Taalib Johnson (born September 16, 1977), better known by the stage name Musiq Soulchild or simply Musiq (pronounced "music")[1] is an American singer and songwriter whose style blends R&B, funk, blues, jazz, and gospel influences fused with hip hop.[2] Soulchild has released several successful studio albums that went platinum in the United States.
Musiq Soulchild | |
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 Musiq Soulchild in 2016 | |
| Born | Taalib Johnson September 16, 1977 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Other names |
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| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1995–present |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
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| Labels | |
| Website | www.musiqsoulchild.com |
Early life
editMusiq was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and raised in a strict Muslim household. During his teenage years he built a reputation for being musically gifted, beat boxing for MCs freestyling on the open mic circuit, scatting at jazz clubs, or just performing an a cappella for strangers on the streets, which is where he got the name "Musiq" and later added "Soulchild." He cites as his inspirations such icons as Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and Donny Hathaway.[3][4] He dropped out of high school to pursue a career in music.
"There were people who knew of me but they didn't really know me; they just knew me as 'that music dude.' So after getting that so much, I was like, 'Just call me Musiq.' It was so fresh to me because if I had to be called anything, I would have wanted to be called Music. That's how much I dug it; when you see me, I want you to automatically think of music. The stage name "Musiq Soulchild" is technically two ideas. 'Musiq' is the front man and 'Soulchild' is the idea behind it. It's basically me as an artist in this generation, representing the traditions and the legacies of the past soul stars."[3]
Career
edit1998–2004: Def Soul
editIn 1998, Musiq Soulchild signed with Def Soul Records, the contemporary R&B division of Universal Music's Def Jam Recordings. He later released his debut album, Aijuswanaseing, in late 2000. Its lead single was "Just Friends (Sunny)". His second single "Love" spent 22 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.
Musiq's second album, 2002's Juslisen, debuted at number one on both the Billboard 200 and R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, reaching platinum-sales status.[5] The singles were "Halfcrazy" and "Dontchange", which were top ten hits.
In 2003, Musiq released his third album, Soulstar, which went gold.[5] It included the singles "Forthenight" and "Whoknows".
Musiq took a four-year break and changed his management to Solqi Management. In 2006, media outlets circulated that Musiq was involved in a de facto record label trade, transitioning from Def Soul's master label Def Jam Recordings to Atlantic Records, and sending rapper Fabolous from Atlantic to Def Jam.[6][7][8]
2006–2012: Atlantic Records
editIn March 2007, Musiq's released his fourth album Luvanmusiq. Its singles were "B.U.D.D.Y.", an uptempo track,[5] "Teachme", and "Makeyouhappy."
His fifth album OnMyRadio was released on December 2, 2008. The lead single "Radio" was a complete contrast to the usual smooth neo soul Musiq fans were accustomed to. The following singles were the duet "IfULeave" featuring Mary J. Blige, and the ballad "SoBeautiful". The latter marked the first collaboration between Musiq and producer JR Hutson, after Hutson had spent "about eight months" trying to get Musiq to come by his studio.[9] According to Hutson, the two planned to work together again.[9]
In May 2010, he changed management to Victor Grieg.[9]
His last album for Atlantic MusiqInTheMagiq was released on May 3, 2011, available on CDs and also as a digital download. The first single was "Anything" featuring Swizz Beatz,[10] followed by "Yes".
2013–present My Block Records, Soulstar Music Company, eOne Records
editIn September 2013, Musiq released a duet album with Syleena Johnson, titled 9ine. This album was a compilation of nine reggae songs recorded in nine days on the independent Shanachie[5] label.
Also in September 2013, Musiq announced his departure from Atlantic Records and becoming an independent artist. He revealed he is now signed to record producer Warryn Campbell's label My Block Records.[11][12][13] Musiq previously worked with Campbell on his first two albums on Atlantic – 2007's Luvanmusiq and 2008's OnMyRadio.
He released an EP titled The Husel through DatPiff on July 30, 2014.[14]
In April 2016, he released his first independent solo album through My Block/E1 Music, Life on Earth.[15] The lead single is "I Do". Shortly after, he moved to a new label, with eOne/SoulStar Music Company.
