Rising Stars: Meet Rob: Earth-One

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rob: Earth-One.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1993 and moved to Raeford, NC at the age of 6. Raeford is a small town, just outside of Fayetteville. It wasn’t until I finished high school that I really began to branch out of that town and create connections elsewhere.

A lot of people don’t know this about me, but from the ages of 12-14, I was the main keyboard player at the church my family attended at the time. While it gave me an idea of what the touring experience would be like, I knew that it wasn’t the path I wanted to choose. Being a kid at the time, I really had no say in the matter, until my family just decided to stop attending that church altogether. I do not miss those days, to be honest.

I started writing my own music around the age of 14. I was regularly recording music around the age of 16. My whole high school career revolved around music and making music; I did not care about much else, to be honest. At graduation, everyone let their collegiate aspirations be known, but when my name was called to walk across that stage, the guidance counselor, Mrs. McMillan announced my name, followed by “and he will be making music forever.” That’s it.

That’s all. I wrote that down for her to say, that day. I wanted people (and my family, who were in attendance) to know that I was very serious about this. I took about a year off between high school and college (I used that time to focus entirely on making music; getting better at my craft). I dropped countless freestyles, a couple of mixtapes, and even learned guitar!

In the Fall of 2013, I enrolled at the Queen’s University of Charlotte, where I majored in History (yes, I got my degree). I chose a school in a city like Charlotte because I felt it would be one of the best places to get my professional music career started. During that first semester, school really just became me playing and making music, day in and day out. I got okay grades and all that, but my focus was clearly elsewhere.

While attending Queens University, I met now-labelmate and business partner, Malcolm Chester, who is also a classically-trained painter & visual artist. By this point, it had been about a year since I enrolled at the University. There would be mutual friends of ours who come up to tell us that we should make music together, but we didn’t actually know each other or hang out.

I may have had one or two conversations with Malcolm on the basketball court, but when we found out we were from the same area (Raeford/Fayetteville), we didn’t want to hang with each other like we were the best of buds. I don’t know why that was a thing! A little later on in 2014, I ran into one of his roommates at a track party (pun intended). The party got busted, so everyone went to hide in this bedroom in the house.

I just so happened to end up standing beside Malcolm’s roommate, Devin. The room was super crowded and everyone was panicking, but Dev realized I was standing by him and went, “You’re Rob, right? Don’t you make music? You should make music with my roommate, Malcolm. Here, take my number.” Devin listened to all of my music with Malcolm and that’s when I get a message from Malcolm saying “hey, bro… do you wanna chill and listen to some music?” We later realized that we had used some of the same beats!

That’s when we realized that we should be working together. From that point on, our focus was solely on making music, both solo and as a duo. On-campus, we quickly became known for our music. We decided to take our aspirations further and created a group name, (which would later become a collective & label), The Social Contract.

We’d soon add fellow Fayetteville artist, Miko X & his group at the time, The Natural Selectaz. Miko was a great addition and I still enjoy his music as much as I did when I first met him. By the end of 2016, The Social Contract was equipped with a producer (Mike Lightz), a lady talent (Aliyah Loca).

And a photographer (FULTONBRAND, who now also performs as Tego Blue), and another fantastic graphic artist (Sunsh*t). From 2017 to 2020, we’d perform all over North Carolina. In Spring/Summer 2021, we were given the opportunity to tour the East, which we took! We’re now being booked left and right!

We now own an industry-standard studio in Fayetteville, which serves as our official headquarters.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
The road has not been 100% smooth, but it hasn’t been 100% rocky either. There were definitely learning experiences along the way.

One of the struggles earlier on was figuring out how to monetize the music I spent so much time making. Once we started getting merch made and booking shows, I saw the bigger picture; this is actually my career.

We’ve found a lot of success branching out and partnering with other businesses, as well.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I have an affinity for a lot of different genres, but the majority of my fans know me for Hip-Hop/Rap.

All of my solo projects are very special to me and they represent very pivotal points in my life, but my most recent project, ‘Human Error’ (2020) is the album I used to imagine making when I was a kid. I grew up a huge Kanye West fan and his influence has always been apparent in my music. I’m also a Kid Cudi stan, and that influence is also very prevalent.

I think the thing that sets me apart from others is my willingness to explore new things, sonically. I also grew up a huge pop-punk/alternative rock/screamo fan and I like to harness those influences from time to time. I’m not afraid to do a straight-up Rap song and then a Power-Pop bop right after (which I’ve done before).

I want all of my influences to be heard. Mixing these aspects with Hip-Hop & R&B can be amazing when done correctly. These sounds are what made me the artist I am and I’m always very eager to share what I create.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Making and sharing my music, but also enjoy other artists’ work.

Art is meant to be experienced, first and foremost. That is the main goal. We want to express ourselves and share what we created while doing so. I love discovering new artists, independent and major.

If I like your music, I’m gonna go scream it from the rooftops until other people notice. I’m a fan of music!

Contact Info:

• Email: robearthone@gmail.com
• Website: https://www.thesocialcontractmusic.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rob_earth_one/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RobEarthOne/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/RobEarthOne
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/HIujJqA3xm8
• Other: https://thesocialcontract.bandzoogle.com/home

Image Credits
FULTONBRAND