Interview: Raphael Saadiq – Singer, Songwriter and Producer

With all things considered, Raphael Saadiq is the thread that has weaved the fabric of contemporary soul music together.

His midas touch has turned the careers of countless "soul sisters"—Erykah Badu, Jill Scott and Mary J. Blige—and "soul brothers"—John Legend, Musiq Soulchild and D'Angelo—into gold. And while his artistic resume is largely unknown by the masses, such high-profile collaborations expose a mere fraction of Saadiq's musical contributions.

After a successful decade as a member of Tony! Toni! Toné! and R&B's pioneering supergroup, Lucy Pearl, Saadiq launched a solo career in 2002 with the release of Instant Vintage. His refreshing "gospedelic" mix of soul eventually earned him five GRAMMY nominations—a first for an artist who lacked a major record label deal. In 2004, Saadiq released his highly-anticipated follow-up, Ray Ray.

The Way I See It (2008) continues Saadiq's life-long tribute to "old-school" music. Upon review of the album, Raphael Saadiq managed to find time in his busy schedule to settle down for an interview with Clayton Perry, where together they reflected on "neo-soul," Kanye West and the current state of R&B.

When you launched Pookie Entertainment in 2002 and began releasing your work independently, what major hurdles did you often find yourself against?

The main struggle I face is replicating my music on the road. My music requires a band and it's hard to take a band around the world. Some artists are out all the time, just touring, and they can build their fan base by just staying on the road. But for me, being a producer as well as having a label, it's a struggle. I did well recording the live records, like [All Hits at] the House of Blues. They weren't huge struggles but they were struggles. People that have major labels have problems with taking their bands on the road because there are not too many bands in the urban genre, so there's no system for them to go out and perform like rock bands. When they go to a TV show, they usually perform with a track tape or something. When another band comes up that's black, it's automatic to think that you're going to a tape or something. That ain't really my world. My world is more like the rock world. We got the amp, we like to play. That's the kind of the struggle that I've seen, a trend that shouldn't have been set. It wasn't always like that for urban acts. 

Over the course of your career, how has the music industry changed – for better or worse?

Article Author: Clayton Perry

Clayton Perry's mission parallels that of John Hope Franklin, Marcus Garvey and Carter G. Woodson. As the founder of the NUBIANO Project, Perry facilitates the design of projects that give voice to the Black diaspora, empower the Black community, …

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