Tigallerro is a joint album from two great artists, Phonte and Eric Roberson. The title combines their respective nicknames – Tigallo and Erro. It also reflects the creation of something different than what fans have heard from them individually.

Phonte is well-respected in the hip-hop world thanks to his work as a solo artist and as a member of Little Brother. He’s also made a name for himself in R&B through his group, the Foreign Exchange.

Eric has succeeded as a writer for artists such as Jill Scott, Musiq Soulchild and Carl Thomas. Yet, he has released great music of his own with albums such as Left and The Box.

Phonte and Eric have done songs together before including “Who Loves You More” and “We Are On the Move.” However, their work as a duo has reached new heights on this project.

The two men first discussed the idea of a joint album in 2013. Fans of theirs have waited for the project since then, but it was well worth it. Tigallerro is an album filled with rich production, impressive vocals and honest lyrics. In the conversation below, Phonte details different parts of the album, what it’s like to be an independent artist and what he thinks of exchanges between rap and R&B.

Blavity: I want to start off with the first song I heard from the album — “It’s So Easy.” It definitely has a feel-good vibe to it. It sounds like the type of song you’d hear at a cookout. Are there any songs you love that inspired that track, or did you and Eric just go that route once you heard the beat?

Phonte: Well, it was mainly the track. When I heard the track, it put me in a summer, West Coast feel. It had a BattleCat feel, a DJ Quik feel to it. I wanted to write something that fit the music. For me, music is what informs the lyrics. I don’t just have a book full of lyrics and then match them to beats I hear. I take cues from the beat when I write.

B: That makes sense. Speaking of production, that’s an element of the album that stands out most to me each time I listen to it. In your talk with Okayplayer, you gave a nod to one of the producers — DJ Harrison — for providing you guys with instrument play that had a vintage sound.

That sound seemed to be there for most of the project. Could you explain what about it was important for you guys to have?

P: In terms of sound, I’m a fan of doing things that are classic. There are some things in music that will always be relevant. A good song, a good melody – those things are universal if you ask me and Erro. I can usually tell if a song’s great if I can play it on a piano or a guitar by itself and it sounds good.

The producers we worked with on the album really delivered that for us. S1, E.Jones, Zo!, Nicolay – those guys embody classic sound. My goal was to make music that’ll sound just as good in 2026 as it does in 2016.

B: For sure, I think that comes across well when you hear the album. I want to shift gears for a moment and focus on something other than the music itself. I know that you guys released the album through the Foreign Exchange Music imprint. How did going the independent route affect the album process?

P: Eric and I, we’ve been in entertainment for years. We’ve worked with both major labels and independent ones. Being an independent artist forces you to work in practical terms. If you’re signed to a major label, you can make a weirdo album and they may not get behind it all the way, but you make it on their dime. That luxury isn’t there when you’re independent.

Independent artists can make the music they want to make, but they have to ask themselves, “Who am I making this for, and how do I get it to them?” You have the ability to take risks creatively, but you have to be practical about tours, videos and other things like that. You use the artist side of your brain while you make the music, but once it’s done you have to use a business mindset.

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B: For sure. I’m seeing that a lot more nowadays with artists I keep up with, so I hope that effort continues to go well for you guys. To get back to the music, I want to discuss your dual position as an artist. I’ve been interested in how you’re this great MC, but you brought singing into your music more and more over the years. Since you started doing that, we’ve seen guys like Kanye and Drake do it in their own ways and now it’s a surprise if a rapper doesn’t use melody or if a singer doesn’t use rap cadences.

What are your thoughts on how R&B and rap borrow from each other nowadays? And did it affect your vision for Tigallerro as you and Eric made it?

P: Well, rap and R&B have always informed each other. If you think back to the ‘80s, you had rap acts like UTFO, Full Force, the Force MDs, even Whodini that had R&B elements in their music. Back then, rap was a new music. Those guys I mentioned were informed by the music they grew up on – the Soul and Funk music that their parents were playing. Now, I was born in 1978 and I think my generation is the last one to remember a world without rap.

Today, a lot of R&B is being made by people who listened to nothing but rap as kids. That’s a big reason why their songs have lyrics that people wouldn’t be caught dead singing before. Now, you can have Jhené Aiko singing, “You gotta eat the booty like groceries,” and it’s cool. But 20-25 years ago, not so much.

Erro and I didn’t think about that too much while recording. I can’t speak for him, but I was just trying to make the best music I can make. If a song had a good place for a rhyme, I put a rhyme there. It’s never an arbitrary choice, I don’t go into a song feeling like I need to add a rap to it.

B: That makes sense. On another note, I’ve noticed that a lot of your albums have included moments of comedy. One that I enjoy is when you describe poetry night at a coffee house on The Listening. For Tigallerro, “Hold Tight” seems to be that moment of comedy. Could you confirm that for me and let me know what it was like recording that song?

P: Yeah, that track was done by DJ Harrison, and as I listened to it I just felt like it could really be a trap joint. It could be a Future/Young Thug style song, so that’s how I approached it. It was fun, it was funny, but then we sat listening to it and said, “This sh*t is kinda jammin’!” To me, the song shows that you can take a genre or style that’s popular on the radio right now and make it soulful.

B: No doubt, thanks for shedding light on that. Could you explain what the writing process was for the songs on the album? I know you and Eric have both succeeded as writers on your own, so I’m interested in knowing how it was.

P: We really just approached it how we always do. Eric and I complement each other. We can hear the same track and come up with two completely different ways to approach it. Sometimes he’ll lay a verse first and we’ll build from that, or I’ll start us off, but we’ll collab on the bridge.

My main thing was that I didn’t want the album to sound like a bunch of features. I didn’t want the songs to sound like Eric Roberson featuring Phonte or Phonte featuring Eric Roberson. We wanted to make something different, so we gave each other trust and let each other breathe on each song.

B: Sounds good, man. Last couple of questions for you: Which of the songs on Tigallerro resonates with you the most?

P: Ah man, there’s a few that I can mention. The one I’d have to point out is “Something.” That song speaks to feelings inside of all of us – wanting to be better and questioning faith. When we recorded it, I thought, “Yeah, this is a cool song.” But when we finished it and I sat with it, it really hit me.

B: I definitely agree with that, it’s one of my favorite songs on the album. To wrap up, I’d like to know what you hope fans take away from the album when they hear it.

P: I hope that the album just makes people feel good. I hope it brings some happiness to you. Eric and I make sure our music is honest and reflective of who we are, so hopefully fans can hear some of themselves in our music.

Make sure you listen to Tigallerro and look out for when they perform in a venue near you!

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