In 2017, he released two new singles "Simple Things" and "Start Over" set for a new album titled Feel the Real due on September 15, 2017.[16][17] He premiered music videos for the tracks in April 2017.[18]
Other music
editMusiq Soulchild has featured on
- the song "Nothing at All" from Carlos Santana's October 2002 album Shaman;
- The Roots's November 2002 Phrenology on the song "Break You Off";
- rapper Skillz's December 2002 I Ain't Mad No More on the song "Wave Ya Hands!";
- "Are You Experienced?" in March 2004's Power of Soul: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix album;
- Black Ice's September 2006 The Death of Willie Lynch on the song "Takeyatime";
- rapper Lloyd Banks's October 2006 album Rotten Apple on the song "Addicted";
- "Reasons" on the March 2007 tribute album Interpretations: Celebrating the Music of Earth, Wind & Fire;[19]
- on Talib Kweli's August 2007 album Eardrum on the song "Oh My Stars";
- Ice Cube's August 2008 album Raw Footage on the song "Why Me?";
- Rapsody's November 2017 album Laila's Wisdom on the song "A Rollercoaster Jam Called Love";
- Kehlani's February 2019 mixtape While We Wait on the song "Footsteps";
- Smif-N-Wessun's March 2019 album The All on the song "Ocean Drive.
Soundtrack songs
editSoulchild has also appeared on the soundtrack to Tyler Perry's February 2007 movie Daddy's Little Girls.
He also lent a song from his March 2007 album Luvanmusiq to the soundtrack for Perry's later movie Why Did I Get Married?, released October 2007.
He then recorded a remake of Arrested Development's song "People Everyday" with British rapper and singer Estelle for the soundtrack to Tyler Perry's March 2008 Meet the Browns titled "People Everyday (Metamorphosis Mix)".
Television and books
editMusiq guest starred as himself in the UPN sitcom Half and Half in May 2004 and The CW comedy The Game in October 2007.[20][21]
On June 25, 2012, Musiq released a book on love and relationships, titled 143 – Love According To Musiq.[22]
Personal life
editWhen Musiq was a young child, he developed a lazy eye from an accident that occurred while being fed by his uncle.[23][24][25]
In 2009, he had a son with 702 singer Kameelah Williams.[26] He also has a daughter named Satori, born in 2017. Musiq resides in Atlanta, Georgia.[27][28]
Discography
editStudio albums
edit| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales threshold) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [29] |
US R&B/HH [30] |
US R&B [31] |
US Ind. [32] | |||
| Aijuswanaseing | 24 | 4 | — | — | ||
| Juslisen |
|
1 | 1 | — | — |
|
| Soulstar |
|
13 | 3 | — | — |
|
| Luvanmusiq |
|
1 | 1 | — | — |
|
| OnMyRadio |
|
11 | 1 | — | — | |
| MusiqInTheMagiq |
|
8 | 3 | — | — | |
| Husel Music (as The Husel) |
|
— | — | — | — | |
| Life on Earth |
|
27 | 3 | 2 | 5 | |
| Feel the Real |
|
126 | — | 16 | 11 | |
Collaboration albums
edit| Title | Details | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| US R&B/HH [30] | ||
| 9ine (with Syleena Johnson) |
|
54 |
| Victims and Villains (with Hit-Boy) |
|
— |
EPs
edit| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [29] |
US R&B/HH [30] |
US Holiday [34] | ||
| A Philly Soul Christmas / Christmas Musiq |
|
88 | 20 | 9 |
| The Pre-Up – EP |
|
— | — | — |
| The EternaL Peace EP |
|
— | — | — |
Singles
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [35] |
US R&B/HH [36] | |||
| "Just Friends (Sunny)" | 2000 | 31 | 6 | Aijuswanaseing |
| "Love" | 24 | 2 | ||
| "Girl Next Door" (featuring Ayana) | 2001 | 85 | 28 | |
| "Halfcrazy" | 2002 | 16 | 2 | Juslisen |
| "Dontchange" | 17 | 3 | ||
| "Forthenight" | 2003 | 53 | 18 | Soulstar |
| "Whoknows" | 2004 | 65 | 23 | |
| "B.U.D.D.Y." | 2007 | 36 | 2 | Luvanmusiq |
| "Teachme" | 42 | 2 | ||
| "Makeyouhappy" | — | 61 | ||
| "Radio" | 2008 | — | 55 | OnMyRadio |
