On August 7th-9th, 2020, an unprecedented and extraordinary live event made recording history. For 54 hours, the world watched as Grammy-winning artist Bilal (an original member of the iconic Soulquarians movement), record producer Tariq Khan (Slingbaum, Erykah Badu, FKA Twigs), and 30 musicians and vocalists all remotely recorded and composed an experimental 3-song EP, part-by-part, from 30 different locations. The resulting recording, dubbed VOYAGE-19, is now available to stream and download via Bandcamp.
The album released on September 4th features an all-star lineup of artists including Bilal’s longtime friends and collaborators Erykah Badu, Robert Glasper, Chuck Treece (The Bad Brains), Tone Whitfield, and Philly-based MC Khemist, along with members of HighBreedMusic’s extended family, including Keyon Harrold, Madison McFerrin, Nick Hakim, Cory Henry, Simon Mavin (Hiatus Kaiyote), Jaime Woods, Marcus Strickland, Ray Angry (The Roots), Ben Williams, Brandee Younger, BigYuki, Melanie Charles, Marcus Gilmore, and Louis Cato.
Bilal guided the experience as musical director, producer, and vocalist, showcasing the fascinating progression of an initial idea to a finished album. The artists came together in a virtual green room that recreated the atmosphere of a studio session. They reminisced, laughed, wrote, recorded, produced, and mixed a brand new song each day as viewers enjoyed rare access to the traditionally private world of song creation and album production—for free. They were also able to observe as two visual artists, Angelbert Metoyer and Shanina Dionna, created artwork for the EP while the music was being recorded.
Each participant recorded their contributions from the safety of their own homes, in real-time. This multi-national, interactive recording session was broadcast live with Bilal’s creative process as the centerpiece and used an innovative approach pioneered by HighBreedMusic (HBM) which combined several technologies to turn the isolation of the Covid-19 pandemic into an opportunity for collective creative expression.
HighBreedMusic, whose slogan is “The Artists That Artists Love,” is a forward-thinking Black and minority-owned studio and cultural hub in Brooklyn, NYC, run by founder Tariq Khan and Grammy-winning videographer Nikki Birch (Snarky Puppy, Emily King, Cory Henry).
Listen to Bilal and HighBreedMusic’s VOYAGE-19 EP and check out the full personnel listing below. Fans can also revisit the creation process of the project via the HighBreedMusic YouTube page.
Bilal x HighBreedMusic – VOYAGE-19 – Full EP
Bilal + HighBreedMusic present: VOYAGE-19 by Bilal x HighBreedMusic
The post Bilal, HighBreedMusic Recruit Erykah Badu, Robert Glasper, Cory Henry, For Real-Time Collab Project, ‘VOYAGE-19’ [Listen] appeared first on L4LM.