Soulquarian
The Soulquarians were a rotating collective of experimental Black music artists active during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Initially formed by singer and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo, drummer and producer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, and producer-rapper J Dilla. They were later joined by singer-songwriter Erykah Badu, trumpeter Roy Hargrove, keyboardist James Poyser, singer Bilal, bassist Pino Palladino, rapper-producers Q-Tip and Mos Def, and rappers Talib Kweli and Common. Prior to its formation, Q-Tip, Common, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli were members of the Native Tongues collective, whilst Q-Tip's original group A Tribe Called Quest served as one of the inspirations behind the Soulquarians. Stylistically, the collective's music has been variously described as neo soul, alternative hip hop, progressive soul, avant-garde, soul, conscious rap, and jazz fusion. Their members often collaborated on each other's recordings, holding extensive and innovative sessions at Electric La ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Bilal (American Singer)
Bilal Sayeed Oliver (born August 23, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is an independent artist, noted for his wide vocal range, work across multiple genres, and intense live performances. Starting out at a major label, Bilal debuted with his popular R&B single "Soul Sista (song), Soul Sista" in 2000, but turned to playing jazz venues and recording more progressive soul music in subsequent years. He has commercially released four albums to critical success, while his unreleased but widely leaked second album ''Love for Sale (Bilal album), Love for Sale'' also found wide acclaim among critics and listeners. He was a member of the Soulquarians, an experimental black music collective active from the late 1990s to early 2000s. He has been well received, both nationally and internationally, with an extensive list of collaborations including Kendrick Lamar, Common (rapper), Common, Erykah Badu, Solange Knowles, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Guru (rapper), Guru, Kimbr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Common (rapper)
Lonnie Rashid Lynn (born March 13, 1972), known professionally as Common (formerly known as Common Sense), is an American rapper and actor. The recipient of three Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award, he signed with the independent label Relativity Records at the age of 20. The label released his first three studio albums: ''Can I Borrow a Dollar?'' (1992), ''Resurrection (Common album), Resurrection'' (1994) and ''One Day It'll All Make Sense'' (1997). He maintained an Underground hip hop, underground following into the late 1990s, and achieved mainstream success through his work with the Black music collective Soulquarians. After attaining a major label record deal, he released his fourth and fifth albums, ''Like Water for Chocolate (album), Like Water for Chocolate'' (2000) and ''Electric Circus (album), Electric Circus'' (2002), to continued acclaim and modest commercial response. He guest performed on fellow Soulquarian, Erykah Ba ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Electric Lady Studios
Electric Lady Studios is a recording studio in Greenwich Village, New York City. It was commissioned by rock musician Jimi Hendrix in 1968 and designed by architect John Storyk and audio engineer Eddie Kramer. It was completed by 1970. Hendrix spent only ten weeks recording in Electric Lady before Death of Jimi Hendrix, his death that year, but it quickly became a famed studio used by many top-selling recording artists from the 1970s onwards, including Led Zeppelin, Stevie Wonder, and David Bowie. At the turn of the 21st century, Electric Lady served as a home for the innovative Soulquarians collective, but fell into financial hardship and disarray in the 2000s. Taken over and renovated by investor Keith Stoltz and studio manager Lee Foster, the studio returned to form as a popular location for mainstream artists of the 2010s, such as John Mayer, U2, Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga and Zach Bryan. Site Before it became Electric Lady Studios, the building housed Village Barn#The Village ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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J Dilla
James Dewitt Yancey (February 7, 1974 – February 10, 2006), better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer, composer and rapper. He emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan, as a member of the group Slum Village. He was also a member of the Soulquarians, a musical collective active during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He additionally collaborated with Madlib as Jaylib, releasing the album ''Champion Sound''. Yancey's final album was ''Donuts (album), Donuts'', which was released three days before his death. He was also known for producing The Pharcyde album ''Labcabincalifornia''. Yancey died at the age of 32 from a combination of Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura, TTP and lupus. Although his life was short, he is considered to be one of the most influential producers in hip hop and popular music. J Dilla's music raised the artistic level of hip-hop production in Detroit. According to ''The Guardian'', ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Erykah Badu
Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), known professionally as Erykah Badu, is an American singer and songwriter. Influenced by rhythm and blues, R&B, Soul music, soul, and hip hop, Badu rose to prominence in the late 1990s when her debut album ''Baduizm'' (1997), placed her at the forefront of the neo soul movement, earning her the nickname "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Neo Soul" by music critics. Badu's career began after opening a show for D'Angelo in 1994 in Fort Worth, Texas, Fort Worth, which led to record label executive Kedar Massenburg signing her to Kedar Entertainment. Badu's first album, ''Baduizm'', was released in February 11, 1997. It spawned four singles: "On & On (Erykah Badu song), On & On", "Appletree (song), Appletree", "Next Lifetime" and "Otherside of the Game". The album was certified music recording sales certification, triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Badu's first live album, ''Live (Erykah Bad ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Questlove
