t Feel My Face.
House of Balloons · Starboy
- Born
- 16 February 1990
- Birthplace
- Toronto, Canada
More people
The Weeknd
The Weeknd is the performing name of Canadian musician Abel Tesfaye. He moved from anonymous online releases and dark R&B mixtapes to internationally successful pop records with strong visual narratives.
Early life
Scarborough childhood
Grew up in Toronto’s Scarborough district in an Ethiopian-Canadian family.
Early independence
Left school and began developing music with collaborators in Toronto.
Career
- 2011
Online beginnings
Released three mixtapes that established his early sound.
- 2012–2013
Album career
Reissued the mixtapes as Trilogy and released Kiss Land.
- 2015–2020
Pop breakthrough
Expanded his audience with Beauty Behind the Madness, Starboy and After Hours.
- 2020s
Stadium performances
Combined large-scale touring with further albums and screen projects.
Selected work
House of Balloons
A debut mixtape that helped bring alternative R&B to wider attention.
Starboy
An album including collaborations with Daft Punk.
Blinding Lights
A synth-driven single from After Hours.
Beyond work
Humanitarian work
Appointed a World Food Programme Goodwill Ambassador in 2021.
Ethiopian heritage
Has supported relief efforts in Ethiopia and discussed the influence of Ethiopian music and language on his upbringing.
Sources & photo credit
Life and career ↗Institutional or specialist reference ↗Featured contribution ↗Photo: Brian Ziff. CC BY-SA 4.0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
