A virtuoso pianist, the jazzman from Houston who began his career in the mid-90s playing gospel in churches quickly made a name for himself among the most respected American artists of his generation. Close to Erykah Badu, The Roots, Kendrick Lamar, Lauryn Hill and Dave Chappelle, he unveils his new album, Code Derivation, available exclusively on the Apple Music platform.
Code Derivation, Pianist Robert Glasper’s new album
Fifteen pieces. Fifty-seven minutes of jazz. Here is Code Derivation, the jazz pianist’s new album Robert Glasperreleased on August 28, two years after his last opus: Black Radio 3. The five-time Grammy Award-winning American artist continues his exploration of the intersections between jazz and hip-hop and tells the journalist more. Zane Lowe on the platform Apple Music : “Jazz is the basis of hip-hop. I used the word derivation because it is literally a derivation of jazz. I played with the masters, of both genres. I wanted to create jazz pieces and then invite my band, my friends and talented producers to sample me…“Among these producers is his own son Riley.
Interview with pianist Robert Glasper
Number: You’ve accomplished something pretty crazy: releasing an album with Miles Davis twenty-five years after his death. How is that possible?
Robert Glasper: In 2016 he would have been 90 years old. So Sony asked me to produce an album updating his music which they will call Everything’s Beautiful by Miles Davis & Robert Glasper. At first I said it was out of the question, then I imposed my conditions, including inviting other artists. Finally, the album was a hit: on the Billboard charts, it was just behind Lemonade by Beyoncé.
Is this the album you are most proud of?
Not at all. I’m proud of all my albums but the one that changed my life is Black Radio [2012] : it changed my career and the music industry by changing the Grammy classifications. It was the first jazz and nu soul album to win the trophy for best R’n’B album. Before that, all the albums nominated in this category sounded the same. We always found the same artists, Alicia Keys or John Legend…
The Grammys have been at the heart of a controversy for a few years now: Drake and The Weeknd have decided to no longer attend or accept trophies, criticizing the ceremony for its lack of inclusivity. What do you think?
I understand that they don’t want to go there anymore until this issue of inclusivity is resolved. These are the most popular black artists, they don’t need the Grammys. Maybe it’s their decision that will move the institution in the right direction…
Pop stars also set trends. Are you happy about the strong comeback of house music after the release of Drake and Beyoncé’s latest albums?
It’s important. When the underground becomes popular, it always involves good and bad. You are more visible, therefore more scrutinized but also more accepted. I also released my very first house sound on my last record, Black Radio III, which came out in February. It was way before this wave! All my producer friends pushed me, so I asked my DJ, Jahi, to work on the track Everybody Love. Louie Vega, a house DJ, is remixing some of my tracks. It should be out very soon…
Are you interested in collaborations with pop stars?
Some of them are great musicians and it has nothing to do with whether it’s pop. So yeah, there are a few that I interact with. I really like Bruno Mars’ work and it’s pop. Anderson .Paak too.
You usually invite a lot of artists on your records. How do you select them?
I always ask too many people: if I know I need ten collaborators, I’ll ask fifteen or twenty people. Then, when I really start composing, I hire the people who can be available. Some sounds are also written for specific artists and then I change my mind along the way!
Have you ever refused any collaborations? If so, which ones?
Sure, but I won’t say who! [Rires]
Which deceased artists would you have liked to collaborate with?
I would say Michael Jackson, Donny Hathaway and Nina Simone.
Do you feel that jazz artists lack media coverage?
No. I lived in New York for twenty-three years, there is a real jazz scene and I knew a ton of musicians! For film projects for example, people often come to me and ask me if I know a trumpet player or a jazz singer: I know immediately who to call.
You also composed the soundtrack for The Apollo, a 2019 documentary about the legendary Harlem concert hall. It shows how music made by black people was controlled, as early as the 1930s, by white men in their sixties… In your opinion, has that changed since then?
Even if we are led to believe otherwise, it is still the case. It is just less obvious.
Is this something you struggle with internally?
Things that are produced by black people are still owned by white people, that’s just the way it is. African-Americans who have money need to spend it the right way: buy the right things and own them, because we haven’t had any money for so long!
Do you think artists have a role to play politically in the United States?
Artists are increasingly speaking out but don’t want to get politically involved… On the one hand, I understand them, because they just want to make music. Some tell black artists that they should take a stand but they don’t want to talk about the excesses of society all the time! It’s not their fault: we simply ask them to be good at what they do and to produce art that allows us to escape and moves away from what we are told over and over again. It takes a lot of courage, Some are even afraid to take a stand because of the cancel culture… In the 60s and 70s, artists did this all the time. They protested and cared about social issues. Same with athletes. I think sports figures are very good at it. Thanks to LeBron James, they’ve become more and more political.
Precisely, the beginning of your last album Black Radio III is very critical of the failings of American society…
Stuck at home during the pandemic, I took the time to sit, listen and look at what’s around me. The horrors of the world have hurt me violently. The death of George Floyd, Donald Trump, police brutality… Usually, things affect me less because I’m on tour all the time. Here, I had to store all of this. I made the decision to tell people that I connect with what’s happening. I felt like I had to, because I’m Robert Glasper and I have my status. The first two tracks are very political, those who don’t want them can directly listen to track 3!
How is the last part of your trilogy? Black Radioreleased in 2022, was it different from the first, released ten years earlier?
This album is about well thought out, well made productions. The first one was jams! When I won the Grammy for best R’n’B album [en 2013]I thought, “Okay, I’m going to have to make something better produced because now people are scrutinizing me.” I had to make the whole thing as harmonious as possible.
Code Derivation by Robert Glasper, available exclusively on Apple Music.
