“Begging, pleading, getting down on your knees: such gestures have been an essential part of R&B from Otis Redding to Boyz II Men to R. Kelly and on down. The Weeknd, aka the frosty, hedonist alter-ego of vocalist Abel Tesfaye-- still riding high on the hype of this year's attention-grabbing debut mixtape House of Balloons and already back in the saddle with a brand new freebie Thursday-- has taken”
