Bilal (American singer)

For other uses, see Bilal (disambiguation).
Bilal
Background information
Birth name Bilal Sayeed Oliver
Born (1979-08-23) August 23, 1979
Origin Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Genres Neo soul,[1] R&B, funk, jazz, hip hop[2]
Occupation(s) Musician, singer, songwriter, producer
Instruments Vocals, keyboards, guitar
Years active 1999–present
Labels Interscope
Plug Research
Purpose/E1 Music
Associated acts The Roots, Kimbra, Soulquarians, Common, Erykah Badu, Mos Def, Cee-Lo, Musiq Soulchild, The Dresden Soul Symphony, J Dilla, Nottz, Kendrick Lamar
Website BilalMusic.com, Bilal on Twitter

Bilal Sayeed Oliver (born August 23, 1979),[3] better known mononymously as Bilal, is an American singer-songwriter, musician and producer. He is currently an independent artist residing in New York City.[4]

Bilal is noted for his wide vocal range, his work across multiple genres, and his live performances. He has been well received, both nationally and internationally, with an extensive list of collaborations including Kendrick Lamar, Common, Erykah Badu, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Guru, Kimbra, J Dilla, Robert Glasper, The Roots, and many more.

Early life

Bilal was born as Bilal Sayeed Oliver in East Oak Lane Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He grew up in a religiously mixed household, his mother being a devout Christian and his father, a Muslim. He regularly attended church with his mother in a small church that consisted of mostly family members. It was where Bilal grew an interest in music and singing.[5] Bilal attended The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music.[6] Attended and Graduated from the High School for Creative And Performing Arts (CAPA) in 1998.

Career

1999–2010: Debut and hiatus

Bilal began to familiarize himself with the music scene in New York City, meeting big talents such as Common, The Roots, and Erykah Badu. Eventually, he was discovered by Aaron Comess from the Spin Doctors during an after-school jam session. It was with him that Bilal recorded his demo that landed him a record deal with Interscope.[7] In 2001, he released his debut album 1st Born Second, which featured contributions from the Soulquarians as well as high profile producers such as Dr. Dre and J Dilla.[8] The album peaked at number 31 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, and it has sold 319,000 copies.[9] 1st Born Second received universal acclaim from music critics; and holds a score of 82 out of 100 at Metacritic.[10] The album earned rave reviews from publications, including The Village Voice, Chicago Sun-Times, and USA Today,[11][12][13] and it also received comparisons to the music of Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Sly & the Family Stone, Prince, and Curtis Mayfield.[10][14][15][16]

Bilal performing in Budapest, Hungary, in 2008.

The album showcased a wide variety, from the emotionally charged fan-favorite "Soul Sista", which peaked at No. 18 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts, to the political viewpoints of "Fast Lane" and "Second Child".[17] Bilal managed to gain a sizable following and high attendance at his live shows,[3] as well as much acclaim and respect from his peers, many whom noted his range and ability to sing in a freeform style, and his classically trained falsetto.[3] The soulful feel of the album caused Bilal to be labeled as "neo-soul." Bilal stresses that this term does not fit, and throughout his career, his expansion in music and pushing of boundaries proved his point.[18]

In the following years Bilal continued to appear on projects by other artists of both high profile and avant garde, while recording and developing his follow-up set to be released on Interscope Records and featuring contributions primarily from producers Dr. Dre and J Dilla. These plans proved to be changeable and the final result, Love for Sale, was an album that appeared to be built around Bilal's own musicianship. Bilal switched it up on Love For Sale, which includes live instrumentation and a vibe completely new and different from its predecessor.[19] However, his anticipation was shot down after receiving disapproval from Interscope. Unwilling to start from scratch, Bilal continued to push his LP. However, near the album's completion, the album was leaked in its entirety on the Internet.[19] Interscope shelved the album indefinitely, hinting that it saw little commercial potential in it. The event sent Bilal into a period of distress,[20] and was considering quitting music; however, Love for Sale received over half a million downloads on the Internet,[21] and Bilal began touring, despite a proper release of the album.

2010-present: Musical return

After nine years without a properly released album, Bilal made a comeback on 14 September 2010 with Airtight's Revenge, a sophomore LP released under independent record label Plug Research. Bilal describes the album as a retrospective album: an album that explores his experiences and things that he's learned since his last release. An experimental album, Airtight's Revenge blends jazz, hip-hop, electronic, rock, soul, and blues into one raw, genuine collection of music.[22]

In 2012, Bilal revealed plans for a new album under a new label, eOne Music.[23] During several interviews, Bilal described the new project as "a lot warmer and [more] sensual" than its conceptual predecessor.[24] The new album, titled A Love Surreal, has a more acoustic sound, as Bilal worked very closely with his entire band. To set up the album's release, on 5 December 2012, Bilal released a mixtape titled The Retrospection via Facebook.[25]

