Jill Scott (singer)
Jill Scott | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Birth name | Jill Heather Scott |
Born | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | April 4, 1972
Genres | |
Occupation(s) |
|
Instruments | Vocals |
Years active | 1999–present |
Labels | (2014–present) |
Spouse(s) | Lyzel Williams
(m. 2001; div. 2007)Mike Dobson
(m. 2016; sep. 2017) |
Website | missjillscott |
Jill Heather Scott (born April 4, 1972)[2] is an American singer, songwriter, model, poet, and actress. Her 2000 debut album, Who Is Jill Scott?: Words and Sounds Vol. 1, went platinum and the follow-ups Beautifully Human: Words and Sounds Vol. 2 (2004) and The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3 (2007) both achieved gold status.
Scott made her film debut in 2007 in
Early life and education
Scott was born on April 4, 1972, in
After graduating from the
Career
2000–09: Words and Sounds albums
Scott began her performing career as a
Scott was the first artist signed to Steve McKeever's 'Hidden Beach Recordings' label. Her debut album,
Scott continues to write poetry; a compilation volume of her poems, The Moments, The Minutes, The Hours, was published and released by St. Martin's Press in April 2005.[11]
In early 2007, Scott was featured on the
The Collaborations collection served as "an appetizer" for her next studio album,
In 2008, Scott released her second live album, Live in Paris+, which consists of 8 songs recorded during her set list of the "Big Beautiful Tour" in Europe. The bonus DVD contains the same concert, plus some live cuts from The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3. In the same year, "Whenever You're Around," a single from The Real Thing, which features George Duke was a moderate hit on urban radio.
2010–12: Hidden Beach lawsuit, The Light of the Sun, and tour
Early in 2010, Scott was sued by
To offset the damages Hidden Beach planned to release several compilation albums consisting of previously unreleased material by Scott. The first album in this series was
The Light of the Sun officially began production in 2010. Scott gave fans a preview of the music on her 18-city venue, co-headlining tour with R&B singer
The album was preceded by the promo single "Shame," which was released on Scott's SoundCloud account in April 2012. The single features the rapper
Scott promoted the album in several ways, including The Light of the Sundays, several online Essence interviews, and releasing the album as an iTunes LP, giving fans paid access to exclusive photos and videos. Scott also embarked on her
2015 fifth studio album "Woman"
During her performance at the Essence Festival, Scott indicated the intention of releasing an album of lullabies.[18] Her album Woman is the first album she released on Atlantic Records.[19] The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart, with 58,000 copies sold in its first week.[20]
2020–present: Verzuz battle
On May 9, 2020, Jill Scott and Erykah Badu came together for the first live stream battle between women.[21] During the three-hour Instagram live, the two friends live streamed their hits as well as songs they had written for other artists. More than 700,000 viewers tuned in to the battle, including Michelle Obama, Spike Lee, Quincy Jones and Janet Jackson.[22]
Other appearances and songwriting
Her live performance in 2004 with members of The Roots, which also includes a joint performance with Erykah Badu, is featured in Dave Chappelle's 2006 concert film, Dave Chappelle's Block Party.
UK dance duo Goldtrix covered Scott's song "It's Love", renaming it "It's Love (Trippin')" with singer Andrea Brown taking over vocal duties. The song became a top ten hit in the UK, peaking at number six.
Jill is also featured on a Lupe Fiasco song named "Daydreaming". "It's Love (Trippin')" was also covered by South West Beats (featuring Claudia Patrice) in 2008. The song "Golden" is featured in a R&B themed radio station in the Rockstar Games video game Grand Theft Auto IV. She recently appeared on Pharoahe Monch's 2011 release W.A.R. (We Are Renegades). Also Jill is one of the featured artists in Kirk Franklin's video "I Smile" released in 2011. In 2012 rapper Substantial released "Jackin' Jill". The album was recorded as a tribute to Jill's voice and songwriting. In 2015, she was featured on Dr. Dre's third album. In 2016, she was featured on The Hamilton Mixtape.
