The-Dream Has No Beef With Drake's Pal The Weeknd

When the Weeknd first emerged in 2011 with his digitally released House of Balloons mixtape, the Toronto crooner drew many comparisons to The-Dream. Be it their breathy vocal register or lustful lyrics, critics and fans alike saw similarities between the newcomer and accomplished vet, and whispers of an R&B beef even began to surface.

On Wednesday's "RapFix Live," The-Dream put those rumors to rest.

"No, it's not a beef record to the Weeknd," The-Dream said, responding to a fan-submitted Twitter question about whether Dream's 2011 "Ghetto" was aimed at the singer. "We don't know each other, so you can't really beef with somebody you don't know."

The-Dream was bothered by the notion, however. "They would probably love to think that I'm dissin' him. Or they would probably like to think that he is in some type of way ripping off my style, when it is probably neither one of them," he said. "I've been influenced by a million people, and it's more flattering than not."

The Grammy-winning singer/songwriter went on to praise the Weeknd for his tragic love odes. "I think his R&B in a dark place is a great area. I don't think it's ever really been done in that area of darkness with R&B, unless I missed it at some point," The-Dream said of the Weeknd's sound, before throwing a nod to R&B's other 2011 breakout freshman, Odd Future's Frank Ocean. "I think that it's great that [it is] its own thing — him and Frank Ocean. Frank Ocean is dope in his own right."

The-Dream has landed his own hit records like "Shawty Is a 10" and "Rockin That Sh--" and has also written a number of smash singles for Rihanna and Beyoncé. He feels his discography speaks for itself. "It's this new-versus-the-old thing," he explained. "Don't compare me to somebody who hasn't released something commercial and don't compare me when I have over 1,000 songs on iTunes to somebody who doesn't have one yet. That's not fair."

Do you understand the comparisons between The-Dream and the Weeknd? Let us know in the comments!