The Weeknd: Influences

Canadian post-R&B sensation Abel Tesfaye (a.k.a. The Weeknd) seems to have emerged in a vacuum, fully formed, with a sound all his own—spooky, soulful, nocturnal. But while nobody sounds quite like him, you can hear elements of a wide range of artists in his work. You'll be surprised by the connections in this decades-spanning playlist of acts that, directly or indirectly, led to The Weeknd.