Style
Scott is a soprano who has infused jazz, opera, R&B, spoken word, and hip hop in a style often called neo-soul.[23] A reviewer at Pop Matters, referring to Scott's vocal ability (1st soprano), stated, "Scott draws on her upper register, recalling the artistry of the late 'songbird' Minnie Riperton and Deniece Williams."[24] The same reviewer, in another article, stated, "The song evokes the artistry of Minnie Riperton as Scott sings in the upper register that makes its only appearances on 'Who is Jill Scott?' on the teasing 'I Think It's Better' and 'Show Me'."[25] Other reviewers have celebrated her for "putting bass in her soprano voice," "elegant vocals," "warm womanliness" and "populat[ing] her music with images of regular people".[23]
For some, she was "the girl-next-door for a different side of America".[26] Reviewer Anupa Mistry writes:
"Scott’s attention to conversations and consciousness in her particular community and black America at large solidified her music as being of the people. She wrote about hip-hop, jazz, reparations, Abrahamic religious texts, soul food (and what collards do to your bowels), the noted and imprisoned activist Mumia Abu-Jamal, diasporic ideation, going to the market, and late nights on the phone...Jilly from Philly...stays keeping it real."[26]
Film and television
On the advice of her good friend, director Ozzie Jones, she began pursuing a career in acting in 2000.
Her first feature film appearances occurred in 2007, when Scott appeared in
In 2010, she provided the voice of Storm of the X-Men on the BET series Black Panther. On March 24, 2010, she guest-starred in an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.[30] She reprised her role as Sheila in Why Did I Get Married Too? (2010). The movie was shot in August 2009 and received an April 2, 2010 release.[31] That same year, Scott starred in the Lifetime movie Sins of the Mother as Nona, an alcoholic mother confronted by her estranged daughter whom she neglected. At the 42nd NAACP Image Awards, Scott was awarded Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special for her role in Sins of the Mother.[32][33]
In May 2012, Scott appeared on
Since 2018, Scott's played a recurring role in
In 2019, Scott starred in First Wives Club, a TV adaptation of the 1996 comedy about three divorced wives who share a common past. The show is available on BET’s streaming service, BET Plus and also stars Ryan Michelle Bathe and Michelle Buteau. The show was renewed for a second season.[35]
Personal life
Scott and long-term boyfriend Lyzel Williams, a graphic artist and DJ, married in 2001 in a private Hawaiian ceremony during a vacation. The couple dated for seven years before they wed.[36] She wrote and recorded the song "He Loves Me (Lyzel in E Flat)" about Williams. After six years of marriage, Scott and Williams divorced in 2007.
Scott has resided in
On June 20, 2008, at a concert in Carnegie Hall in New York City, Scott shared a long on-stage kiss with her drummer, Li'l John Roberts; the couple then told the audience that they were engaged.[39] Their son was born in 2009.[40] On June 23, 2009, Scott announced that she and Roberts had broken up, with Scott breaking the news to Essence magazine.
Philanthropy
In 2003, Scott established the Blues Babe Foundation, a program founded to help young minority students pay for university expenses.[41] The foundation offers financial assistance to students between the ages of 16 and 21 and focuses on students residing in Philadelphia, Camden, and the greater Delaware Valley. She donated US$100,000 to start the foundation. The foundation was named after Scott's grandmother who was known as "Blue Babe".[42]
In Spring 2003, the Blues Babe Foundation made a donation of more than $60,000 to the graduating class of the Creative Arts School in Camden. Any student during the ensuing three years who maintained a 3.2
At the Essence Music Festival in July 2006, Scott spoke out about how women of color are portrayed in hip-hop songs and music videos. She criticized the content for being "dirty, inappropriate, inadequate, unhealthy, and polluted" urging the listening audience to "demand more" when selecting music.[43]
