Laith Al-Saadi

A soulful vocalist and powerful guitarist with a taste for blues, vintage R&B, jazz, and classic rock, Laith Al-Saadi was born in 1977 and raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Al-Saadi displayed his talents at a young age, learning to sing with the Boys' Choir of Ann Arbor when he was four, and taking up the guitar at age 13. While Al-Saadi's father only listened to Arabic classical music, his mother had much broader tastes, and after his folks split up, he began exploring the popular music of the '60s and '70s. As a student of Ann Arbor's Community High School, he played in the school's jazz band, and at 15 he joined a local blues band, Blue Vinyl. The group was successful enough to tour the Netherlands, and landed gigs opening for blues greats such as <a href="spotify:artist:2gCsNOpiBaMNh20jQ5prf0">Buddy Guy</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0phMS1UDPTZlxuEnarDUKt">Son Seals</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:7EynH3keqfKUmauyaeZoxv">Luther Allison</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:1aTDTChWWyiJH3SEnYrdVp">Taj Mahal</a>. After completing high school, Al-Saadi studied music at Western Michigan University, and received a degree in Jazz Guitar and Bass. After graduating, he became one of the busiest working musicians in Michigan, playing with the Johnny Trudell Orchestra, sitting in with popular Mitten State acts like <a href="spotify:artist:02HWgoL7gYSPcVlNjrJWRb">Thornetta Davis</a> and the Reefermen, headlining at clubs across the country, opening shows for <a href="spotify:artist:5xLSa7l4IV1gsQfhAMvl0U">B.B. King</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2ODUxmFxJSyvGiimNhMHbO">Johnny Winter</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2lxX1ivRYp26soIavdG9bX">the Yardbirds</a>, and many others, and leading the Detroit Lions Pep Band. In 2005, Al-Saadi released his first solo album, Long Time Coming, followed in 2008 by In the Round. 2013 saw the release of Real, a live-in-the-studio set with Al-Saadi backed by a band of legendary studio players, including <a href="spotify:artist:7iofSqO1VWjI5zxIh21vOQ">Jimmy Vivino</a> on rhythm guitar, <a href="spotify:artist:4JaWVEDKP7JzDNgr91dgva">Leland Sklar</a> on bass, <a href="spotify:artist:3aztJCXxqYQyBPRbjPmXq2">Jim Keltner</a> on drums, and <a href="spotify:artist:72ktMty33X1LsIzHdRr0U5">Tom Scott</a> on sax. In March 2016, Al-Saadi was chosen to be a contestant on the popular musical competition series The Voice, and after impressing the judges with a strong version of <a href="spotify:artist:3KGQvnOoqUHi3KxKQMZtXr">the Box Tops</a>' "The Letter," <a href="spotify:artist:1UTPBmNbXNTittyMJrNkvw">Blake Shelton</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:4bYPcJP5jwMhSivRcqie2n">Adam Levine</a> both turned their chairs for his performance. Al-Saadi chose <a href="spotify:artist:4bYPcJP5jwMhSivRcqie2n">Levine</a> to be his coach, and his version of "The Letter" was quickly made available as a digital single. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi