Singer Bilal is not a fan of the term 'neo-soul'

theGRIO VIDEO - Philly-based soul singer Bilal is a veteran artist who's collaborated with musicians and emcees from multiple genres...

Kyle Harvey

Mar 13, 2013

Philly-based soul singer Bilal is a veteran artist who’s collaborated with musicians and emcees from multiple genres. His singing credits range from guest work with John Legend to collaborations with Jay-Z and Bad Boy honcho Diddy.

A Love Surreal, Bilal’s fourth album, and his first under the E1 Music imprint, has been getting positive responses from multiple music outlets. It’s something he takes in stride.

Between the late 90’s and early 2000’s, Bilal began receiving mainstream buzz, when the term ‘Neo-Soul’ became a popular way to describe artists like Erykah Badu, Musiq Soulchild, and Jill Scott, who were versatile enough to sing about sex, drugs and love, but weren’t defined by any of the above.

“It’s wack,” said Bilal when asked if he was a fan of the term “neo-soul.” He points out that British singers like Adele and the late Amy Winehouse are known for a style that some may find similar to neo-soul, yet they tend to not carry that title.

“Yeah, you call black people ‘neo-soul,'” he told theGrio, “but you call Adele ‘soul music.’ You call Amy Winehouse: ‘soul singer’ Amy Winehouse. That’s not cool.”