He’s arguably one of the most underrated R&B singers in the industry. He didn’t play instruments growing up. He didn’t take hours of private lessons to practice his vocals. Eric Bellinger recently gave our TapSongz the inside scoop on how he got into music, what his goals were for his brand new mixtape “Choose Up Season” and when to expect his new album!
Growing up in Compton, California, Bellinger was crazy about football. He wanted to be the next Barry Sanders, but he was injured while playing in an All-Star game, which forced him to change route. He had always had an interest in music, but it was nothing serious. “My parents would sign me up to sing in church and I would get mad about it,” Bellinger recalls. In high school, he listened to gospel music and was a big fan of R&B, listening to Brandy and Michael Jackson. “I started making music, but I didn’t know about notes, progression of chords or drum patterns. I had no idea,” Bellinger said.
Fast-forward to recent months and Bellinger’s career is filled with potential and opportunity. He released an album “The Rebirth” in February, which received rave reviews. Fans chimed in when reviewing the album claiming he’s “flying under the radar”, an “amazing singer/songwriter” and “reinventing R&B”. The first single from the album samples “Jump” by Kriss Kross and features Problem. The music video by VEVO has accrued nearly 1.5 million views on YouTube. “I needed a radio song. Most of my songs were too R&B and didn’t get put on the radio,” Bellinger said. “The majority of my music is at 60 BPM’s and I needed it at 90 BPM’s. We still wanted a dope concept and I made it very lyrical” he added. The tune has been remixed several times with artists including Trey Songz, French Montana, MA$E, and Jermaine Dupri. “I personally love the Trey Songz remix. It has a different second verse and really sends a message for girls that if they got it, flaunt it,” Bellinger informed our TapSongz Team.
At the beginning of October, Bellinger released a brand new mixtape “Choose Up Season”, consisting of nine tracks with features including The Game, Teeflii, and Pleasure P. “We really wanted to use it [the mixtape] to market my new album. Kanye had music videos projected on buildings to market his project and Jay Z and Beyonce have both done cool things too. I really wanted to tell a story and set up the album,” Bellinger said. He described the message of the mixtape relates to relationships. “When you’re dating someone you’re choosing. Single life is overrated. Enjoy a better life with someone you can share it with.”
Growing up in Compton, California, Bellinger was crazy about football. He wanted to be the next Barry Sanders, but he was injured while playing in an All-Star game, which forced him to change route. He had always had an interest in music, but it was nothing serious. “My parents would sign me up to sing in church and I would get mad about it,” Bellinger recalls. In high school, he listened to gospel music and was a big fan of R&B, listening to Brandy and Michael Jackson. “I started making music, but I didn’t know about notes, progression of chords or drum patterns. I had no idea,” Bellinger said.
Fast-forward to recent months and Bellinger’s career is filled with potential and opportunity. He released an album “The Rebirth” in February, which received rave reviews. Fans chimed in when reviewing the album claiming he’s “flying under the radar”, an “amazing singer/songwriter” and “reinventing R&B”. The first single from the album samples “Jump” by Kriss Kross and features Problem. The music video by VEVO has accrued nearly 1.5 million views on YouTube. “I needed a radio song. Most of my songs were too R&B and didn’t get put on the radio,” Bellinger said. “The majority of my music is at 60 BPM’s and I needed it at 90 BPM’s. We still wanted a dope concept and I made it very lyrical” he added. The tune has been remixed several times with artists including Trey Songz, French Montana, MA$E, and Jermaine Dupri. “I personally love the Trey Songz remix. It has a different second verse and really sends a message for girls that if they got it, flaunt it,” Bellinger informed our TapSongz Team.
At the beginning of October, Bellinger released a brand new mixtape “Choose Up Season”, consisting of nine tracks with features including The Game, Teeflii, and Pleasure P. “We really wanted to use it [the mixtape] to market my new album. Kanye had music videos projected on buildings to market his project and Jay Z and Beyonce have both done cool things too. I really wanted to tell a story and set up the album,” Bellinger said. He described the message of the mixtape relates to relationships. “When you’re dating someone you’re choosing. Single life is overrated. Enjoy a better life with someone you can share it with.”
The mixtape has already received a great amount of attention and can be found in the SoundCloud link below! The project was designed to set up his new album “Cuffing Season”, where Bellinger says you need to “choose up before you cuff up.” The album is 99% done and he expects to release the final product at the beginning of 2015, potentially around Valentine’s Day.
So far in his career, Bellinger has enjoyed touring across the United States and giving fans what they hope for in live performances. “My favorite place to tour right now is Arizona. They are crazy energetic at shows and I love performing there,” Bellinger said. While he has had the opportunity to meet dozens of talented artists, Eric still says his favorite artist that he has met is Usher. “I grew up listening to him. It’s so dope to work with him and he looked at me as a little brother,” Bellinger said.
Moving forward Eric Bellinger has some fairly simple goals: for more people to hear his music. “People hear my music and say I’m only a songwriter, but once they hear it they become a believer. I’m not in a rush for success and I’m just building one step at a time. I want people to genuinely love my music,” Bellinger said. We encourage all of our viewers to download Bellinger’s mixtape “Choose Up Season” and be on the lookout for his upcoming album “Cuffing Season” at the start of 2015! Here at TapSongz, we hope you have enjoyed this feature article as we continue finding tomorrow’s greatest music today!
So far in his career, Bellinger has enjoyed touring across the United States and giving fans what they hope for in live performances. “My favorite place to tour right now is Arizona. They are crazy energetic at shows and I love performing there,” Bellinger said. While he has had the opportunity to meet dozens of talented artists, Eric still says his favorite artist that he has met is Usher. “I grew up listening to him. It’s so dope to work with him and he looked at me as a little brother,” Bellinger said.
Moving forward Eric Bellinger has some fairly simple goals: for more people to hear his music. “People hear my music and say I’m only a songwriter, but once they hear it they become a believer. I’m not in a rush for success and I’m just building one step at a time. I want people to genuinely love my music,” Bellinger said. We encourage all of our viewers to download Bellinger’s mixtape “Choose Up Season” and be on the lookout for his upcoming album “Cuffing Season” at the start of 2015! Here at TapSongz, we hope you have enjoyed this feature article as we continue finding tomorrow’s greatest music today!