Home / Biography / Bilal

Bilal

Biography

If there is one R&B musician for whom the neo-soul categorization seemed limiting, it had been Philadelphia local Bilal. non-e of his recordings resembled the sycophantic worship of spirit performers who thrived within the ’60 and ’70s, and it wasn’t because his tone of voice — classically educated, capable of performing opera in seven dialects — was therefore unique. Although some inspirations had been detectable, his recordings had been wholly contemporary and became significantly creative. His personality led to getting dropped from a significant label, and he proceeded to go many years without launching any solo materials. Through evangelism from his peers and person to person from his early enthusiasts, Bilal obtained an insatiable pursuing and was backed by sympathetic impartial brands, where he was finally in a position to flourish artistically. Bilal Sayeed Oliver arrived up in Germantown, a northwest community of Philadelphia, Pa. A deep desire for jazz was fostered by his dad, who required him towards the city’s night clubs. Singing ultimately became a lot more than a pastime. He went to New York’s New College for Jazz and Modern Music, where he received tone of voice training, in addition to trained in jazz and big-band plans. Grenique’s Dark Butterfly, a 1999 launch on Motown, was the 1st major recording to feature Bilal’s vocals; he added to three tunes. The following 12 months, he founded a deep link with hip-hop by showing up on Common’s Like Drinking water for Chocolate and Guru’s third Jazzmatazz record. These recordings led him in to the Soulquarians, a spinning collective of collaborators who included Common, Jay Dee (aka J Dilla), the Root base’ Ahmir Thompson, D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, Mos Def, Q-Tip, and Raphael Saadiq within its rates. A turbulent single cope with Interscope led to Bilal’s debut record, 1st Delivered Second. An exemplary neo-soul discharge offering collaborations with Mike Town, Robert Glasper, and several from the Soulquarians, it had been released in July 2001 and reached the very best Ten of Billboard’s R&B albums graph. Among its three singles, “Spirit Sista,” peaked at amount 18 in the R&B singles graph, while “Fast Street” — co-written with Damu and Faulu Mtume (the sons of Adam Mtume and two of the singer’s first followers) — narrowly skipped the very best 40. At that time, the closest factors of comparison had been D’Angelo and Maxwell, however Bilal was even more dynamic compared to the previous and much less mannered compared to the last mentioned. 1st Delivered Second carried a power that neither one particular singers, as scorching as they had been at that time, could boast. Bilal documented a second record, Love on the market, and handled a lot of the songwriting and creation responsibilities, while Jay Dee, Dr. Dre, and Nottz helped in limited capacities. Promo vinyl fabric was pressed as well as the record leaked on the web, prompting Bilal’s label to place it on glaciers. Bilal was eventually slipped, but his pursuing more than doubled. He will need to have got some mixed emotions when he performed the materials to appreciative crowds who understood the materials — off a officially unreleased record — inside out. In the meantime, nine years exceeded with out a commercially released follow-up to 1st Given birth to Second. Bilal have been a presented artist on tunes by Beyoncé, Musiq, Clipse, Sa-Ra, Jay-Z, and many others, including a lot of his fellow Soulquarians, nonetheless it wasn’t until 2010 that he released his second appropriate recording. Airtight’s Revenge premiered around the Plug Study label and noticed Bilal working thoroughly with Steve McKie, alongside Sa-Ra’s Shafiq Husayn (Bilal experienced made an appearance on Husayn’s personal Plug Study recording, Shafiq En’ A-Free-Ka), Nottz, Conley “Firmness” Whitfield, 88-Secrets, and several studio room musicians who offered the arranged a loose, band-like experience. Its “BABY” was nominated for any 2011 Grammy in the very best Urban/Alternative Overall performance category. In Feb 2013, after showing up on the Origins’ Grammy-nominated Undun and Robert Glasper Experiment’s Grammy-winning Dark Radio, Bilal released A Like Surreal on eOne. Looks on the typically diverse selection of albums by famous brands Otis Dark brown III, Kimbra, Kat Dahlia, Kendrick Lamar, and Slum Town resulted in In Another Existence, an album-length cooperation with maker and multi-instrumentalist Adrian Younge. Bilal’s 5th commercially released arranged, it was released in June 2015.

