Notes From Another Planet: How Jacob Collier Is Building His Own Musical Universe

You can’t box Jacob Collier.

Since bursting his way onto the scene in the early 2010s, this celebrated English singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist has captivated millions of listeners with his unique and genre-bending approach to music — perfectly paired with his signature exuberant disposition as he shared his craft with the rest of the world.

Though many had tried to narrow down his musical sensibilities, it has only spawned widespread discussion, debates, and discourse that have never proven a singular label or category wherein one could shoehorn this musical virtuoso into. 

Now, at the mere age of thirty years old, Collier has gone on to release five critically acclaimed records, earning an impressive total of seven Grammys (out of fifteen nominations!), alongside heaps of praise from several of the music industry’s biggest names, and even a memorable co-sign from the late (and great) Quincy Jones.  

Yet despite all the fame, adoration, and acclaim that have been accumulating over the years, what fundamentally remains of interest to Collier is being in touch with music. Because, as he tells me, there lies an endless set of possibilities that such harmonies leave for exploration.

“I have [always] loved that process of learning music over the years, and I still find myself loving that same process of learning it,” he tells Billboard Philippines. “And even with the more I learn about music, the more infinite it genuinely feels to me, you know?”

As I chat with Collier via Zoom, we find ourselves on opposite ends of the world, with him being located at his family home in North London. While he tells me all about how his surroundings have served as the setting for his musical journey growing up, there’s an underlying sense of excitement that’s building up throughout our conversation, given just how much the art form has been ingrained in his life over the years.

Having been raised in a household where music was almost inescapable, Collier reflects on how much the craft has affected his life in a myriad of ways. “One of the main things I think that music has changed for me was really my relationship with myself. Because of my fascination with it, I started out making these self-made videos at home, in my room, and even just around this corner,” he points out to his backdrop. “And that was what felt like a very important process for me.”

Eventually, that process resulted in the birth of several viral videos, which in turn inspired his debut album, aptly titled In My Room. “I made that record by myself, and I was completely alone. But I also wanted to really make a world of my own — taking on the role of being a world builder and to show people the way I saw the world,” the English musician mentions. 

Through establishing a world of his own, Collier eventually found a way to connect with an entire network of artists, fans, and listeners who began to dabble in his artistry. And as his music began to evolve, so did his reach to other parts of the world. “I think the idea that I’ve really learned and fallen in love with over the years is that in music, you’re never truly alone,” he continues. 

“You realize that you’re always working with other people in some way — whether they are inspiring you, or they’re teaching you, or you’re collaborating with them, or you’re teaching them. So, I think I’ve really fallen in love with people.”

His expansive, four-volume, 50-track album series Djesse serves as the ultimate testament of that fact, given just how many people have been involved in the production of these albums. It’s “a labor of love”, as Collier describes it — given how expansive the nature of each record is, both in content and scope. 

“The Djesse series has incorporated so many people from every continent of the world, with over 100 different collaborators from all walks of life — whether it be orchestras, choirs, rock stars, and pop stars. It’s all these different kinds of people, and I’ve learned so much from witnessing other people do their work,” he proudly proclaims.

Whether it’s with artists like Coldplay’s Chris Martin, John Legend, Tori Kelly, John Mayer, Daniel Caesar, Lizzy McAlpine, Shawn Mendes, Ty Dolla $ign, or even the K-pop quartet aespa, Collier has seamlessly woven his musical talents within their respective sounds. Beyond giving him the chance to learn from each of their distinct and global approaches to music, such prolific collaborations had also posed a broader challenge for the virtuoso to navigate the differences in their genres with an open mind.

“All these people I was making things with were so inspiring, and there were always new things to discover,” he points out. “And so I really enjoyed being in those rooms and positions where I had to think on my feet.”

Though the final entry in the series, Djesse Vol. 4, was released to universal acclaim (even bagging an Album of the Year nomination at the 2025 Grammy Awards), Collier opens up about his struggles in finalizing the record to his intended vision. 

“I needed a singular thesis to be like, ‘Okay, what’s this for?’ And all three prior volumes had clear ideas behind them. Volume One was orchestral, and Volume Two was more acoustic. Volume Three was more electronic and experimental, while Volume Four was always like a big question mark of its own — and it was hard to finish because it was just such a big idea,” he confesses.

“The idea was to have the whole world, and all these people, genres, and ideas to be a part of one album was just so ambitious. So it took a while for me to distill the album,” adds Collier. “But in 2022, the thing that really did it for me was falling in love with the audience choir at all my live shows, and that’s where it exploded for me. In my imagination, it was like there was this big door that suddenly unlocked for me.”

Adding further, he expounds, “It made me realize that, oh, this is endless. This is a huge language of its own, yet it’s also quite exciting and really human. So once I experienced that feeling, I knew exactly what the album was going to be about. Which is all about the feeling of being uncontainable — with all this life, energy, and variety that needed to live within the album.”

“That was my thesis in the end for it. And though it took a while to find that, I’m so, so proud of the album. I’m just proud that I finished it, because it feels really joyous now as I get to tour it,” he states. 

Given that Collier has recently begun his world tour in support of the record, there lies a special thrill that he aims to chase in each show set to take place throughout the rest of the year. It’s become known that over his last few tours, the musical prodigy has incorporated elements of spontaneity and real-time improvisation in every audience interaction he’s had — especially with how he’s conducted several audience choirs in various parts of the globe.

