The Weeknd

Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, known professionally as The Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and record producer renowned for his sonic versatility and dark cinematic R&B. Raised in Scarborough, Ontario, Tesfaye anonymously uploaded a series of tracks to YouTube in late 2010 before releasing three acclaimed mixtapes—"House of Balloons," "Thursday," and "Echoes of Silence"—which pioneered the alternative R&B subgenre. Signing with Republic Records and launching XO, Tesfaye's sophomore album "Beauty Behind the Madness" (2015) yielded Billboard Hot 100 #1 singles "Can't Feel My Face" and "The Hills." His 2020 album "After Hours" featured "Blinding Lights," which became the longest-charting song in Billboard Hot 100 history and the most-streamed track on Spotify. Following his 2021 Super Bowl LV Halftime performance, Tesfaye expanded his narrative world with "Dawn FM" (2022) and 2024's "Dancing in the Flames," becoming the first artist in Spotify history to surpass 110 million monthly listeners.