Bilal Sayeed Oliver is a truly independent artist. A singer, songwriter, and producer who has always been ahead of his time – the Grammy Award-winning artist blends jazz, afro-futurism, classic soul, alternative R&B, rock and classical in his vocals and music. His latest album, Live at Glasshaus will be released in June. Bilal will perform at the John Coltrane International Jazz and Blues Festival, Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024 in Oak Hollow Park, High Point.
Bilal
A RARE QUALITY
Bilal is known for his wide vocal range, an artist who works across multiple genres, and gives magnetic live performances. Interscope Records signed Bilal to a major label recording deal fresh out of college, after studying jazz composition and opera at the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York. His debut album, 1st born second, showcased an artistic spectrum arching 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”. Philip Bailey, of Earth Wind & Fire fame said Bilal is the rare singer who uses his voice like an instrument.
Bilal quickly developed a sizable following at his live shows which were known for being emotional and electrifying. Though his nearly 25-year career has been met with trials and tribulations, it hasn’t stopped him from seeing immense success in the music world. Bilal received great acclaim from his peers, who noted his range and ability to sing in a freeform style, as well as his classically trained falsetto. The soulful feel of the album led critics and industry leaders to label Bilal as a “neo-soul” artist. Bilal’s expansion into different music directions and boundary pushing explorations proved he is so much more.
Playing jazz venues and recording more progressive soul music in the following years, Bilal released four albums to critical success. His unreleased but widely leaked second album Love for Sale found wide acclaim among critics and listeners. It featured collaborations with Dr. Dre and J Dilla and was built around Bilal’s own musicianship, including live instrumentation. It had a vibe completely new and different from its predecessor. Interscope shelved the album indefinitely. It still received over half a million downloads and Bilal began touring even though there was no proper release of the album. He did not sign with another label for almost 10 years. During that time he performed live shows to continually increasing size audiences, contributed to the projects of other artists and created works on independent labels so as to maintain and grow from his creative vision.
Cultural Influence
As a member of the Soulquarians, an experimental collective that was active from the late 1990s to early 2000s, Bilal has been a cultural and musical influence on a whole new generation of musicians and producers. His extensive list of collaborations include Kendrick Lamar, Common, Erykah Badu, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Guru, Kimbra, J Dilla, Robert Glasper, and The Roots.
Airtight’s Revenge, his experimental 2010 album, blends jazz, hip-hop, electronic, rock, soul, and blues into one raw, genuine collection of music. The album’s single, “Little One”, earned Bilal a 2011 Grammy Award nomination in the category of Best Urban/Alternative Performance. That year, he was also on the Roots’ Grammy-nominated album Undun (2011) and the Robert Glasper Experiment’s Grammy-winning Black Radio (2012).
With the release of his next album, A Love Surreal, Bilal achieved immediate commercial success. It debuted at No. 1 on iTunes’ R&B Chart. 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. The album received shining reviews, including an 8 of 10 from SPIN magazine, 4.5 out of 5 stars from Allmusic, and 4 of 4 stars from USA Today.
In August 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown, Bilal wrote and recorded his first EP, Voyage-19, over the course of three days and in collaboration with various musicians in remote experimental sessions, which were streamed live on YouTube. The resulting three-track EP was released digitally the following month, with revenues of its sale and accompanying donations given to the participating artists, many of whom had been struggling financially due to the pandemic.
Bilal splits his time between the US and Morocco, where he paints and writes music.
