Beyonce, Jack Johnson, Jay-z, Spice Girls... what do these 4 artists have in common? They are amongst the elite group of legendary musicians for their generation. They are the old guard in the music industry, showing the younger generations how it’s done. The general public is familiar with most of these artists, and certainly know a song from each through listening to them on the radio. What people aren’t aware of, is the younger generation, and new artists just breaking into the business. 

I plan on this being the first of a series of blog posts on new artists in the music industry, and few better to start with than The Weeknd. The Weeknd is a 21 year old Canadian singer and record producer of Ethiopian descent. His first official project, a mixtape entitled House of Balloons, was released on March 21st last year, and was so exceptional that it won Complex Magazine’s award for best mixtape of the year, beating established musicians such as Wiz Khalifa and Lil Wayne. 

The thing I enjoy about the mixtape, other than the fact it is only his debut, so it is just a drop in the ocean of what he may be able to produce, is that it combines delicate high pitched R&B singing, with funky production, almost mixing Massive Attack with Hip Hop drum snares yet keeping a soft tone over the whole production. Yet despite this soft tone, he keeps the content of his explicit lyrics raw and passionate, without forcing it down your throat. 

Not only is this guy a great artist, but he has a tremendous work ethic, releasing a mixtape trilogy last year, the first of which is House of Balloons, all three mixtapes have 9 tracks, ensuring they can’t be labelled as too long and aren’t too short. He also made a guest appearance on Drake’s widely acclaimed sophomore album Take Care, on the tracks Crew Love, Good Ones Go, Practice and The Ride. 

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