Grammy Winning, Hip-Hop Inspired Pianist Robert Glasper to Play Blue Note, June 1-2

Kanye West, Q-Tip, Mos Def, Erykah Badu, Norah Jones, and Snoop Dogg all love him, so why have you been missing out?

You're not alone. Sadly, Robert Glasper (performing at Blue Note on June 1) has collaborated with, and even had a hand in writing some of those hip-hop, R&B, and jazz stars' best songs, though their level of fame and acclaim has eluded him.

That hasn't stopped him from forging a successful career, however. Yes, the 39-year-old Texan is a low-key keyboardist that helped Q-Tip write much of his classic album The Renaissance, solidifying the MC's solo career after making a name for himself with A Tribe Called Quest. Glasper also performed on songs for Kanye West's 2005 hit record Late Registration, along with working as the music director for Yasiin Bey's (AKA Mos Def's) touring band and hitting the road with multi-platinum album selling R&B singer Maxwell.

His biggest feat of all, however, may have been snagging the Grammy Award for Best R&B Album for his 2012 LP Black Radio, which he recorded with his quartet The Experiment. It featured jazzy, genre busting covers of Sade's "Cherish the Day," David Bowie's "Letter to Hermione," and even Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit."

And while it reinvigorated many a music nerd's interest in jazz, some thought Black Radio boldly defied the genre's conventions. Interview magazine went as far to say that Glasper "gave the jazz stalwarts 'the finger'" with the LP, because it "overlaid the traditional jazz blueprint with a maelstrom of zinging collaborations and digital treatments." At the same time, Glasper doesn't eschew tradition entirely, telling that article's author that he won't lazily fall back on cutting-edge studio technology, adding: "Even stuff that sounds produced or sounds like a loop is not a loop. I even put that in my liner notes, because I wanted people to be clear that we're live musicians, but when we want to we can sound exactly like a track."

Glasper also spent much of 2015 and 2016 paying tribute to jazz's storied history, specifically its most famous performer: Miles Davis. The keyboardist was pegged to handle the music for Miles Ahead, the 2015 film that loosely depicts events in Davis' late career. Glasper followed that up with a tribute album to the esteemed trumpeter in 2016, called Everything's Beautiful.

And though it very much captures the essence of Davis' creativity and proficiency, Glasper didn't limit himself to his hero's vintage era, instead dabbling in a sprawling spectrum of genres of styles. In that sense, it's not only a tribute to Davis but also black people everywhere and of every period, or as Glasper put it in a 2016 interview with The Fader: "The reality is my people have given the world so many styles of music, so many different styles of music. So why should I just confine myself to one? We want to explore them all.”

In short: he's a spirited pianist with an unparalleled pedigree among his peers, making Glasper's Beijing gig a must-see.

Robert Glasper will perform at Blue Note on June 1-2 at 7.30pm and 10pm. Tickets are RMB 400 at the bar, RMB 500 at the side and RMB 600 for a table. For more information, click here.

Photos: NPR, Zimbio, AZ Quotes, Revive Music