Jamila Woods (born October 6, 1989) is a

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

-based American singer, songwriter and poet. Woods is a graduate of St. Ignatius College Prep and

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

, where she received a BA in Africana Studies and Theater & Performance Studies. Her work focuses on themes of Black ancestry,

Black feminism Black feminism is a philosophy that centers on the idea that "Black women are inherently valuable, that lack women'sliberation is a necessity not as an adjunct to somebody else's but because our need as human persons for autonomy." Race, gen ...

, and Black identity, with recurring emphases on self-love and the City of Chicago.

Career

Poetry

In 2012, Jamila Woods published her first chapbook, entitled ''The Truth About Dolls''. Her work can be found in the anthologies ''The Breakbeat Poets: New American Poetry in the Age of Hip-Hop'' (2015), ''Courage: Daring Poems for Gutsy Girls'' (2014), and ''The UnCommon Core: Contemporary Poems for Learning & Living'' (2013). Her influences include Lucille Clifton, Gwendolyn Brooks, Toni Morrison, and Frida Kahlo. Woods was also one of three editors of ''The Breakbeat Poets Volume II'', entitled ''Black Girl Magic''. The 2018 publication is an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

of poetry by contemporary Black women, “exploring themes of beauty, unapologetic blackness,

intersectionality Intersectionality is an analytical framework for understanding how aspects of a person's social and political identities combine to create different modes of discrimination and privilege. Intersectionality identifies multiple factors of adva ...

, self-definition, and more.” Woods is a member of the Dark Noise Poetry Collective with fellow creatives Fatimah Asghar,

Franny Choi Franny Choi (born February 11, 1989) is an American writer, poet and playwright. Personal life Choi lived in Northampton, Massachusetts and now resides in Greenfield, Massachusetts. Her fascination with poetry began when she was in the third or f ...

, Nate Marshall, Aaron Samuels, and

Danez Smith Danez Smith is an African-American, poet, writer and performer from St. Paul, Minnesota. They are queer, non-binary and HIV-positive. They are the author of the poetry collections '' nsertBoy'' and ''Don't Call Us Dead: Poems'', both of which have ...

Community organizing

Woods is the Associate Artistic Director o
Young Chicago Authors (YCA)
an organization in the Chicago area dedicated to uplifting youth voices through arts, education, and mentorship. Through YCA, Woods helps to organize

Louder Than a Bomb Rooted & Radical Youth Poetry Festival (formerly named Louder Than a Bomb) is an annual youth poetry slam in Chicago every spring. Founded in 2001 by Kevin Coval and Anna West of the nonprofit organization Young Chicago Authors. It is now the la ...

, the world's largest youth poetry slam festival. She also facilitates poetry workshops and creates curriculum for Chicago Public Schools. While in Providence, Woods served as a volunteer at non-profit arts center

New Urban Arts New Urban Arts is a nonprofit arts organization that provides after school arts mentoring and studio space for high school students and emerging artists in Providence, Rhode Island. In 2017, students at New Urban Arts came primarily from four Pro ...

Music

After completing studies at Brown, Woods and classmate Owen Hill formed soul-pop band Milo and Otis, or M&O, which released two albums: ''The Joy'' in 2012 and ''Almost Us'' in 2014. The song "Lift Up" on the band's debut album features Chance the Rapper. M&O disbanded in 2014. Woods is widely known for her other collaborative works with

Chance the Rapper Chancelor Johnathan Bennett (born April 16, 1993), known professionally as Chance the Rapper, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, and record producer. Born and raised in Chicago, Bennett released his debut mixtape '' 10 Day'' in 2012. He ...

on the hit song "Sunday Candy" from the album '' Surf'' as well as "Blessings" from ''

Coloring Book A coloring book (British English: colouring-in book, colouring book, or colouring page) is a type of book containing line art to which people are intended to add color using crayons, colored pencils, marker pens, paint or other artistic media ...

''. Woods is also featured on the

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Macklemore & Ryan Lewis are an American hip hop duo from Seattle, Washington, formed in 2008 by Macklemore, a rapper,Trust, Gary (2013)Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' 'Can't Hold Us' Makes Hot 100 History, ''Billboard'', May 8, 2013. Retrieved January ...

song "

White Privilege II "White Privilege II" is a song by American hip hop duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis from their second album ''This Unruly Mess I've Made'' (2016). The song, a sequel to Macklemore's solo song "White Privilege" from his first album ''The Language of My ...

". In January 2016, Woods signed to Chicago's independent hip-hop label, Closed Sessions. In that same year Woods released her debut solo album titled, “HEAVN”. Following that album in May 2019, she released the album, “LEGACY! LEGACY!” Each song is named after a prolific black creator. In early 2020, Woods performed as the opening act for the R&B singer

Raphael Saadiq Raphael Saadiq (; born Charles Ray Wiggins; May 14, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He rose to fame as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! In addition to his solo and group ...

's Jimmy Lee Tour.

Music videos

* "Blk Girl Soldier" (2016) * "Holy" (2017) * "LSD ft. Chance The Rapper" (2017) * "GIOVANNI" (2018) * "ZORA" (2019) * "EARTHA" (2019) * "BALDWIN" (2019) * "SULA (Hardcover)" (2020)

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

* "Blk Girl Soldier" (2016) * "Holy" (2017) * "LSD" feat. Chance the Rapper P Boo Remix(2017) * "Giovanni" (2018) * "Zora" (2019) * "Eartha" (2019) * "Baldwin" (2019) * "Zora" ive(2020) * "Sula" ardcover(2020) * "Sula" aperback(2020)

''Heavn''

Woods released her debut album ''Heavn'' on her SoundCloud page on July 11, 2016 to critical acclaim. The album features collaborations with

, Noname,

Saba Saba may refer to: Places * Saba (island), an island of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean Sea * Şaba (Romanian for Shabo), a town of the Odesa Oblast, Ukraine * Sabá, a municipality in the department of Colón, Honduras * Saba (river), ...

, Lorine Chia, Kweku Collins and

Donnie Trumpet Nico Segal (born June 25, 1993), formerly known by his stage name Donnie Trumpet, is an American trumpeter and record producer from Chicago, Illinois. He is part of the hip hop collective Savemoney with Chance the Rapper and Vic Mensa, among ot ...

. ''Heavn'' was ranked as the 36th best album of 2016 by ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

''. ''Heavn'' features a variety of producers, including oddCouple, a fellow Closed Sessions signee who produced five of the album's 12 tracks. In 2017, Woods partners with Jagjaguwar and Closed Sessions to re-release the album.

''Legacy! Legacy!''

Jamila released her second album ''Legacy! Legacy!'' via Jagjaguwar on May 10, 2019 to rave reviews. The album features collaborations with Nitty Scott,

, theMIND, Jasminfire, and

Nico Segal Nico Segal (born June 25, 1993), formerly known by his stage name Donnie Trumpet, is an American trumpeter and record producer from Chicago, Illinois. He is part of the hip hop collective Savemoney with Chance the Rapper and Vic Mensa, among ...

. ''Legacy! Legacy!'' includes hook song "Eartha" that assists in displaying the history and lineage of a country obsessed with forgetting. Released along with "Legacy! Legacy!" were videos for her songs "SONIA/FRIDA".

References

External links

* (music) * (poetry)
Milo & Otis Bandcamp Page
(music) {{DEFAULTSORT:Woods, Jamila 1989 births Living people African-American people American female hip hop singers American women poets American neo soul singers Place of birth missing (living people) Brown University people Brown University alumni Jagjaguwar artists St. Ignatius College Prep alumni African-American women musicians 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women