Jazz pianist Robert Glasper's booming career has taken two different tracks. There's the Robert Glasper Trio, which is his more traditional acoustic ensemble dating to the early '00s featuring drummer Chris Dave and bassist Vicente Harper, and The Robert Glasper Experiment, which defies easy categorization. "Black music is the house that has many rooms," Glasper said in the label bio for the Robert Glasper Experiment's 2013 album, Black Radio 2. "Black people have invented so many dope genres that everyone loves: Jazz, blues, gospel, R&B, rock, hip-hop, and the list goes on. I'm just visiting all those rooms." The first Robert Glasper Experiment album, 2012's Black Radio, fused elements of jazz, R&B, and hip-hop, and teamed Glasper's group with guests including Ledisi, Erykah Badu, Lupe Fiasco, and Bilal. The combination proved a hit with both jazz and R&B fans, and won a Grammy for Best R&B Album. Glasper ventured further into the hip-hop and soul realm on Black Radio 2, which features guests including Common, Norah Jones, Snoop Dogg, and Jill Scott. Glasper and his band toured large clubs and theaters in 2013, getting kudos for their solid musicianship and diverse repertoire from both critics and from fans who bought tickets.
