(AllHipHop News) Some recent comments by Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, 30, sparked an R&B debate on social media. The After Hours album creator suggested that his 2011 mixtape, House of Balloons, inspired other artists like Usher Raymond.
“House of Balloons literally changed the sound of pop music before my eyes,” The Weeknd told Variety. “I heard ‘Climax,’ that [2012] Usher song, and was like, ‘Holy f*ck, that’s a Weeknd song.’ It was very flattering, and I knew I was doing something right, but I also got angry. But the older I got, I realized it’s a good thing.”
The Twittersphere ignited with conversations about whether The Weeknd did actually influence Usher’s single off his seventh studio album Looking 4 Myself. The Atlanta legend did not directly respond to Abel, but he did appear to subliminally react to the Canadian’s statement about “Climax.”
Usher posted himself on his Instagram Story listening to other vocalists taking part in the #ClimaxChallenge. He then sang an a cappella version of the Top 20 hit on IG. However, the 41-year-old southerner slightly changed some of the lyrics to “can’t take it back, n*gga” before laughing.