Bilal (musician)
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Bilal (born Bilal Sayeed Oliver on August 23 1979, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA) is a neo soul musician and member of the musical collective known as Soulquarians. In 2001, his debut album — 1st Born Second — was released on the Interscope record label.
Background
Bilal's classical training at the Mannes Music Conservatory in New York was instrumental to his conversance with Jazz, voice, and big band arrangements. It has also been reported that he is capable of performing opera in seven languages and writes both music and lyrics.In 1995, Bilal encountered Faulu Mtume, and his brother, Damu Mtume (sons to James Mtume and founders of Moyo Entertainment) at a barber's shop in Philadelphia. His plans to produce film scores was shelved after he handed the brothers a demo recording; they were so impressed that they successfully convinced him to record commercially.
Bilal has also frequently collaborated and performed with several neo-soul and alternative hip hop artists, including Common, Erykah Badu, Talib Kweli, and The Roots. He also covered Radiohead's "High & Dry" for the 2006 Radiohead tribute, Exit Music: Songs With Radio Heads. Bilal appears in Dave Chappelle's Block Party.
His sophomore full-length recording, Love for Sale is rumored to have been shelved after being leaked on the internet.
Collaborations
In addition to performing a duet with Jill Scott on his professional recording debut, he has collaborated with several notable acts, including:
- Common, on the Like Water For Chocolate LP and on also the Be LP
- Guru, on the Jazzmatazz Street Soul LP
- Erykah Badu, on the Mama's Gun LP
- Jadakiss and Dr.Dre, on the single "fast lane"
- The Wash soundtrack
Discography
Albums
- 2001 - 1st Born Second (Interscope Records); # 31 US
Singles
- "Fast Lane"; # 41 R&B, # 27 R&R-Urban, # 7 Germany Black Singles
- "Love It"; # 61 R&B
- "Soul Sista"; # 71 US, # 18 R&B
External links
- [Bilal Online] Official site
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