| "IfULeave" (featuring Mary J. Blige) |
71 | 6 | ||
| "SoBeautiful" | 2009 | 84 | 8 | |
| "Silky Soul" | 2010 | — | — | Silky Soul Music – An All-Star Tribute to Maze & Frankie Beverly |
| "Anything" (featuring Swizz Beatz) |
2011 | — | 31 | MusiqInTheMagiq |
| "Yes" | — | 24 | ||
| "Feel the Fire" (with Syleena Johnson) |
2013 | — | — | 9ine |
| "I Do" | 2016 | — | 11 | Life on Earth |
| "Simple Things" | 2017 | — | — | Feel the Real |
| "Start Over" | — | 11 | ||
As featured artist
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [35] |
US R&B [36] |
UK [37] | |||
| "Break You Off" (The Roots featuring Musiq Soulchild) |
2002 | 99 | 55 | 59 | Phrenology |
| "Nothing at All" (Santana featuring Musiq Soulchild) |
2003 | — | — | — | Shaman |
| "Takeyatime" (Black Ice featuring Musiq Soulchild) |
2006 | — | — | — | The Death of Willie Lynch |
| "Why Me" (Ice Cube featuring Musiq Soulchild) |
2008 | — | — | — | Raw Footage |
| "Chocolate High" (India.Arie featuring Musiq Soulchild) |
114 | 19 | — | Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics | |
| "Forever" (The Floacist featuring Musiq Soulchild) |
2010 | — | — | — | Floetic Soul |
| "Hope for Haiti" (Kim Burrell featuring Musiq Soulchild, Michelle Williams, Lil' Mo and Tye Tribbett) |
— | — | — | Charity single | |
| "Ah Yeah" (Robert Glasper Experiment featuring Chrisette Michele and Musiq Soulchild) |
2012 | — | 86 | — | Black Radio |
| "Still Believe in Love" (Demetria McKinney featuring Musiq Soulchild) |
2013 | — | — | — | Non-album singles |
| "Give It to You" (Meelah featuring Musiq Soulchild) |
2015 | — | — | — | |
| "Footsteps" (Kehlani featuring Musiq Soulchild) |
2019 | — | — | — | While We Wait |
| "Your Turn" Ty Dolla Sign featuring Musiq Soulchild, Tish Hyman and 6lack) |
2020 | — | — | — | Featuring Ty Dolla Sign |
Accolades
editSoulchild has two platinum as well as two gold albums altogether.[30]
He has also received awards from BET and the ASCAP among others.[3][38]
Soulchild has also received 13 Grammy nominations, including three for his 2007 album Luvanmusiq.[39]
ASCAP Awards
edit| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 ASCAP Awards | Musiq Soulchild | Best Male R&B Artist | Won |
BET Awards
edit| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Musiq Soulchild | Best Male R&B Artist | Won |
| 2001 | Musiq Soulchild | Best New Artist | Nominated |
| 2003 | Musiq Soulchild | Best Male R&B Artist | Nominated |
| 2007 | Musiq Soulchild | BET Centric Award | Nominated |
| 2009 | Musiq Soulchild | BET J Award | Nominated |
American Music Awards
edit| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Musiq Soulchild | Favorite Soul/R&B New Artist | Nominated |
Grammy Awards
edit| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | "Love" | Best Male R&B Vocal Performance | Nominated |
| 2003 | "Halfcrazy" | Best Male R&B Vocal Performance | Nominated |
| Juslisen | Best R&B Album | Nominated | |
| 2004 | "Forthenight" | Best Urban/Alternative Performance | Nominated |
| 2005 | "Are You Experienced?" | Best Urban/Alternative Performance | Nominated |
| 2008 | "B.U.D.D.Y." | Best Male R&B Vocal Performance | Nominated |
| Luvanmusiq | Best R&B Album | Nominated | |
| 2010 | "SoBeautiful" | Best Male R&B Vocal Performance | Nominated |
| "IfULeave" (feat. Mary J. Blige) | Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals | Nominated | |
| "Chocolate High" (with India.Arie) | Nominated | ||
| 2011 | "We're Still Friends" | Best Male R&B Vocal Performance | Nominated |
| 2017 | "I Do" | Best R&B Performance | Nominated |
| 2018 | Feel the Real | Best R&B Album | Nominated |
References
edit- ^ Brown, Tony. "Happy Birthday Noel Gourdin and Musiq Soulchild!". wdasfm.com. iHeartMedia, Inc. Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ^ "Musiq Soulchild". AllMusic.
- ^ a b c "Atlantic Records :: Musiq Soulchild". Archived from the original on November 12, 2008. Retrieved July 20, 2009.
- ^ Billboard: Musiq Soulchild
- ^ a b c d "Although known for laid back tracks, he's had a few uptempo tracks". AllMusic. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
- ^ Luvanmusiq (Explicit), July 1, 2008, retrieved January 19, 2022
- ^ "XXLmag.com | Hip-Hop On A Higher Level | » FabolousLike Me". June 13, 2007. Archived from the original on June 13, 2007. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
- ^ "Fabolous". THE DROP. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
- ^ a b c "Interview With JR Hutson". HitQuarters. May 10, 2010. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved May 12, 2010.
- ^ "musiq soulchild". Musiqsoulchild.com.
- ^ "YKIGS Live: Musiq Soulchild Talks Signing with Warryn Campbell, Supporting Meelah on R&B Divas, Contributing to All Genres". youknowigotsoul.com. You Know I Got Soul. Retrieved September 14, 2014.
- ^ Rucker, Jermaine. "Warryn Campbell signs Musiq Soulchild to My Block Inc". gospelbreak.com. Gospel Break. Retrieved September 14, 2014.
- ^ Murray, Jawn. "New Musiq: Soulchild signs with Warryn Campbell". alwaysalist.com. Always A List. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved September 14, 2014.
- ^ "THE HUSEL Mixtape by THE HUSEL". Datpiff.com. Archived from the original on October 22, 2020. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
- ^ "VIDEO: MUSIQ SOULCHILD – I DO". thisisrnb.com. This Is RNB. March 14, 2016. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- ^ "AllMusic: Musiq Soulchild – Feel the Real". AllMusic. Retrieved September 18, 2017.
- ^ "Musiq Soulchild Aims To 'Start Over' On His Latest Single". Vibe (magazine). April 3, 2017.
- ^ "Musiq Soulchild Returns With Two New Videos 'Start Over' & 'Simple Things': Premiere". Billboard.
- ^ "Interpretations: Celebrating the Music of Earth, Wind and Fire – Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved June 23, 2009.
- ^ "The Game: Fool Me Twice... I'm the Damn Fool". IMDb.
- ^ "Half and Half: The Big Fetish What You Started Episode". IMDb.
- ^ "Audio: Musiq Soulchild Talks About His Book "143 Love According to Musiq"". Okayplayer.com. June 2012.
- ^ "Musiq finally reveals what happened to his eye". theurbandaily. May 4, 2011. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
- ^ "Picture of Musiq's eyes". BlackDoctor. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
- ^ "Musiq Reveals For The First Time What Happened To His Eye.... | The Young, Black, and Fabulous®".
- ^ "Musiq & 702 Singer Have "Complicated" Relationship But See Their Wonderful SON". February 14, 2017.
- ^ "R&B singer-songwriter Musiq Soulchild tries to balance expectations with creative growth - cleveland.com". June 15, 2011.
- ^ "Musiq Soulchild Reflects On His Career & His Move To Atlanta [EXCLUSIVE] | Majic 107.5 / 97.5 Atlanta". March 17, 2011.
- ^ a b "Musiq Soulchild Chart History – Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
- ^ a b c d "Musiq Soulchild Chart History – Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
- ^ "Musiq Soulchild (Top R&B Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
- ^ "Musiq Soulchild (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
- ^ a b c d "American certifications – Musiq". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 17, 2016.
- ^ "Musiq Soulchild Chart History – Top Holiday Albums". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
- ^ a b "Musiq Soulchild Chart History – Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
- ^ a b "Musiq Soulchild Chart History – R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
- ^ "Roots | full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
- ^ a b "2001 BET Awards Winners". BET.com. Archived from the original on November 28, 2012.
- ^ a b "Musiq Soulchild". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.
- ^ "2002 RHYTHM & SOUL MUSIC AWARDS". Ascap.com.
- ^ "2001 BET Awards". Billboard.
- ^ "2003 BET Awards Nominees". Billboard.
- ^ "2009 BET Award winners". Screenertv.com.
- ^ "29th American Music Awards". Rock on the Net.com.