Robert Glasper Experiment, Black Radio 2, and Saving Black Music

Who is Robert Glasper? We'll let him explain in his own words,

“Black music is the house that has many rooms. Black people have invented so many dope genres that everyone loves: Jazz, blues, gospel, R&B, rock, hip-hop, and the list goes on. I’m just visiting all those rooms. It’s my mansion; it’s our mansion. I don’t have to exclude anything. With that said, who knows where I’ll go next.”

Robert talks about his success in getting artists to work with him on the Black Radio 2 project by using twitter. He is currently enjoying a successful hit R&B record on Urban AC formats with the track "Calls" featuring Jill Scott. What is amazing about his last two R&B jazz influenced albums is the roster of talent that has worked with him on the two projects. The first Black Radio album featured Lupe Fiasco, Common, Yasiin Bey (Mos Def), Erykah Badu, and many others. He's hardly a newcomer having released his first album in 2005 for Blue Note. He now is branching out with his second critically acclaimed album.

He is, in our opinion and maybe not his words, is saving the culture and artistry of Black Music for the early part of this millennium with his commercially successful album.  (Now, as Robert puts it..."radio is looking for him.")

From robertglasper.com- - Breakthrough success can often be a tough act to follow. But with a little help from some notable friends, Robert Glasper Experiment is set to up the ante with the follow-up to his successful GRAMMY-winning album Black Radio. Flaunting a diverse array of featured guests including Common, Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy, Brandy, Jill Scott, Dwele, Marsha Ambrosius, Anthony Hamilton, Faith Evans, Norah Jones, Snoop Dogg, Lupe Fiasco, Luke James, Emeli Sandé, Lalah Hathaway, and Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Black Radio 2 is certain to surprise and delight critics and fans alike. With a unique fusion of R&B, jazz, and hip-hop that brazenly traverses the boundaries of all three genres, Black Radio 2 finds Glasper and his musical cohorts creating in a vibrant new chasm, brilliantly contrasting its predecessor in the process.



“This record was a little different,” explains the Houston, Texas native. “I didn’t want to make the same record twice. I wanted to make a conscious effort to keep the vibe and the spirit of the first one without it sounding the same.” Considering his own rich musical journey, this sonic shifting approach to Black Radio 2 seems to be a long time coming. Reared in a household where Motown, R&B, and gospel were constant companions, his mother sang and played piano in church while indulging in her love for jazz and blues by performing at local clubs. By the age of twelve, he’d begun to fully follow his mother’s lead by playing piano in church and accompanying her on club dates on the Houston circuit.

This story continues at robertglasper.com



A nice rendition of classic song from Sade from Black Radio