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Born Abel Makkonen Tesfaye in 1990 in Toronto, Canada, The Weeknd revealed himself as a triple threat in the recording industry - being both a dancer and record producer in addition to a singer-songwriter - with the anonymous release of his
House of Balloons
mixtape on YouTube in 2010. He then fostered this reputation with the subsequent release of two more mixtapes,
Thursday
and
Echoes of Silence
, which was later re-released in remastered form as
Trilogy
. The artist known as The Weeknd went on to sell over 75 million records in the United States. His unique brand of music spans pop, R&B, hip-hop and alternative musical styles.
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Three The Weeknd albums have reach No. 1 on the U.S.
Billboard
200 chart: 2015's
Beauty Behind the Madness
, 2016's
Starboy
and 2018's
My Dear Melancholy
. In 2013, The Weeknd became the first musical artist to hold all three top spots on
Billboard
's Hot R&B Songs chart at once, those song being The Hills, Earned It and Can't Feel My Face. In 2017, the Guinness Book of World Records honored The Weeknd for the Most Streamed Album of Spotify in One Year for
Beauty Behind the Madness
and Most Consecutive Weeks in the Top 10 of
Billboard
's Hot 100 by a Solo Male Artist. Since 2016, The Weeknd has received 37
Billboard
Music Awards nominations and won nine of those awards.
''Buy your tickets to the next The Weeknd tour at StubHub, the world's largest online tickets marketplace. Enjoy unparalleled ticket selection and availability offered with a FanProtect guarantee promising the safest and most secure purchasing process.'
'There were four The Weeknd tours between 2014 and 2018, starting with the King of the Fall Tour and ending with The Weeknd Asia Tour. In between were The Madness Fall Tour in 2015 and Starboy: Legend of the Fall Tour in 2017.'
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The Weeknd received 10 Grammy nominations between 2014 and 2018 and won three of those awards. He won the Grammy Award for Best Urban Contemporary Album for
Beauty Behind the Madness
in 2014, Best R&B Performance for Can't Feel My Face in 2016 and again for Best Urban Contemporary Album for
Starboy
in 2018.
''The Weeknd's songs highlight his three-octave range with vocals frequently in his falsetto register. Common production qualities include a foggy sound, rumbling bass, down-tempo beats and strong echoing reverb. Many The Weeknd songs incorporate samples of other songs from other musical genres like alternative and punk rock. The Weeknd's lyrics are often plaintive, focusing on difficult emotions around topics of partying, sex and drugs.'
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In addition to his musical prowess, The Weeknd is also renowned for his business and marketing acumen as he frequently collaborates with innovative businesses to create unique promotional products and experiences for his fans. For example, to promote his
Kiss Land
tour, The Weeknd released limited-edition condoms depicting the album's mascot Oxcy. To promote his album
Beauty Behind the Madness
, The Weeknd released a limited-edition vaporizer that audiences were permitted to use during the shows on his
The Madness Fall
tour. He partnered with Puma to set up pop-up retail stores releasing capsules of Puma gear branded for The Weeknd's
Starboy
album and tour.
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The Weeknd cites as his top influences R. Kelly,
Prince
and
Michael Jackson
. Other influences of The Weeknd include
Eminem
,
Wu-Tang Clan
,
50 Cent
,
Talking Heads
,
Bad Brains
, The Smiths and David Bowie.
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