Ahmir K. Thompson (born January 20, 1971), known professionally as Questlove (stylized as ), is an American drummer, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor. He is the drummer and joint frontman (with Black Thought) for the hip-hop band the Roots. The Roots have been the in-house band for ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' since 2014, after having fulfilled the same role on '' Late Night with Jimmy Fallon''. Questlove is also one of the producers of the 2015 cast album of the Broadway musical ''Hamilton''. He has also co-founded the websites Okayplayer and OkayAfrica. He joined Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at New York University as an adjunct professor in 2016, and hosts the podcast '' Questlove Supreme''. Questlove has produced recordings for artists including Elvis Costello, Common, D'Angelo, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Bilal, Jay-Z, Nikka Costa, Booker T. Jones, Al Green, and John Legend. He has been a member of the So ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Roy Hargrove
Roy Anthony Hargrove (October 16, 1969 – November 2, 2018) was an American jazz musician and composer whose principal instruments were the trumpet and flugelhorn. He achieved critical acclaim after winning two Grammy Awards for differing styles of jazz in 1998 and 2002. Hargrove primarily played in the hard bop style for the majority of his albums, but also had a penchant for genre-crossing exploration and collaboration with a variety of hip hop, neo soul, R&B and alternative rock artists. As Hargrove told one reporter, "I've been around all kinds of musicians, and if a cat can play, a cat can play. If it's gospel, funk, R&B, jazz or hip-hop, if it's something that gets in your ear and it's good, that's what matters." Biography Early life and career Hargrove was born in Waco, Texas, to Roy Allan Hargrove and Jacklyn Hargrove. When he was 9, his family moved to Dallas, Texas. He took lessons at school initially on cornet before turning to trumpet. One of Hargrove's most profou ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Neo Soul
Neo soul (sometimes called progressive soul) is a genre of popular music. As a term, it was coined by music industry entrepreneur Kedar Massenburg during the late 1990s to market and describe a style of music that emerged from Soul music, soul and contemporary R&B. Heavily based in soul music, neo soul is distinguished by a less conventional sound than its contemporary R&B counterpart, with incorporated elements ranging from funk, jazz fusion, and Hip hop music, hip hop, and to pop music, pop, rock music, rock, and electronic music. It has been noted by music writers for its traditional R&B influences, conscious-driven lyrics, and strong female presence. Neo soul developed in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom, led by artists such as Omar Lye-Fook, Omar, Innocence (band), Innocence, Young Disciples, and Sade (band), Sade, as a soul revival movement. It gained recognition throughout the decade with the commercial and critical success of these musicians. Later, neo soul furthe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Q-Tip (musician)
Kamaal Ibn John Fareed (born Jonathan William Davis, April 10, 1970), better known by his stage name Q-Tip, is an American rapper, record producer, singer, and DJ. Nicknamed the Abstract, he is noted for his innovative jazz-influenced style of hip hop production and his philosophical, esoteric and introspective lyrical themes. He embarked on his music career in the late 1980s, as an MC and main producer of the influential alternative hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest. In the mid-1990s, he co-founded the production team The Ummah, followed by the release of his gold-certified solo debut '' Amplified'' in 1999. In the following decade, he released the Grammy Award-nominated album ''The Renaissance'' (2008) and the experimental album '' Kamaal the Abstract'' (2009). As an actor, Q-Tip has appeared in various films, such as ''Poetic Justice'', '' She Hate Me'', and '' Prison Song'', the latter of which he co-wrote and played the lead role. As a DJ, he has hosted the Apple Music ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Things Fall Apart (album)
''Things Fall Apart'' is the fourth studio album by American hip hop band the Roots, released on February 23, 1999, by MCA Records. Recording sessions for the album took place at Electric Lady during 1997 to 1998, coinciding with recording for other projects of the Soulquarians collective, including D'Angelo's '' Voodoo'' (2000), Erykah Badu's '' Mama's Gun'' (2000), and Common's '' Like Water for Chocolate'' (2000). According to '' Spin'' magazine, the album became a landmark moment for the Roots and the collective, as it "swelled the Roots clique into a movement-style posse". The album has been considered by music writers as the Roots' breakthrough album, earning praise from major publications and critics, while becoming the group's first record to sell over 500,000 copies. It includes the song "You Got Me", which won the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group, while ''Things Fall Apart'' was also nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album of the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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D'Angelo
Michael Eugene Archer (born February 11, 1974), better known by his stage name D'Angelo (), is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He first garnered attention after co-producing the single "U Will Know" for R&B Supergroup (music), supergroup Black Men United. His debut studio album, ''Brown Sugar (D'Angelo album), Brown Sugar'' (1995), was certified Platinum certification, platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and received widespread acclaim from music critics, who have credited the album for ushering in the neo soul movement. His third single, "Lady (D'Angelo song), Lady", reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100. D'Angelo would then collaborate with artists such as Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, and then-girlfriend Angie Stone. His next album, ''Voodoo (D'Angelo album), Voodoo'' (2000), debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, ''Billboard'' 200 and continued to receive critical accl ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Roots
The Roots are an American Hip-hop, hip hop band formed in 1987 by singer Black Thought, Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and drummer Questlove, Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'', having served in the same role on ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' from 2009 to 2014. Current regular members of The Roots on ''The Tonight Show'' are Captain Kirk Douglas (guitar), Mark Kelley (bass), James Poyser (keyboards), Ian Hendrickson-Smith (saxophone), Damon "Tuba Gooding Jr." Bryson (sousaphone), Stro Elliot (keyboards and drums), Dave Guy (trumpet), Kamal Gray (keyboards), and Raymond Angry (keyboards). The Roots are known for a jazz rap, jazzy and eclectic approach to hip hop featuring live musical instruments and the group's work has consistently been met with critical acclaim. ThoughtCo ranked the band #7 on its list of the 25 Best Hip-Hop Groups of All-Time, calling them "Hip-hop's f ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |