Robert Glasper, Grammy-winning R&B artist

Bullseye with Jesse Thorn

NPR

Society & Culture

4.5 • 2.6K Ratings

🗓️ 15 January 2021

⏱️ 27 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Robert Glasper is a Grammy award-winning pianist, producer and songwriter. He's worked with some of the biggest names in hip-hop from Kanye West to Common. Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly features some of his outstanding keyboard work. To date, he's earned three Grammy awards and is up for another two this year – best R&B song for "Better Than I Imagined" and best R&B Album for, F–k Yo Feelings. We're revisiting our conversation from 2012. At the time he'd just released one of his most acclaimed albums to date: Black Radio. Robert Glasper reflects on his longtime friendship and most memorable collaborations with Bilal. He also dives into the evolution of jazz , and how he sees himself in that world. And if you've ever wondered what it's like to party with Ludacris in Atlanta – he has the answer.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Bullseye with Jessie Thorn is a production of MaximumFun.org and is distributed by NPR.
0:19.9	It's Bullseye, I'm Jessie Thorn.
0:22.0	Next up this week another Grammy nominee and a Grammy winner, Robert Glassberg. Robert
0:27.3	is a pianist, producer and songwriter, who's worked with Kanye West, Common, Jay Dilla
0:32.2	and others. He's also responsible for some outstanding keyboard work like on Kendrick Lamar's
0:38.2	to Pimp a Butterfly.
0:50.2	So far in his career he's earned three Grammy awards and is up for another two this year.
0:55.2	Best R&B song for better than I imagined and best R&B album for end we will have to
1:00.6	bleep this.
1:01.6	F*** your feelings.
1:03.4	When I talked with him in 2012 he just released one of his most acclaimed albums to date,
1:07.8	Black Radio.
1:09.1	Black Radio blends jazz R&B in hip hop in an elegant and effortless way. It's more like
1:14.5	a soul record played by a jazz combo. It features vocals from Erica Badu, Yasin Bay, the former
1:20.5	most staff and Glassberg's longtime friend Belal.
1:24.4	Here's one of my favorite tracks from it, A Cover of David Bowie's Letter to Hermione.
1:55.4	Robert Glassberg, welcome to Bullseye, it's great to have you on the show.
2:00.4	Indeed, thank you for my favor.
2:03.2	So you were literally spent a lot of time as a kid backstage at clubs with your mom on
2:10.4	stage?
2:11.4	Yes, my mom on stage. Random waitresses coming in checking on me.
2:18.1	As long as she was like, you know, within a seven, seven stride, walk stride to me.
	...

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