Quick Facts


Full Name Bilal
Died March 2, 640 AD, Damascus, Syria
Profession Muezzin
Nationality Ethiopian
Parents Rabah, Hamamah
Siblings Raza Saeed
Awards Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Performance
Music Groups New African Poets
Music Songs Teri Khair Mangdi, No Make Up, Kaash, Adhi Adhi Raat, 12 Saal, Lethal Combination, Mohabbat Yeh, 2 Number, Khair Mangdi, Ku Ku, Mahiya, Heeriye, Ja Jay Tu Jana, Rattan Chitian, Ijazat, Chulbul, Hunjoo, Choothi, Tauba Ishq, Mahi Mahi, Rattan Chitian With Rap, Dil, Twinkle Twinkle
Albums 1st Born Second, A Love Surreal, Airtight's Revenge, In Another Life, Love for Sale, Chriki, The After Party, På Ingång, Del. 1, Le meilleur, Rak M'ride Anta T'aanadni Ana, Oyna, Ca va ça va, Del. 2
Nominations Grammy Award for Best Urban/Alternative Performance, Soul Train Music Centric Certified Award, NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Song - Contemporary, NAACP Image Award for Outstanding New Artist


  • Facts
  • Filmography
  • Awards
  • Salaries
  • Quotes
  • Trademarks
  • Pictures

#Fact
1 His graphic works inspired movies such as Blade Runner (1982) and Stargate (1994).


Writer

Writer

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals 2008 Video Game novel
Immortel (ad vitam) 2004 comic books "La Foire aux immortels" and "La Femme piège"
Tykho Moon 1996 original scenario / written by
Bunker Palace Hôtel 1989 writer

Director

Director

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Immortel (ad vitam) 2004
Le film du sommeil 1998 Documentary short
Tykho Moon 1996
Bunker Palace Hôtel 1989

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Passionnément 2000 poster designer
The Keep 1983 illustrator: Molasar

Art Department

Art Department

TitleYearStatusCharacter
The Name of the Rose 1986 graphic researcher - uncredited

Costume Designer

Costume Designer

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Life Is a Bed of Roses 1983

Production Designer

Production Designer

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Life Is a Bed of Roses 1983

Thanks

Thanks

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Les hommes de l'ombre 2012 TV Series thanks - 1 episode

Self

Self

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Au fil de la nuit 2016 TV Series Himself
La grande librairie 2011-2015 TV Series Himself
Empreintes 2010 TV Series documentary Himself
Ce soir (ou jamais!) 2007-2009 TV Series Himself
La traversée du désir 2009 Documentary Himself
Vivement dimanche 2008 TV Series Himself
Moebius Redux: A Life in Pictures 2007 TV Movie documentary
Double je 2004 TV Series documentary Himself
Recto verso 2002 TV Series Himself
Bouillon de culture 2001 TV Series documentary Himself
Comme au cinéma 2001 TV Series documentary Himself (Interview)
Thé ou café 2001 TV Series Himself
Vol de nuit 1999 TV Series Himself
Le film du sommeil 1998 Documentary short Himself (uncredited)
Nulle part ailleurs 1997 TV Series Himself
Le cercle de minuit 1997 TV Series Himself
Jamais sans mon livre 1993-1997 TV Series Himself
Droit d'auteurs 1996 TV Series Himself
Le divan 1988 TV Series documentary Himself

Won awards

Won awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovieAward shared with
1997 Special Mention Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Film (BIFFF) Tykho Moon (1996)


Looks like we don't have salary information. Sorry!



Looks like we don't have quotes information. Sorry!



Looks like we don't have trademarks information. Sorry!



Looks like we don't have pictures. Sorry!

Check Also

Moe Bandy & Joe Stampley

This short-lived pairing of two already established solo artists occurred after a conversation at London’s …

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.