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Biography
Infobox musical artist|name = Saul Williams|image = SaulWilliams07.jpg|caption = Saul Williams on stage, 2007|background = solo_singer|birth_name = Saul Stacey Williams|birth_date = Birth date and age|1972|2|29|mf=y|death_date =|genre = Hip hop music|Hip hop , Spoken word , poetry , Electronic music|electronic , Alternative hip hop , Industrial hip hop |occupation = Poet Writer Singer Musician Actor Voice Actor |years_active =|instrument = Vocals |label =|associated_acts = Trent Reznor , Serj Tankian , Zack de la Rocha , Thavius Beck , Atari Teenage Riot , Buckethead |website = http://www.saulwilliams.com/ Official Site Saul Stacey Williams (born February 29, 1972) is an American poet, writer, actor and musician known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop and for his leading role in the 1998 independent film Slam (film)|Slam .
Biography
The youngest of three children, Williams was born in Newburgh, New York . He attended Newburgh Free Academy for high school, where he would write his song "Black Stacey." After graduating from Morehouse College with a B.A. in acting and philosophy , Williams moved to New York City to earn an MFA in Acting from New York University 's prestigious Tisch School of the Arts#Graduate Acting Program | Graduate Acting Program at the Tisch School of the Arts .cite web | author= | title=NYU Graduate Acting Alumni | url= http://gradacting.tisch.nyu.edu/object/ga_alumbios.html | year=2011 | accessdate=2011-12-08cite news |first=Ferrari |last=Sheppard |title= Saul William Interview |url= http://www.stopbeingfamous.com/past-interviews/stopbeingfamous-com-interview-with-saul-williams|accessdate=2010-05-06 There he found himself at the center of the New York cafe poetry scene.
Williams and artist Marcia Jones began their relationship in 1995 as collaborative artists on the Brooklyn performance art and spoken word circuit. Their daughter, Saturn, was born in 1996. http://blackcelebkids.com/2008/08/06/videosaul-williams-and-daughter-attend-lollapalooza-festival Saul/Saturn Williams His collection of poems S/HE is a series of reflections on the demise of the relationship.cite web|url= http://natcreole.com/may.issue/printable/art-title1.htm|title=Marcia Jones|publisher=Nat Creole|accessdate=2008-08-18 Marcia Jones,www.marciajonesart.com a visual artist and art professor, created the cover artwork for The Seventh Octave , images throughout S/HE in response to Williams, and set-designed his 2001 album Amethyst Rock Star . Saturn has recently been performing with her father on his 2008 concert tour.cite web|url= http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/142762-lollapalooza-report-sunday-amy-phillips|title=Lollapalloza Report|publisher=Pitchfork|accessdate=2008-08-18 http://eventorb.com/videowatch.aspx? vid=saulwilliams& q=0& kw=Lollapalooza Saul& Saturn Williams Perform @ Lollapalooza, 6 Aug 8
On his 36th birthday, February 29, 2008, Williams married his girlfriend of five years, actress Persia White . Williams met White in 2003 when he made a guest appearance on the TV show Girlfriends as a poet named Sivad. (1993). http://i2.tinypic.com/xliln9.jpg Persia/Mecca feed a lamb http://www.prphotos.com/store/category.cgi? item=SGG-059590& type=store& ps=1& start=23 Persia/Mecca,19 Mar 05 Genesis Awards On January 17, 2009, White announced via her Myspace blog that she and Williams were no longer together.cite web|url= http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm? fuseaction=blog.view& friendID=19347697& blogID=464545735|title=Love Life and Friendship |publisher=blogs.myspace.com|accessdate=2009-01-18
Williams is a vegan .cite web|url= http://www.ecorazzi.com/2008/08/12/saul-williams-makes-a-hearfelt-argument-for-going-vegan/|title=Saul Williams Makes A Heartfelt Argument For Going Vegan|publisher=ecorazzi|accessdate=2009-04-11
Career
By 1995, he had become an open mic poet and, in 1996, he won the title of Nuyorican Poets Cafe 's Poetry slam|Grand Slam Champion . The documentary film SlamNation follows Williams and the other members of the 1996 Nuyorican Poets Slam team ( Beau Sia , Mums da Schemer and Jessica Care Moore ) as they compete in the 1996 National Poetry Slam held in Portland, Oregon .
The following year, Williams landed the lead role in the 1998 feature film Slam (film)|Slam . Williams featured as both a writer and actorAptowicz, Cristin O'Keefe. (2008). Words in Your Face: A Guided Tour Through Twenty Years of the New York City Poetry Slam. Soft Skull Press, 226. ISBN 1-933368-82-9. on the film, which would win both the Sundance Festival Grand Jury Prize and the Cannes Film Festival|Cannes Camera D'Or (Golden Camera) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0139615/awards IMDB Awards page for Slam and serve to introduce Williams to international audiences.
Williams was at this time breaking into music. He had performed with such artists as Nas , The Fugees , Christian Alvarez , Blackalicious , Erykah Badu , KRS-One , Zack De La Rocha , De La Soul , and DJ Krust , as well as poets Allen Ginsberg and SoniaSanchez . After releasing a string of EPs, in 2001 he released the LP album|LP Amethyst Rock Star with producer Rick Rubin and in September 2004 his Saul Williams (album)|self-titled album to much acclaim. He played several shows supporting Nine Inch Nails on their European tour in summer 2005, and has also supported The Mars Volta .
