Eric Roberson
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Eric Roberson is an American singer, songwriter, former rapper and music producer. He is sometimes referred to simply as Erro, the name which he later used as part of his label Blue Erro Soul. His first single, "Represent", was released through Warner Bros. Records in 1994 and he recorded an album for that label which remains unreleased.[1]
Career
Raised in Rahway, New Jersey, Roberson attended Rahway High School.[2]
He subsequently returned to Howard University to complete his studies in Musical Theatre.[1][3] After performing in a number of musicals and plays, he landed a songwriting deal through the EMI label, and went on to collaborate with Philadelphia-based artists such as Jill Scott, Musiq Soulchild, and most extensively, DJ Jazzy Jeff.[3][4]
As a member of Jeff's A Touch of Jazz production company, Roberson made contributions to Jeff's debut album, The Magnificent in 2002. He continued songwriting work as well as releasing his own material through his Blue Erro Soul imprint.[3] He also appeared on DJ Spinna's Intergalactic Soul LP in 2006.
Roberson was nominated for two Grammys in the Best Urban/Alternative Performance category.[1] He was nominated for two songs from his 2009 album Music Fan First- "A Tale of Two" in 2010 and "Still" in the same category a year later.[1]
In 2013, he was a member of the band, United Tenors[5] together with Dave Hollister, Fred Hammond and Brian Courtney Wilson.
Roberson's 2014 album, The Box, peaked at #8 on the Billboard Top R&B Albums.[6] It was on the chart for 3 weeks. The album reached #104 on the Billboard 200.[7] The album cover and promotional material featured speakers by BoomCase. [8][9]
Roberson's "I Have A Song" was chosen to be the fundraising single, produced by Jak Beula and released in February 2016, to enable the permanent installation of the first dedicated Commonwealth war memorial in the UK to African and Caribbean service men and women of both World Wars.[10]
In 2024, Roberson signed with the Universal Music Group distributed label SoNo Recording Group. His first release for the label is the Jeff Lorber featured "Every Kinda People",[11] a cover of the 1978 Robert Palmer single.
Studio albums
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US [12] |
US R&B [13] | ||
| 2001 | The Esoteric Movement
|
– | – |
| 2003 | The Vault, Vol. 1
|
– | – |
| 2004 | The Vault, Vol. 1.5
|
– | – |
| 2005 | The Appetizer
|
– | – |
| 2007 | ...Left
|
– | – |
| 2009 | Music Fan First
|
– | 89 |
| 2011 | Mister Nice Guy
|
- | 85 |
| 2012 | Eric Roberson Prestons When Loves Calls
|
98 | 14 |
| 2013 | United Tenors (with Fred Hammond, Dave Hollister, Brian Courtney Wilson)
|
39 | – |
| 2014 | B-Sides, Features & Heartaches
|
– | 45 |
| 2014 | The Box
|
104 | 19 |
| 2016 | Tigallerro (with Phonte)
|
– | 19 |
| 2017 | Earth – EP
|
– | – |
| 2017 | Wind – EP
|
– | – |
| 2017 | Fire – EP
|
– | – |
| 2020 | Hear From Here
|
– | – |
| 2022 | Lessons
|
– | – |
Live albums
| Year | Album | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. [12] |
U.S. R&B [13] | |||
| 2006 | Erro Live Vol. DC
|
– | – | |
Selected discography
- 112 – Room 112 (1998), "Funny Feelings" (writer)
- Wild Wild West (1999), Tra-Knox "Lucky Day" (writer), Kel Spencer featuring Richie Sambora "I'm Wanted" (background vocals), Neutral "Chocolate Form" (writer)
- Gina Thompson – If You Only Knew (1999), "Ya Di Ya" (writer), "Take My Number Down" (writer, background vocals)
- Will Smith – Willennium (1999), "I'm Comin'" (vocal production)
- Jill Scott – Who Is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 1 (2000), "Getting In The Way" (background vocals)
- Musiq Soulchild – Aijuswanaseing (2000), "Mary Go Round" (writer, vocal arrangements)
- Will Downing – All the Man You Need (2000), "Thinkin' About You" (writer, background vocals)
- Case – Open Letter (2001), "Driving" (writer, background vocals), "Love Of My Life" (writer), "Wishful Thinking" (writer)
- Vivian Green – A Love Story (2002), "What Is Love?" (writer, background vocals), "Emotional Rollercoaster" (writer, background vocals), "Ain't Nothing But Love" (writer, background vocals)
- Musiq Soulchild – Juslisen (2002), "Previouscats" (writer, background vocals)
- Cam'ron – Come Home with Me (2002), "Tomorrow" (writer, uncredited background vocals)
