Soul Survivor

Section: Talent

Kimberly A. Hines of Vibe.com

13 years in the game? It's Eric Roberson's turn now.

Within the independent soul music scene, Eric Roberson is the man.

At the start of his 13-year career, the Rahway, New Jersey native ran up against label deals and shelved projects. But these roadblocks didn't discourage him. After a contract with Warner Brothers went south and a 1994 album never dropped, Roberson packed it in to become a songwriter - and a prolific one, whose arsenal of hits includes Vivian Green's uber-successful debut single "Emotional Rollercoaster," Musiq's heartfelt album cut "Previous Cats," and the head-nodder "Hold On" by Dwele.

But in 2001, Erro (as his fans call him) got the bug back. That year, he started releasing his own music on his own label, Blue Erro Soul. Now on his fifth release, he has amassed a loyal following. The singer, songwriter, producer, and businessman has become one of the most successful artists at the forefront of a homegrown, independent soul movement, in which musicians take control of their own destinies. Roberson's latest CD, . . .Left, was recently nominated for BET's "BETJ Cool Like That" Award, putting him alongside luminaries like Gerald Levert, Brian McKnight, Musiq, and Elisabeth Withers, and making him the only independent musician up for a BET Award in any category in the history of the program.

Currently touring to promote ...Left, Erro sat down with VIBE.com to give us some insight into the music, the man and the madness of the industry.

Many are calling Left your best album. How do you feel about that praise?
I treat all my albums like kids so that's like saying of the newest one, "That's the prettiest baby you ever had!" and the other four little kids are sitting there like, "What about me?" But I'm really happy with it. I put everything I had into the album so the reward comes now when people say how much they've been inspired by the music. That feels real good.

You originally started out on a major label way back in the day.
Way back. [laughs]

We won't say what year unless you want to.
Hey, I'm proud of it! Thirteen years in the game. I'm 33 years old and still sexy. Holla back!

Since you've been on both sides of the coin as a major label artist and as an independent artist, what can you say about the pluses and minuses of both?
The pluses of being on a major are that you do have support - when you do get it, that is. You get a lot of marketing and publicity that you'd have to do on your own as an independent artist. But the downfall with a major is that you have to wait for others. You have to wait for your advances or your money. You have to wait for your timeline and when you're gonna be released. And you have to meet the approval of a lot of people who may not be music fans. You may have to sometimes compromise your craft and everything that you are. You may have to compromise you and how'd you like to present yourself.

As far as an independent artist, everything is on you from the ground up. That's the difficult part of being an independent artist is that you do have to wear a lot of different hats. You have to look at yourself more as a label than as an artist. So there'll be times that you have to come out of your pocket and you think, "I'm an artist, I'm not supposed to be paying for nothing." But as a label you have to supply certain things. However, at the same time, the reward is that you can navigate your path easier. You are in control of your destiny and how hard you work, how focused you are, and by the music that you do.

It would seem to me from just a financial standpoint that you get to see money quicker as an independent artist.
What's funny with that is that it ranges on both sides. It all comes down to what deal you make. You could have a guy who's all over the TV and is flat broke. Where in the same light, you may have an unknown independent artist who is actually sitting on something really nice. It just depends on how the situation is set up. By no means am I sitting here saying that Usher is broke. He has by far more money than I probably will ever see. But for the average artist with a video on TV, sometimes it's not always open like that so that's the part that you have to keep an open mind to. You have to be a businessperson on either side, and you have to understand it's the business of music and carry it from that way.

You've written music for a number of artists such as Musiq, Jill Scott, 112, and Vivian Green to name a few. Do you ever wish that you had kept a song for yourself?
No, because the songs of that I've given and the songs that I've kept, if I really want to keep a song, then you're not getting it. And if I let go of a song, I'm very willing to let go of it. So I hold no regrets that way. I've probably said no to more people than people realize. It's more like, "Nah, that song's a little too personal." That's how my whole career as an independent artist started. It would be like, "Man, that's about that fresh breakup I just went through. I can't let this one go." Some songs became open books to my diary, and it's like if I'm gonna get in front of a crowd and have my diary read, let me at least read it for you. If I'm gonna give you everything at least let me present it the way I want to present it. The music got to a point where it was like literally opening up my journal and letting all that pour out.

You were also a part of DJ Jazzy Jeff's A Touch of Jazz production team. What was that experience like?
That was amazing. That was like graduate school for me. I learned so much during that time. It was a time for a lot of development for me, that's the best way to put it. It really helped me stop and become the artist that I desired to be, the songwriter that I desired to be. I learned valuable lessons from a slew of producers, so when it was time for me to take on that field I applied the lessons that I gained. I worked in there for years so it was very good. And Jeff is a very giving and energetic person and talented as the day is long. It was a very fortunate opportunity; he really hooked me up.

I know a number of hip hop heads who don't necessarily fool with R&B but they really dig your music. How do you explain your ability to appeal to those listeners?
A lot of it just comes from the fact that I'm a hip hop fan as well. I was born into hip hop and grew up loving it. The record "Been In Love" on my album is more of a hip hop track than it is a soul or R&B track. I heard a hip hop song inside me just as much as I heard an R&B song. I think they relate to that aspect. The thing about hip hop is that you can sample anything and put anything into it. Don't forget that it's a culture and we're a part of that culture. I don't do hip hop, but at the end of the day I honor it everyday I get in front of the microphone. I'm a big Slick Rick fan and a big Tribe Called Quest fan. They influenced me a great deal and you can hear that in my music.

In addition to the hip hop set, you have a number of fans who are into dance music and got turned on to you through your work with Osunlade and house remixes of some of your songs. How important is it to you to embrace that type of music?
I'm just as open to that. It's about doing music that feels good and doing music that's creative and inspires you to be a better person, or to learn, or to heal, and I'm all for that. So I love house music as well. I was born into that music, too. I'm from New Jersey, so you know house music was and still is real big in those markets. When me and Osunlade get together we never know what may come out. It may be a house song, it may be a soul song, it may be a rock song. So just to think that we went from say "Merry Go Round" for Musiq Soulchild to "Change For Me," a house record. It's wide open, but we are very like-minded when it comes to approaching music. You never know, you might hear me singing a country song one day. It's all about just feeling good. [laughs] I don't know if you're gonna hear a country song anytime soon.

That would be different. You know what I can hear you singing one day? I can definitely hear you singing gospel.
Oh definitely.

Because I hear elements of a lot of gospel training in your background. I'm assuming that you were raised in the church.
Very much so and still being raised and taught in the church. That's a very important part of my development.

You have some very dedicated followers AKA the E.R.F. or Eric Roberson Family. What is it like to have so much love coming your way from people?
It feels good. That's really how this part of my career started. It started from a core base of people asking for more music period. They'd say, "We were inspired by what we heard. Can you give us more?" And I'd say, "OK, well here's another record." So now to think that we actually have created our own website with a forum for the fan base it's great. It's a place where we not only talk about my music but other people's music as well as people's personal problems and we just chime in and have a good old time on the forum. Plus when my schedule gets real tight and I can't keep it up, it's amazing to see they always keep it going even without me. They're the ones who actually carry that torch for me and it's a blessing. It's a great reward in this business.

And the forum that you are referring to is basically the message board on your website?
Yes, EricRobersonMusic.com and it's what we call Planet E.R.F. for the Eric Roberson Family.

Your CDs are exceptional, but your concerts take it to the next level. How did you become such an awesome live performer?
I went to school for musical theatre and I learned a lot during that time. I had amazing theatrical and music teachers. I did theatre all the way through high school and even in junior high school. For me I felt my shows really went to the next point when I accepted the fact that people came for a good time, they came to enjoy themselves and to celebrate, so I celebrate with them. But it's also about being comfortable; I make sure that I'm comfortable first and foremost. I would do a show in a ripped up t-shirt and sneakers if I was comfortable before I get up there with a suit and tie on and be all tight and can't perform.

The performance is what comes out first. Each song tells a story so you have to be that character in that story and make sure that the band is all in cahoots with that as well. If it's a sad song, the bass player should be sad. If it's a happy song, the drummer should be happy. It's as simple as that and just giving the crowd what they want and feeding off of what they give back then giving them more.

I notice that you channel your inner thespian in concert. Would you ever want to do Broadway, stage plays, or anything of that sort?
A lot of my classmates are all doing Broadway or theatre. I love acting but it's not something that's afforded to me right now with my schedule. It's something I would love to do, though. My dream is to have a one-man show where I add all of it in, the music and the acting. It will definitely come in due time.

Can you tell me if your songwriting talents will bless any artists in the near future?
I'm still very open to write for other artists. It really just comes down to time permitting. I really wanted to work on Musiq's new album, and I didn't even know that the album came out. It was like, "I guess I'm not gonna be on that record." But my touring schedule was just so much so I wasn't home to get into the studio. We talked about it all the time but just didn't have the time afforded to us to make it happen. But, yeah, I look forward to cutting some songs for a lot of artists in the near future.

Speaking of other artists, will you be putting out any other artists on Blue Erro Soul, your label?
That is definitely the dream. Right now I'm like the guinea pig of my label. We're still building it. I don't think I'm comfortable enough to put someone else through it yet. But in time as we keep getting stronger and we understand the distribution and marketing more, I think that's the next step. The next step will be saying, we feel good about this record by another artist, let's do it.

To that end, what can we expect next from Eric Roberson?
I'm completely dedicated to going wherever my inspiration takes me. Of course, there's gonna be more music. I just hope that the label and the music continue to grow and inspire more people. I hope to open doors to the theatre side. I hope to make more records for other people. My staff is getting bigger and they're being very helpful by allowing me to focus on music and art more. And as I focus more on art, I create more. So that's the overall goal, to keep creating and allowing the inspiration to come from the page and land right onto the stage without being interrupted or influenced by anything. I'm trying to get out of the way of it and just let it rain down.