The Weeknd Names Prince and El DeBarge Among Influences on New Album

In a new profile for VMAN magazine, Toronto singer The Weekend reveals some of the influences on his upcoming, as-of-yet untitled new album.

“There are new inspirations on this album,” says the artist born Abel Tesfaye. “The production feels aggressive but still sexy. The Smiths, Bad Brains, Talking Heads, Prince, and DeBarge play roles. We wrote it all in Los Angeles. I think it’ll be the best-sounding album I’ve ever done. It’s hard to label the sound because, when I first came out, nobody would label it R&B. I just want to keep pushing the envelope without it feeling forced.”

He also says that Doc McKinney, one of the main producers from Weeknd's early projects like House of Balloons, is playing a big part on the new LP. Fans of "The Morning" should be delighted with that news.

He's coming off the biggest success of his career with Beauty Behind the Madness, the album that birthed hit songs like "The Hills" and "Can't Feel My Face." Those songs transformed him into a pop star and took his career to another level. Now the challenge is how to follow that up.

Recently, producer Cashmere Cat dropped a stunning song featuring The Weeknd after Abel previewed the song on his IG.

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