Eddie Bullen & the Sounds of Black Excellence

As a society, we are in a period of reflection, holding important and long awaited conversations about racial inequity. While highlighting systemic issues is incredibly important, it is of equal importance to celebrate the achievements and contributions of members of marginalized communities. Embodying the true meaning of Black excellence, Juno Award-winning jazz pianist and producer Eddie Bullen is sharing his story.

Born in Grenada, Bullen grew up surrounded by music. His father, a musician and owner of a music store, ensured that musical instruments were a constant presence in his life.

“I sort of had no choice in the matter, because my Dad was a musician,” Bullen says. “I grew up with organs, pianos, guitars, drum sets; that was always in my life.”

Although music was always around him, Bullen only began taking it seriously at the age of thirteen. The turning point came when his father sold an organ to his school.

“At lunch period, I would go and play a couple of the songs I knew,” he recalls. “They were popular calypso songs, and all my friends thought I was the greatest thing.”

Like many young musicians, Bullen was inspired by the artists he heard at home. His father introduced him to jazz legends such as Oscar Peterson and Charlie Parker, while growing up in the Caribbean exposed him to calypso greats including The Mighty Sparrow and Bob Marley. Although calypso played a significant role in his life, jazz was always at its centre.

“Jazz was the thing that was spoken about around the dinner table,” Bullen says.

His musical education expanded even further thanks to a friend who returned to Grenada from the United States with hundreds of jazz records.

“He said to me, ‘you can have any album,’” Bullen recalls. “On a weekly basis, I would take six or seven albums home. I just got to know all these different artists.”

Bullen’s father remained one of his greatest supporters. Whenever customers visited the family music store, he would often ask his son to perform.

“Go play a song and show them what can happen if their child practices,” he would say.

That encouragement helped lay the foundation for a career that would eventually span decades. Bullen landed his first producing job at just nineteen years old after being flown to Barbados to work on a recording project.

“For somebody to believe in me and fly me to Barbados to produce their record, that was the genesis of me really becoming a producer,” he says.

Throughout his life, Bullen has described music as his “saviour.” While his father was loving and supportive, he was also strict, and music became both a creative outlet and a source of freedom.

“Everything revolved around my Dad,” Bullen says. “I couldn’t go to parties, I couldn’t hang out with my friends, so music was one of the only things that kept me sane.”

Today, Bullen has passed that love of music on to his two sons. Like his father before him, he enrolled them in lessons and encouraged them to develop their talents. At the same time, he learned from his own experience growing up just how important balance was.

“You do have to be careful, as a parent, when you’re pushing your child to do something,” he says. “You don’t want to push them to the point where they hate it.”

Like many Black artists, Bullen has faced his share of racism throughout his career. One of the most memorable examples occurred when he struggled to gain the attention of a radio station that dismissed him because of his ethnic background.

Determined to have his music heard, Bullen organized and financed a concert himself. When the station remained hesitant, he hired a white publicist to contact them. Only then did they agree to participate.

The concert ultimately changed everything. Bullen invited several prominent friends, including Salome Bey and Eric Mercury, to attend. Seeing respected figures in the audience altered the station’s perception of him.

“We became great friends and remain friends to this day,” he says. “But what I had to do in order to get there, I could never have just handed them my CD and asked them to play it.”

Despite the challenges he has faced, Bullen continues to advocate for the next generation of musicians. His advice is simple: understand both the art and the business.

“You really need to understand the nature of the business and try to align yourself with people who are like-minded and people who can bring you forward,” he says.

With decades of experience behind him and no signs of slowing down, Bullen continues to inspire audiences and aspiring musicians alike.