Today's Song of the Day, as chosen by Gabriel Teodros, host of Early on KEXP, is "Why We Speak (feat. Q-Tip & Esperanza Spalding)" by Robert Glasper, a 2022 single on Loma Vista / Concord.
In 2012, jazz pianist Robert Glasper's fifth album, Black Radio, was a breakout success. It landed him the Grammy for Best R&B Album, while at the same time, hitting #1 on the Billboard jazz charts. The following year, Black Radio 2 was met with similar success, winning the Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Performance for the track "Jesus Children of America" featuring Lalah Hathaway and Malcolm-Jamal Warner. Now, in 2022, he's released the latest installment, Black Radio III, where he continues to defy categorization and embrace collaboration. Featured guests include India.Arie, Meshell Ndegeocello, Killer Mike, Common, Ty Dolla $ign, and on today's KEXP Song of the Day, Esperanza Spalding and Q-Tip.
“When I’m working on Black Radio, I’m not interested in who’s the hot new artist at the time,” Glasper told Relix. “It’s more about people who are open to pushing the music. I’m interested in, ‘Are you actually talented? Do you actually work on your craft?’ Black Radio has become a bar. If you’re on Black Radio, you have to be a certain thing. Who really has something to say?”
