print: James Roberson - Interview (July, 2007) | BlackGospel.com, Your Gospel Music Ministry Source!

Interview with
James Roberson
July 2007, BlackGospel.com by Christopher Heron

For some Christians, Gospel music is more than another album…more than a chart-topping release…more than a song in heavy rotation…even more than an expression of faith. For some, Gospel music is a calling to serve God, share one’s faith and save souls, simultaneously. James Roberson is a shining example of this divinely inspired handiwork.

From his adolescent days in the Big D to his current senior pedagogical role at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA), James Roberson has taken his calling to produce, distribute and teach Gospel music as his personal life’s work given to him from the Lord.

In recent years, Roberson has quickly gained stature within the industry for his remarkable and noteworthy achievements as an Independent label executive. But perhaps his finest work has been accomplished in the classroom, as a knowledgeable professor of music, dedicated to teaching the history and fundamental mechanics associated with Gospel music.

BlackGospel.com engaged Mr. Roberson into a dialogue about his experiences as the president of JDI Records, his special Gospel music program in California and his personal views on the purpose and power of Gospel music. His perspectives revealed a very purpose-driven man with a refreshing point of view on what Gospel music can mean in the lives of artists and fans.

Christopher Heron: Mr. Roberson, I’d like to talk about your love and affinity for Gospel music that spans over most of your life. What is your earliest recollection of Gospel music, as an adolescent or teenager? And when did Gospel music become an undeniable calling upon your life.

James Roberson: My first recollection of Gospel music started at my church - Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church, in Dallas as an adolescent. We had a wonderful music department and I learned so much from watching the great singers and musicians at my church and just soaking in their innate musicality. I knew then, as a young child, that gospel music was my life calling!

CH: Your involvement within the Gospel music industry is best known as a record executive and founder for the successful Independent label – JDI Records. How exactly did your dream to launch a record for the UCLA Mass Choir expand into a full blown record company?

JR: I always knew I wanted to have my own Gospel record company, so I got a job at Capital Records to learn about the business side of running a record label. After Capital, I then went to business school at UCLA to further my preparation; then God, with his great sense of humor, told me to start JDI Records when I was head over heels in student loan debt and with only $7 in my bank account. He told me to call it JDI Records for Just Do It Records ("Step out on faith and Just Do It!" is our motto) because it was surely a test of my faith to start a record company under these circumstances, but God showed up and showed out. JDI quickly became the fastest growing record company in the world! To God be the glory!

CH: Surprisingly, your best work may be manifested in your role as a scholar and administrator at UCLA. Please share with us your various responsibilities at UCLA and your special Summer Session program that has a specialization in Gospel music. What is this program designed to do? And who will most benefit from the Summer Session?

JR: I have been teaching at UCLA for over a decade in the music department and I just love it! I have some wonderfully talented students and my colleagues and my department chair, Dr. Jacqueline Dje Dje, are the best and are great supporters! I teach a large choral performance class called Music of African Americans and I focus on Gospel music repertoire. For the summer session, I am proud to be a part of the World Music Institute.

Once again, I’m teaching gospel music and other African-American music forms to primarily high schools students, although all ages are welcome. Our goal is to sharpen their musical skills, hone their professional presentation, and to get them in a college environment so that they can see that they too can thrive in academic settings like UCLA. It is a very strenuous and intensive training. And although it's a lot of work, everyone loves it after they catch their breath!

CH: You currently direct the UCLA Mass Choir. You also established Rebuild/Rejoice (an African-American/Korean Youth Chorale). It’s apparent that music is an innate part of who you are. It’s also obvious you believe in the redeeming quality and power of Gospel music. So my question is what exactly is your personal mission in the songwriting, producing and presenting of Gospel music through your various capacities?

JR: My personal mission for Gospel music is to share this great music of hope and restoration with the world in any forum I can. There are some wonderful forms of music to listen to and enjoy but Gospel music is especially powerful because it has the ability to change your life and life situations. It carried the dreams and hopes of African slaves, uprooted from their homeland and families, and helped them to deal with the hardships and adversities of a life of oppression so surely, it can help us deal with the setbacks and challenges in our modern-day lives of convenience.

CH: And finally Mr. Roberson, what is your hope and prayer for students and emerging talents in America and around the world who are inclined to play and represent the Gospel through music. Is there any words of wisdom you would offer to the next generation of musicians, vocalists and ministers of music?

JR: They need to know that Gospel music is ministry first and then a profession second, very important! Why is this important? Because if you know that it is ministry first, you won't let the temporary setbacks of life stop you from ministering. If the limo that the church promised to send to the airport for you doesn't show up don't get a bad attitude, take a taxi to the church and go minister. If you feel snubbed because you haven’t received a Stellar or Grammy Award nomination, remember that God gave you use of His gift of music for you to minister to the wounded, not to garner awards. Certainly be grateful if someone decides to recognize you with an award but also know that ministry has nothing to do with awards and accolades.

In fact, ministry has nothing to do even with convenience. Ministry is about pressing on, in spite of…pressing toward the mark of the high calling in Jesus Christ. I am always amazed by people who say they are called to ministry but get so easily deterred and discouraged by things that have absolutely nothing to do with ministry. If you know that there is a calling on your life to minister through music, step out on faith and Just Do It!

Lastly, as a college professor, it is my job to teach Gospel music from a musical point of view and not a religious point of view so, my primary goal for my students is for them to learn and embrace all forms of music - afrocentric music, classical, world music, etc - so that when they get out of school, they will be able to thrive musically in any environment and utilize all these skill sets, hopefully find their own musical voice.

For more information on the UCLA Summer Gospel Institute, visit www.summer.ucla.edu/institutes/worldmusic/overview.htm or call 310-267-4836. To contact James Roberson, email him at jdirecords@hotmail.com.