Lyrics from Always Shine

Robert Glasper's introduction to playing music can be traced back to his roots in Houston, Texas, where his mother played piano and sang gospel music in church. By the age of twelve, Glasper took up the piano and began playing in church, as well as accompanying his mother in clubs. After attending the Houston High School for the Performing Arts, he moved to New York City to study at the New School University. There, he began playing with jazz stars like Christian McBride and Kenny Garrett. His debut album, Mood, was released on Fresh sound in 2003. This was followed by Canvas (2005) and In My Element (2007), both released on Blue Note. Glasper has also worked extensively with rapper Q-Tip, playing keyboards on his Grammy-nominated 2008 album, The Renaissance. This was followed by the 2009 release of the album Double Booked and, most recently, 2012's Black Radio (the first full-length from The Robert Glasper Experiment). The album features a number of guest stars, including Erykah Badu, Bilal, Lupe Fiasco, Lalah Hathaway, Shafiq Husayn (Sa-Ra), KING, Ledisi, Chrisette Michele, Musiq Soulchild, Meshell Ndegeocello, Stokley Williams (Mint Condition), and yasiin bey.