Six days after the release of The Retrospection, Bilal released "Back to Love," the first single off A Love Surreal. A video was released for the song on 8 January 2013, telling the story of a drug-addicted love doctor who ironically uses the advice he gives to his patients to help his own relationship.[26] The song sets the tone for the album, which Bilal says embodies "the whole process [of love]: meeting, the break-up, [and] the get-back-together." A Love Surreal was released on 26 February 2013.[27]

With the release of A Love Surreal, Bilal immediately achieved commercial success, debuting at No. 1 on iTunes' R&B Chart.[28] On Billboard, the album debuted at No. 17 on the Independent Albums Chart, No. 19 on the R&B Albums Chart, and No. 103 on the Billboard 200, ranking higher than its predecessor, Airtight's Revenge. The album also received numerous high reviews, including an 8/10 from SPIN Magazine,[29] a 4.5/5 stars from Allmusic, and a 4/4 stars from USA Today.[30]


Discography

Studio albums
Mixtapes
Singles

Appearances

Songs:
with Common
with others

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2014

2015

2016

Awards and nominations

Bilal has been nominated four career Grammy Awards, winning one.

Grammy Awards

Year Recipient/Nominated work Award Result
2010 "All Matter" (with Robert Glasper) Best Urban/Alternative Performance Nominated
2011 "Little One" Nominated
2016 To Pimp a Butterfly Album of the Year (as a featured artist) Nominated
"These Walls" (with Kendrick Lamar, Anna Wise and Thundercat) Best Rap/Sung Collaboration Won

Tours

References

  1. ↑ Price, Emmett George (2010). Encyclopedia of African American Music 3. ABC-CLIO. p. 656. ISBN 0313341990.
  2. ↑ Good, Karen Renée (October 2000). "Next". Vibe (New York): 106. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 Kellman, Andy. "Bilal Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010.
  4. ↑ "Bilal Biography". Starpulse.com. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  5. ↑ Swan, Rachel. "Rough-Style Romancer | Music | Oakland, Berkeley & the Bay Area". Eastbayexpress.com. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  6. ↑ "History".
  7. ↑ "Bilal". Ontheroxentertainment.com. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  8. ↑
  9. ↑ Herrera, Monica. Bilal To Release Electro-Jazz Rock Album In 2010. Billboard. Retrieved on 2010-01-03.
  10. 1 2 1st Born Second (2001): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2009-08-12. Archived 2009-08-16.
  11. ↑ Columnist. "Review: 1st Born Second". Chicago Sun-Times: August 12, 2001. Archived from the original on 2009-08-12. (Transcription of original review at talk page)
  12. ↑
  13. ↑
  14. ↑ Columnist. Review: 1st Born Second. The Independent. Retrieved on 2009-08-12.
  15. ↑ Product Page: 1st Born Second. Muze. Retrieved on 2009-08-26.
  16. ↑ Caramanica, Jon. Review: 1st Born Second. Blender. Retrieved on 2010-03-29.
  17. ↑ "1st Born Second by Bilal @ ARTISTdirect.com - Shop, Listen, Download". Artistdirect.com. 31 July 2001. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  18. ↑ "Bilal Talks His Comeback, Neo-Soul & Dr. Dre To the.LIFE Files!". Thelifefiles.com. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  19. 1 2 "Bilal: I Wanted To Quit Making Music!". The Urban Daily. 19 August 2010. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  20. ↑ "Blog Archive » Bilal Talks Sophomore LP, Why He Was Never So-Called Neo-Soul". Gangstarr Girl. 13 September 2010. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  21. ↑ "BIO - BILAL".
  22. ↑ "Music - Review of Bilal - Airtight’s Revenge". BBC. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  23. ↑ [EXCLUSIVE] Bilal Finds New Label, New Attitude - Entertainment & Culture. EBONY. Retrieved on 2013-03-07.
  24. ↑ Artist to Artist: Bilal–Supersonic Soul. Soul Train. Retrieved on 2013-03-07.
  25. ↑ Hey everybody, as.... Facebook. Retrieved on 2013-03-07.
  26. ↑ V Premiere! Bilal "Back To Love" (Video). Vibe (8 January 2013). Retrieved on 2013-03-07.
  27. ↑ Video: Bilal’s “Welcome to A Love Surreal”. Potholes in My Blog. Retrieved on 2013-03-07.
  28. ↑ "BILAL’s A LOVE SURREAL is #1 selling on ITUNES in R& B! | BILAL". Bilalmusic.com. 14 April 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  29. ↑ Mlynar, Phillip. "Bilal, 'A Love Surreal' (eOne) | SPIN | Albums | Critical Mass". SPIN. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  30. ↑ "Listen Up: Bilal, Mavericks, Ivan and Alyosha". Usatoday.com. 26 February 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  31. ↑ "Black Butterfly: Grenique: Music". Amazon.com. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  32. ↑ "Letter to Hermione (Ft. Bilal)". iTunes. Blue Note Records.

External links

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