Discography
- Studio albums
- Who Is Jill Scott?: Words and Sounds Vol. 1 (2000)
- Beautifully Human: Words and Sounds Vol. 2 (2004)
- The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3 (2007)
- The Light of the Sun (2011)
- Woman (2015)
Concert tours
- Words and Sounds Tour (2001)
- Buzz Tour(2004)
- Big Beautiful Tour (2005)
- Sugar Water Festival (2005)
- The Real Thing Tour (2008)
- Maxwell & Jill Scott: The Tour (2010)
- Summer Block Party (2011–12)
- An Evening with Jill Scott (2011–12)
- Live in the Moment Tour (2018–19)
- Who is Jill Scott 20th Anniversary Tour (2020)
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2004 | Cavedweller | Rosemary | |
2007 | Hounddog | Big Momma Thornton
|
|
Why Did I Get Married? | Sheila | ||
2010 | Why Did I Get Married Too? | Sheila | |
2013 | Fading Gigolo | - | |
Baggage Claim | Gail Best | ||
2014 | Get On Up | Deidre "Dee-Dee" Jenkins | |
2017 | Love Beats Rhymes | Professor Dixon | |
2023 | Outlaw Johnny Black | Maw Belle |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2000 | Soul Train | Herself | Episode: "Montell Jordan/The Roots/Lil' Zane" |
2002 | Sesame Street | Herself | Episode: "3981: Fire at Hooper's Store" |
2003 | Def Poetry Jam | Herself | Episode: "Episode #3.1" |
I Love the '70s | Herself | Episode: "1974" | |
2004 | Girlfriends
|
Donna Williams | Recurring cast (season 4) |
2007 | SeeMore's Playhouse | Herself | Episode: "I’m Bigger Than You" |
2008 | Real Live Divas | Herself | Episode: "Jill Scott" |
2008–09 | The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency | Precious Ramotswe | Main cast |
2009 | Sesame Street | Herself | Episode: "Squirmadega Car Race" |
2010 | Black Panther | Ororo Munroe/Storm (voice) | Main cast |
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Janice Raleigh | Episode: "Disabled" | |
Sins of the Mother | Nona | TV movie | |
2011 | Sunday Best | Herself | Episode: "I Do" |
2012 | Fringe | Simone | Episode: "The Human Kind" |
Steel Magnolias | Truvy Jones | TV movie | |
2015 | Unsung | Herself | Episode: "Chuck Brown and Go-Go" |
With This Ring | Viviane Rhimes | TV movie | |
2016 | Being Mary Jane | Jackie | Episode: "Hot Seat" |
2017 | Flint | Nayyirah Shariff | TV movie |
2018 | Black Hollywood: 'They've Gotta Have Us' | Herself | Episode: "Black is the New Hollywood" |
2018–20 | Black Lightning | Lady Eve
|
Recurring cast ( 3 )
|
2019–22 | First Wives Club | Hazel Rachelle | Main cast |
2020 | Black-ish | Yaya | Episode: "Hair Day" |
Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices | Herself | Episode: "Jill Scott Reads Pretty Brown Face and Brown Boy Joy" | |
2021 | Highway to Heaven | Angela Stewart | TV movie |
2022 | Robot Chicken | May Day/Beth (voice) | Episode: "May Cause Involuntary Political Discharge" |
Documentary
Year | Title |
---|---|
2005 | Dave Chappelle's Block Party |
Award and nominations
References
- ^ Mitchell, Gail. "Jill Scott Talks 'The Voice,' James Brown Biopic and New Album". Billboard. Retrieved August 28, 2014.
- ^ AllMusic.com. Retrieved July 7, 2015.
- ^ Mitchell, Gail (February 18, 2014). "Jill Scott Talks 'The Voice,' James Brown Biopic and New Album". Billboard. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
- Bustle. January 31, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ Waldron, Clarence (August 20, 2001). "Jill Scott: Keeps It Real With Soulful, Down-Home Sound – Interview". Jet. Archived from the original on May 28, 2007.
- ^ Scott, Jill (November 3, 2021). "Our African Ancestry - Jill Scott Presents: J.ill the Podcast". omny.fm. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
- ^ Harris, Isoul H. (September 7, 2004). "Beatifically Human". AlterNet. Retrieved May 9, 2011.
- ^ Touré (April 26, 2001). "Soul Sister Number One". Rolling Stone. No. 867. Archived from the original on October 2, 2007.
- ^ "Archived copy". www.inkblotmagazine.com. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Jill Scott – The Vogue". Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ "Who is Jill Scott? Now she's a poet too". NPR. April 27, 2005.