Williams was also invited to the Lollapalooza music festival in Summer 2005. The Chicago stage allowed Williams to attract a wider audience. He also appeared on Nine Inch Nails|NIN 's album Year Zero (album)|Year Zero , and supported the group on their 2006 North America n tour. On the tour Williams announced that Trent Reznor would co-produce his next album.cite web | url = http://www.theninhotline.net/news/archives/backissue.php? y=06& m=3#1142284426 | title = Saul Williams recording with Trent/Atticus | publisher = The NIN Hotline | date = 2006-03-13 | accessdate = 2008-01-10
This collaboration resulted in 2007's The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! . This album was available only at the website until a physical CD of the album was issued. The physical release included new tracks and extended album artwork. http://www.drop-d.ie/article.php? article_id=567 Interview: Saul Williams The first 100,000 customers on the website had the option to download a free lower-quality audio version of the album. The other option was for users to pay $5 to support the artist directly and be given the choice of downloading the higher-quality MP3 version or the lossless FLAC version. The material has been produced by Trent Reznor and mixed by Alan Moulder . It was Reznor who said that, after his own recent dealings with record labels, they should release it independently and directly. http://www.side-line.com/news_comments.php? id=26846_0_2_0_C Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails) produced album by Saul Williams yours for zero dollar
As a writer, Williams has been published in The New York Times , Esquire (magazine)|Esquire , Bomb Magazine and African Voices , as well as having released four collections of poetry. As a poet and musician, Williams has toured and lectured across the world, appearing at many universities and colleges. In his interview in the book, Words in Your Face: A Guided Tour Through Twenty Years of the New York City Poetry Slam , Williams explained why he creates within so many genres, saying: cquote|It's not that I balance those arts out, all the different arts balance me out. So, that there is a certain type of emotion that is more easily accessible through music than poetry... Some things are meant to be written, some are meant to be sung, some things are meant to be hummed, some things are made to be yelled, and so that's just how life works.Aptowicz, Cristin O'Keefe. (2008). Words in Your Face: A Guided Tour Through Twenty Years of the New York City Poetry Slam. Soft Skull Press . Page 229. ISBN 1-933368-82-9. Williams is a vocal critic of the War on Terrorism and the wars in Iraq War|Iraq and War in Afghanistan (2001–present)|Afghanistan ;cite web|url= http://loserdomzine.com/saulinterview.htm|title=Interview with Saul Williams Loserdom #13|publisher=Loserdom zine|accessdate=2008-07-02 among his better-known works are the anti-war anthems "Not In My Name" and "Act III Scene 2 ( Shakespeare )". In early 2008, a Nike, Inc.|Nike Sparq Training commercial featured Williams's song "List of Demands (Reparations)".
In a November 2008 interview with Wired News|Wired.com , Williams talked about his forthcoming projects:
quote|...but there's one album that I'm waist-deep into. I'm aiming to finish it up next month. Trent wants to work on a sequel for Niggy that I think would be cool and I also have an album and new songs demoed at home that I'm ready to go into the studio and lay down. It’s a complete reflection of how I feel in this country; it's a very transformative time. http://blog.wired.com/music/2008/11/one-year-later.html One Year Later, Saul Williams Talks Niggy Tardust's Wins, What's Next In January 2009, he released NGH WHT – The Dead Emcee Scrolls with The Arditti Quartet , a reading of his 2006 poetry book of the same name. This collaboration with Thomas Kessler (composer)|Thomas Kessler (who also set ,said the shotgun to the head to music) is released with two payment options: listeners may download Chapters 18-22 of the 27-minute composition for free (in mp3 format), or for $6, can download the entire 33-chapter composition in lossless .aif format, along with the isolated vocal and quartet multitrack stems. The entire paid download totals in size at 563 Megabyte . http://www.saulwilliams.com/NGH_WHT/ NGH WHT – The Dead Emcee Scrolls with The Arditti Quartet
He currently resides in Paris , France . He has contributed to two tracks on the 2011 album Baba Love by French musician Arthur H . http://www.lesinrocks.com/inrockstv/inrockstv-article/t/69613/date/2011-08-31/article/en-coulisses-avec-arthur-h-et-saul-williams/ Arthur H and Saul Williams
Williams latest album, Volcanic Sunlight ' was released November 11, 2011. Williams showcased the album at London 's Hoxton Bar Kitchen on January 26, 2011. Livemusic.fm interviewed Williams on the evening and made a subsequent film. Artist Alex Templeton-Ward produced the film. When Williams was asked what the point of poetry was he said: "I'm making this up, I have no idea but here we go, I think that it would be to express, to share, to relieve, to explore", "for me poetry offers some what of a cathartic experience. I am able to move through emotions and emotional experience particularly, you know, break-ups, difficulties in all the things that I may face, whether that is with an industry or a loved one or whomever, there needs to be an infiltration process, like you have a window open over there. That is the purpose of poetry – it is the window that opens that allows some air in, some other insight, some other possibility so we can explore all that we feel, all that we think but with the space to see more than what we know, because there is so much more than we know", "If I didn't open myself to the possibilities of the unknown then I would be lost."
Persondata | NAME =Williams, Saul | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = | SHORT DESCRIPTION = American musician | DATE OF BIRTH =1972-02-29 | PLACE OF BIRTH = | DATE OF DEATH = | PLACE OF DEATH =
Saul Williams DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Saul Category:1972 births Category:African-American actors Category:African American musicians Category:African American poets Category:African American performance poets Category:American activists Category:American anti–Iraq War activists Category:American film actors Category:American poets Category:American rappers Category:American television actors Category:American vegans Category:Anti-corporate activists Category:Copyright activists Category:Integral art Category:Living people Category:Morehouse College alumni Category:Actors from New York Category:Musicians from New York Category:People from Newburgh, New York Category:Slam poets Category:Urban fiction Category:American spoken word artists
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