Laith Al-Saadi

Last updated

Laith Al-Saadi
Born1977 (age 47–48)
Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • songwriter
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
Years active1992–present
Website laithalsaadi.com

Laith Al-Saadi is an American musician from Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Contents

Al-Saadi gained nationwide recognition after he won a spot in the 2016 finale of the musical competition series The Voice . [1]

Early life and education

Laith Al-Saadi first learned to sing with the Boys' Choir of Ann Arbor when he was four years old, and then started playing the guitar at age 13. [2] His father is from Baqubah, Iraq and his mother is from Beverly Shores, Indiana. [3] As a student of Ann Arbor's Community High School, he played in the school's jazz band. [1]

Al-Saadi attended the University of Michigan and received a degree in jazz guitar and bass. [2]

Career

In 1992, Al-Saadi joined a local blues band called Blue Vinyl. [2] The group was successful enough to tour the Netherlands, and landed gigs opening for Buddy Guy, Son Seals, Luther Allison, and Taj Mahal. [1] In 2005, Al-Saadi released his first solo album, Long Time Coming. In 2006, Al-Saadi was named "King of the Blues" for the Northern United States by Guitar Center, "making him one of top four blues guitarists in the country". [2] In 2008, Al-Saadi released In the Round. 2013 saw the release of Real, a live-in-the-studio set with Al-Saadi backed by a band including Jimmy Vivino on rhythm guitar, Leland Sklar on bass, Jim Keltner on drums, and Tom Scott on sax. In March 2016, Al-Saadi was chosen to be a contestant on the musical competition series The Voice and gained nationwide recognition after he made it to the finale. [4]

In May 2016, two of Al-Saadi's songs from the album The Complete Season 10 Collection (The Voice Performance) made it to Billboard's Hot Rock Songs chart; "Born Under a Bad Sign" at #50 and "We've Got Tonight" at #22. [5] [6]

In 2019, Al-Saadi played new acoustic solo shows. [7] In 2020, Al-Saadi won the award for "Best Blues Instrumentalist" at the Detroit Music Awards. [8] He released the album Don't You Give Up on Me in 2024. [9]

Discography

Studio albums

References

  1. 1 2 3 Deming, Mark. "Laith Al-Saadi". AllMusic. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 ""King of the Blues" at Windsor Hall Sept. 12". Cumberland Times News. September 4, 2009. p. 13. Retrieved September 23, 2025.
  3. ↑ Klima, Jeff (March 8, 2017). "Laith Al-Saadi, The Voice finalist from Ann Arbor plays Toledo". Toledo City Paper. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  4. ↑ Parker, Chris (July 12, 2017). "How Laith Al-Saadi's 15 minutes is propelling his career". Metro Times. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  5. ↑ "Hot Rock Songs" (PDF). Billboard (magazine) . May 7, 2016. p. 66. Retrieved September 23, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Hot Rock Songs" (PDF). Billboard (magazine) . May 28, 2016. p. 74. Retrieved September 23, 2025.
  7. ↑ Sinkevics, John (December 20, 2019). "I Let It Come To Me and Pour Out". Traverse City Record-Eagle. p. 9. Retrieved September 23, 2025.
  8. ↑ Fair, David (April 20, 2020). "Ann Arbor's Laith Al-Saadi Wins Detroit Music Award And Celebrates 4/20". WEMU. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  9. ↑ Manning, Craig (March 23, 2024). "NMC Audio Tech Program Plots Fundraiser Concert". The Ticker. Retrieved September 24, 2025.
  10. ↑ Milo, Jeff (October 30, 2017). ""Music of Extreme Self-Expression" Interview w/ Laith Al-Saadi". Current. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
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