- ^ Cohen, Jonathan (December 26, 2006). "Hidden Beach Rounds Up Jill Scott's 'Collaborations'". Billboard.
- ^ "Jill Scott". Hidden Beach Recordings.
- Chart. January 2, 2007. Archived from the original on November 13, 2009. Retrieved May 31, 2009.)
{{cite magazine}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link - ^ "The Hidden Beach Family Reunion -> Download Manager -> Jill Scott -> Jill Scott's "The Real Thing" Sampler". family.hiddenbeach.com. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007.
- ^ "Jill Scott Sued By Label". Billboard. February 4, 2010. Retrieved January 28, 2012.
- ^ "Exclusive: Jill Scott Signs Distribution Deal with Warner Brothers Label". Billboard. March 3, 2011. Retrieved January 28, 2012.
- ^ Jones, Ivory M. (July 7, 2013). "Jill Scott Puts Final Touches On Lullaby Album". Essence.com. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
- ^ album release on atlantic
- ^ "Jill Scott Scores Her Second No. 1 Album with 'Woman'". Billboard.
- ^ Vera, Amir (May 10, 2020). "Erykah Badu and Jill Scott perform in the first women's Verzuz battle on Instagram Live". CNN. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
- ^ "Michelle Obama Turned All The Way Up During Jill Scott And Erykah Badu's IG Live Battle". BET.com. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
- ^ a b Sullivan, Caroline (June 24, 2011). "Jill Scott: The Light of the Sun – review". The Guardian. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ "Music Reviews, Features, Essays, News, Columns, Blogs, MP3s and Videos". PopMatters. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
- ^ Neal, Mark Anthony. "The Isley Brothers Featuring Ronald Isley aka Mr. Biggs: 'Eternal' (DreamWorks)". Pop Matters.
- ^ a b Mistry, Anupa. "Review–Who Is Jill Scott?: Words and Sounds, Vol. 1." Pitchforck. April 14, 2019.
- ^ "Jill Scott on Acting, Singing, and Divorce". craveonline.com. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2007.
- ^ 'Cavedweller' excels in quiet October 15, 2004. Los Angeles Times.
- ^ "Have A Lovely Day". JillScott.com. Retrieved May 9, 2011.
- ^ "Exclusive: Jill Scott and Blind Side's Quinton Aaron Guest on SVU". TV Guide.
- ^ "Detective Agency to be serialised". BBC News. March 11, 2008. Retrieved March 11, 2008.
- ^ "The 42nd NAACP Image Awards – Television". Naacpimageawards.net. Archived from the original on June 25, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2011.
- ^ Hinckley, David (February 19, 2010). "Lifetime Movie Network's 'Sins of the Mother' rejuvenates prodigal child story with star Jill Scott". Daily News. New York.
- ^ "'Black Lightning': Here's your first look at Jill Scott as villain Lady Eve". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
- ^ Petski, Denise; Andreeva, Nellie (November 26, 2019). "'First Wives Club' Renewed For Season 2 By BET+". Deadline. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
- ^ Daniels, Karu F. (June 15, 2007). "Jill Scott: Divorce Neo-Soul Style". AOL Black Voices Blog.
- ^ Mcnish, George (March 8, 2008). "Jill Scott performs 'chapters' of life in NJPAC concert". NJ.com. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
- ^ Hight, Jewly. "Neo-R&B star Jill Scott talks moving to Tennessee and more | Features". Nashville Scene. Archived from the original on August 2, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
- ^ Reported by Khari Shabazz, in attendance, Carnegie Hall, New York, NY, June 20, 2008
- ^ McGee, Tiffany (April 21, 2009). "It's a Boy for Jill Scott – Babies, Jill Scott". People. Archived from the original on July 10, 2015. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
- ^ "Blues Babe Foundation - GuideStar Profile". www.guidestar.org. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
- ^ "Blues Babe Foundation". Blues Babe Foundation. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
- ^ "Singer attacks 'degrading' images". BBC News. July 5, 2006. Retrieved May 6, 2010.
External links
- Official website
- Jill Scott at IMDb
- Jill Scott discography at Discogs