- Dwele – Subject (2003), "Hold On" (writer, background vocals, vocal production)
- Carl Thomas – Let's Talk About It (2004), "Rebound" (writer, producer)
- Charlie Wilson – Charlie, Last Name Wilson (2005), "Thru It All" (writer)
- Phonte – Charity Starts at Home (2011), "Who Loves You More" (vocals)
- The Foreign Exchange – Love in Flying Colors (2013), "Better" (vocals)
- Robert Glasper – Black Radio 2 (2013), "Big Girl Body" (vocals)
- Algebra Blessett – Recovery (2014), "Mystery" (writer)
- Lil' John Roberts – The Heartbeat[14] (2014), "Space" (vocals)
- AverySunshine – Twenty Sixty Four (2017), "Heaven Is Right Here" (writer), "Twenty Sixty Four" (writer)
- Phonte – No News Is Good News (2018), "Find That Love Again" (vocals)
- Brandon Williams – The Love Factor (2019) "Don't Give Up on Love" (vocals)
- Zo! – FourFront (2019) – "Love Up" (vocals)
- Nao Yoshioka – Undeniable (2019) – "Invest in Me feat. Carolyn Malachi" (producer)
Compilations
- "Couldn't Hear Me" appears on the compilation Gilles Peterson Worldwide Exclusives 3 (2004) Talking Loud.
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Artist/work | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | SoulTracks Readers' Choice Awards | The Appetizer | Album of the Year | Won | [15] |
| Eric Roberson | Male Vocalist of the Year | Won | |||
| 2007 | BET Awards | BET Cool Like That Award | Nominated | ||
| 2007 | SoulTracks Readers' Choice Awards | Left | Album of the Year | Nominated | [16] |
| "Pretty Girl" | Song of the Year | Nominated | |||
| Eric Roberson | Male Vocalist of the Year | Nominated | |||
| 2009 | Soul Train Music Awards | CENTRIC Award | Nominated | ||
| 2009 | SoulTracks Readers' Choice Awards | Music Fan First | Album of the Year | Won | [17] |
| "Dealing" with Lalah Hathaway | Song of the Year | Won | |||
| "The Power that Kisses Hold" | Nominated | ||||
| Eric Roberson | Male Vocalist of the Year | Won | |||
| 2010 | Grammy Awards | "A Tale of Two" feat. Ben O'Neill & Michelle Thompson | Best Urban/Alternative Performance | Nominated | |
| 2011 | "Still" | Nominated | |||
| 2012 | SoulTracks Readers' Choice Awards | Mr. Nice Guy | Album of the Year | Nominated | [18] |
| "At the Same Time" | Song of the Year | Nominated | |||
| Eric Roberson | Male Vocalist of the Year | Nominated | |||
| 2014 | The Box | Album of the Year | Nominated | [19] | |
| "Mark on Me" | Song of the Year | Nominated | |||
| Eric Roberson | Male Vocalist of the Year | Nominated | |||
| 2017 | Wind | Album of the Year | Nominated | [20] | |
| Eric Roberson | Male Vocalist of the Year | Nominated | |||
| 2021 | "Lessons" | Song of the Year | Won | [21] | |
| 2022 | Pop Awards | Nominated | [22] | ||
| SoulTracks Readers' Choice Awards | Lessons | Album of the Year | Won | [23] | |
| Eric Roberson | Male Vocalist of the Year | Won |
References
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- ↑ a b c d Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Russell, Suzanne C. "Man on a Mission; Rahway teacher wants everyone to know about the city's black men and women", Home News Tribune, June 8, 2007. Accessed May 24, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "This year, the mural includes Tomi Jenkins, a singer with the group Cameo, a friend of Akbar's father, and Eric Roberson, a former Rahway football player who is a singer songwriter and has written songs for Mariah Carey and other top R&B singers."
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- ↑ "I Have A Song", African & Caribbean Memorial.
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- "United Tenors": Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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- ↑ "The Heartbeat — Lil' John Roberts" at iTunes.
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External links
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- Official website
- Eric Roberson UK Vibe Interview by Michael "The Dood" Edwards, 2011
- Eric Roberson interview by Pete Lewis, Blues & Soul, September 2011
- Eric Roberson interview by Pete Lewis, Blues & Soul, September 2009
- Eric Roberson audio interview on HoneySoul.com
- Eric Roberson interview by Pete Lewis, Blues & Soul, June 2008
- Eric Roberson: ThaFormula.Com – Interview
- Interview