In honor of Black History Month, I wanted to share about one of my favorite Black musicians. Music is very important to me, and I try to listen to music from artists of all different backgrounds. My music taste also varies a lot as I have mentioned in previous articles. I don’t tend to listen to much R&B unless it’s music by The Weeknd.
The Weeknd was born as Abel Makkonen Tesfaye on Feb. 16, 1990, in Toronto, Canada. His parents were both immigrants from Ethiopia. His parents separated shortly after his birth, so he was raised by his mother and grandmother who is also Ethiopian. They taught him how to speak Amharic, but he also learned to speak French and English.
One reason I love his music so much is because of how different it sounds compared to what I tend to listen to. His lyrics mainly deal with sex, drugs, partying, and heartbreak, all of which he has dealt with through his lifetime. Even though I can’t relate to a majority of what he sings about I enjoy listening to him. He also is heavily influenced by other Black artists such as Micheal Jackson, Prince, 50 Cent, and R. Kelly. His music also contains some Ethiopian influences as well especially when he sings about pain and hurt that he has endured.
Tesfaye has gone through a lot in his life. Like I mentioned before, his parents separated after his birth, he dropped out of school, he was also homeless, incarcerated several times, and was a frequent user of drugs. He decided that he needed to change his ways, so he stopped using drugs.
In 2009 he started releasing music on YouTube and was later recognized by Drake. He founded his own record label titled XO and later signed with Republic Records. He has released six studio albums since 2013 with his most recent one being Hurry Up Tomorow which was released Jan. 31, 2025.
I listened to the entirety of the Hurry Up Tomorow album while writing this article and I learned a lot about his life. I always look at the lyrics of songs but the lyrics in this album really stuck with me and affected me more than some of his other works. The title track of the album is a lot different than what he normally writes in terms of the lyrics and the beat. It was slower and more relaxed and talked a lot about Heaven and as someone who is religious, I felt a connection to the song and now it’s one that I feel that I will constantly replay.
Tesfaye cares a lot about giving back to others and helping people learn more about the Ethiopian culture. He has helped to fund education relating to Ethiopian culture. He has also donated to a medical center in Uganda, the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, Equal Justice Initiative, School on Wheels Inc., United Nations World Food Programme, and more.
The Weeknd is an amazing artist, and his music is very enjoyable. I didn’t know much about him before listening to his music but I’m so glad that I was introduced to him and his music. I hope that this article inspires you to listen to his music if you never have or maybe even research more about him.