Jill Scott

About

Also known as: Jill H. Scott, Scott Jill, The Lady Jill Scott, ジル・スコット

Jill Scott came up through Philadelphia's spoken word scene before Questlove of The Roots caught her performing and brought her into the fold, earning her a writing credit on the Grammy winning track You Got Me. Her 2000 debut, Who Is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 1, set the tone for everything that followed: neo soul built from jazz, r&b, hip hop and spoken word, all threaded together with a voice that draws comparisons to Minnie Riperton and Deniece Williams. The single A Long Walk landed her a Grammy nomination for Best Female Vocal Performance, and she later won for Best Urban/Alternative R&B Performance with Cross My Mind. Beyond music, Scott has carved out a real presence as an actress, most notably playing Mma Ramotswe in the BBC and HBO series The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, and she has published a collection of poetry. She collaborated with artists like Eric Benét, Common and Lupe Fiasco over the years, and her back catalogue, from Beautifully Human to The Real Thing, holds up as some of the most distinctive neo soul released in the 2000s.