Bilal Sayeed Oliver – better known in the soul, R&B, rap and jazz music scenes as Bilal – heads out on a European tour this month after wrapping up performances in the United States.
While the Grammy-winning artist has not released an album since 2015, Bilal is instead focused on live performances. His stage presence, fusion style, and wide vocal range have earned him accolades since his debut album over two decades ago.
Fans can catch the genre-bending performer – who has collaborated with musicians like Beyoncé and Dr. Dre – at venues and festivals across the US and Europe over the next two months.
Bilal’s Classic Soul
Some observers and critics categorize his musical style as “neo-soul,” but Bilal himself rejects this label.
“I’d call us the new generation of soul cats, but that’s talking about the new generation of soul.” He adds, “what we’re doing is not ‘new’ soul. I know what I’m doing is not ‘neo-’.”
The multi-genre artist elaborates that he does not “cling to any titles or cadences” in his “walk of music or creation.”
“This is soul music,” he explains. “It’s Black music, because I’m Black. There’s so many different elements inside of it, and I’ve always grabbed from a lot of different styles. It’s a mash-up, really. I’m a jazz musician. That’s what I went to school for.”
A collaboration with Kendrick Lamar on the 2015 classic To Pimp a Butterfly brought Bilal a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. The work is a perfect example of his unique fusion style. “I don’t think it’s neo-soul so much as it’s high-level jazz,” says Bilal, and adds that Lamar sounds more like jazz instrumentalist than a rapper.
Bilal Draws on Two Different Worlds
Bilal was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania in 1979 to a Muslim father and a Christian mother who both practiced their respective religions. He recalls how both sides taught him about music, adding that he grew up in “two different worlds, musically.” His journey in music started at the church, where he grew up “singing in front of people” and joined the choir. He remembers enjoying trips to jazz clubs with his dad on the weekends.
Later, he attended New York’s New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music. He is classically trained in jazz, as well as in big-band arrangements, and is able to sing opera in seven languages.
Aside from his solo albums, Bilal has worked with critically acclaimed acts such as Erykah Badu, Beyoncé, J. Dilla, Mos Def (Yasiin Bey), Clipse, Talib Kweli, Lupe Fiasco, Common, The Roots; and has collaborated with hip-hop heavyweights such as Dr. Dre, Scarface, Jay-Z, and The Game.
Bilal Returns to the Stage
Bilal’s released his latest solo album “In Another Life” in June 2015. But that does not mean that the artist has been idling on music in the intervening years. He continues to collaborate with artists and innovate on his live act.
Indeed, even without a new album to back his fall tour, Bilal has booked venues across the globe. Fan in the United States as well as Europe can enjoy his fusion style in person.
Bilal will perform in venues and festivals in the United States, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, the Netherlands, France, the UK and Spain between October 13 and November 23. This trip includes performances at the Supersonic Jazz Festival in Amsterdam (November 12-16), and the Festival Internacional de Jazz de Barcelona on November 22.
