Raphael Saadiq has never been the kind of artist who ties his legacy to chart positions, and according to him, that’s exactly why his music lasts.
During The Hollywood Reporter’s Songwriters Roundtable, the Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, producer, and all-around architect of modern soul joined Shaboozey, Hayley Williams, Ed Sheeran, EJAE, and Michelle Zauner to talk about craft, longevity, and the changing landscape of music.
When the conversation shifted to the pressure artists feel to “chart,” Saadiq says that has never been his metric for greatness.
“I never really cared about Billboard,” he said. “I never looked at it. When I wrote a good song and I knew it, the song stayed around longer than everybody who had a No. 1. So I’d rather have the song that stays around longer than a number in a magazine. Because the magazine goes, and the song stays.”
It’s a perspective forged through decades of shaping the sound of R&B, from his era-defining work with Tony! Toni! Toné! and Lucy Pearl to his profoundly respected solo catalog and his production contributions to artists like Solange, D’Angelo, and Joss Stone. For Saadiq, the real reward happens long before the world hits play.
“For me, it was always like… when I’m in the studio and you write a song, the reward is always – in the beginning – listening back before everybody else gets a chance to hear it.”
That moment is what he chases, not a chart placement. And he’s learned firsthand that numbers fade much faster than quality.
He shared a story that perfectly illustrates the point:
“This guy walked up to me one day and said, ‘I think I just beat you on Billboard, I’m No. 1, and you’re No. 2,’” Saadiq recalled. “I was like ‘Congratulations, man!’ Now, I don’t hear that song anymore that he wrote. But I still hear my song! I had to learn through experience.”
Photo Credit: Instagram – RaphaelSaadiq
