Portrait of The Weeknd

Birthday profile

The Weeknd

The Weeknd, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer

Born
February 16, 1990
Age in 2026
36
Zodiac sign
Aquarius
Birth year
1990

About The Weeknd

Abel Tesfaye (born Abel Makkonen Tesfaye; February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. Regarded as an influential figure in popular music, he is known for his light-lyric tenor vocal range and falsetto, alternative R&B sound, and dark aesthetics, as well as the cinematic visuals and storytelling of his music videos. His accolades include 4 Grammy Awards, 20 Billboard Music Awards, 22 Juno Awards, 6 American Music Awards, 3 MTV Video Music Awards, and a Latin Grammy Award. Tesfaye began releasing music anonymously in 2009. After co-founding the record label XO, he released three mixtapes—House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence—in 2011. He signed with Republic Records to compile the mixtapes into the compilation album Trilogy (2012), before releasing his debut studio album, Kiss Land (2013). Following collaborations and film soundtrack contributions from 2013 and 2014, Tesfaye blended alternative R&B with pop on his second and third studio albums, Beauty Behind the Madness (2015) and Starboy (2016); both debuted atop the US Billboard 200 and featured the Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles "Can't Feel My Face", "The Hills", "Starboy", and "Die for You". His debut extended play (EP), My Dear Melancholy (2018), featured the US top-ten single "Call Out My Name". Tesfaye began an album trilogy based on three time points, starting with the dream pop– and new wave–inspired album After Hours (2020), which spawned the chart-topping singles "Heartless" and "Save Your Tears", as well as "Blinding Lights"—the best-performing song in the Billboard Hot 100's history and the most-streamed song on Spotify. The trilogy's latter two installments, Dawn FM (2022) and Hurry Up Tomorrow (2025), featured the US top-ten singles, "Take My Breath" and "Timeless". Tesfaye is one of the best-selling and most-streamed artists of all time. He has amassed eight diamond-certified singles from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The highest-paid musician in 2025, he ranked among the world's 100 most influential people by Time in 2020. His After Hours til Dawn Tour (2022–2026) set the record for the highest-grossing tour by a male soloist in history. Tesfaye also co-created and starred in the HBO drama series The Idol (2023), and the film Hurry Up Tomorrow (2025). His other ventures include hosting the Apple Music 1 radio show Memento Mori (2018–2022), being appointed goodwill ambassador for the World Food Programme in 2021, and advocacy for racial equality and food security. Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (Amharic: አቤል መኮንን ተስፋዬ; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He signed with Republic Records to compile the mixtapes into the compilation album Trilogy (2012), and release his debut studio album, Kiss Land (2013) the following year. His accolades include four Grammy Awards, 20 Billboard Music Awards, 22 Juno Awards, six American Music Awards, three MTV Video Music Awards, and a Latin Grammy Award.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The Weeknd timeline

  1. Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (Amharic: አቤል መኮንን ተስፋዬ; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor.
  2. After co-founding the record label XO, he released three mixtapes—House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence—in 2011.
  3. He signed with Republic Records to compile the mixtapes into the compilation album Trilogy (2012), and release his debut studio album, Kiss Land (2013) the following year.

The world when The Weeknd was born

The Weeknd was born in 1990. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1990

  • #1 song"Hold On" – Wilson Phillips
  • Top movieDances with Wolves
  • Top TV showRoseanne
  • Best-selling bookJurassic Park – Michael Crichton

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentBuster Douglas knocks out Mike Tyson in biggest upset ever
  • Top headlineNelson Mandela freed after 27 years
  • Technology milestoneHubble Space Telescope launched
  • Defining fadNinja Turtles mania
  • Notable inventionWorld Wide Web goes public
  • World population5.28 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderGeorge H.W. Bush
  • Sports championCincinnati Reds (World Series)
  • Also wonDetroit Pistons (NBA)
  • U.S. population249.6M

1990 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in The Weeknd's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19902026
Gas$1.16$3.45/gal
Average home$95,500$435,000
Average income$35,353$67,500
Minimum wage$3.80$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$4.23$11.95
Postage stamp$0.25$0.73
Population249.6M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.