“I’ll be going to some really special places in the world, like Manila, which is so close to my heart. It’s such a magical place to make music. And I’m just excited to get to bring the songs from Volume 4 into these places and discover how each of these different cities gets to connect with it, you know?” he points out.

“For me, it’ll be different because music feels like a really safe place to be unpredictable,” Collier says with a laugh. “That’s why I love that audiences are very unpredictable. Like, you can’t practice the audience at home at all. Though you can imagine it, until you get on that stage, there’s no substitute for that feeling because you have to be in the moment, and that moment requires me to be present and to be fearless. Because, should the plan change, you just have to flow with it.”

Such an approach has allowed him to nurture deeper connections with his audience, making each show he has performed a unique experience of its own. However, that isn’t a mere coincidence, given that it’s something he acts upon with intentions: “I’ve always cared about trying to create experiences for people. Whether it’s on the stage, through my albums, or even through conversations like this, I want people to feel like they can feel safe within the world that I build for them. And with these experiences, I want them to feel like we could go anywhere, and that we’re free.”

Collier continues, “I think the world really needs a sense of that freedom right now. Because with the unpredictability of it all, there’s a whole rush and a whole thrill to it. It opens so many doors for so many of us — which is why I think music is limitless.”

Yet upon the conclusion of his world tour, the beloved multi-instrumentalist still hopes to utilize that limitless freedom as he embarks onto new ventures in his career. As it is, there are already a near-infinite number of ideas that are racing through his head, some of which Collier giddily shares with me over our call. “There are certain spaces that I’m really excited to step into, such as an orchestra, Broadway, and even the world of film. Those are whole new things for me!” he exclaims. 

For a brief moment, he steps out of frame to grab something offscreen for a second or two, before presenting me with a five-string guitar that he’s crafted himself. “I made this five-string guitar just a couple of days ago,” he says, beaming with pride. “It just has five strings, and it’s the one I’ll be playing on tour because it has a really distinct kind of language. I’d love to make a little album of songs on the guitar [using this], and perhaps even a piano album too.”

Despite everything that he’s envisioned for himself, Collier isn’t closing the door on whatever fate leaves by his bedside. He recognizes that for creative spirits like himself, the sky is merely the limit to whatever he puts his mind to– yet the restlessness of his ennui is what fuels him to push the boundaries of what’s possible within the realm of music. 

Still, music isn’t simply an art form for him, but it serves as an emotional language that has allowed him to connect with millions of individuals. “I would say I’m more and more interested in human beings and music — especially music that feels human,” he shares, subtly poking at the rapid rise of artificially generated music. 

“There has never been a more important time to be human, and I think I’ve kind of got a pretty good grasp of how to show that through the technical, structural, scientific, or cerebral aspects of music that I’ve learned early on in my life,” Collier affirms. “I think my relationship with music now is more interested in moving towards something because of a feeling. Like, how do you make feelings? How do you unlock people’s hearts? How do you tell a person a good story? And there are so many ways of doing this that I’ve experienced thus far.”

In the pursuit of finding the answers to these questions, he finds himself intrigued by the difference between what is complicated and what is complex. And though the two words are quite similar in their definitions, Collier makes a philosophical distinction that recognizes the latter as a more meaningful aspect that has several layers to dissect and unravel.

“I’m more curious to make music that feels naturally full, like it’s complex in a natural way rather than complicated in a human-made way — which is why I’ve never really liked music that’s virtuosic just for the sake of compiling a bunch of flashy notes. Because flashy notes can be amazing when they’re done for a reason,” he notes.

Intentionality is everything for Collier, for it is what drives meaning into music as a means of language and communication. “If there’s a thing that these notes are [actually] saying or an emotion that is attached to these notes, that’s what gives it that ‘wow’ factor, almost as if I’m really meant to feel that. And I’ve made a lot of music in my life that has a lot of layers, colors, and all that stuff — and I think my job is similar to the role one has as a painter.”

“You want every color to have a reason to be there, and to fit within all these different levels of the thing. So I think that’s the same approach I have to carry as a musician, especially as I do my best to breathe life into all these songs I get to work on. But now, I’m even more excited to think about how to create those emotional structures,” he adds. “Though wherever those structures and layers are, I’d like to think that I’ll always make crazy, crazy music with tons of stuff going on. It’s just one of those things that I know about myself.”

As Collier and his music continue to evolve, reaching new corners of the globe and ever-expanding hearts, it becomes undeniably clear: his craft was never meant to live within lines, borders, or boxes. To Collier, music isn’t a fixed formula or a destination — it’s a living, breathing language of endless discovery.

In every note he plays, every choir he conducts, and every world he builds from scratch, there’s a clear intention — not just to impress, but to connect. To feel. To remind us that behind the technical mastery and kaleidoscopic harmonies lies something far more powerful: the simple, radical act of being human.

“I think there’s never been a more important time to be alive or to make music,” he tells me with that signature spark. “Because if there’s one thing music can really explain, it’s what it feels like to be alive, right?”

For in the end, Jacob Collier isn’t just building soundscapes — he’s mapping out what’s possible when we dare to follow curiosity over convention, emotion over ego, and imagination over expectation. You can’t box Jacob Collier. And that’s exactly the point.

As we anticipate Jacob Collier’s upcoming return to Manila, revisit Djesse Vol. 4 in its entirety below: