Edgar Eugene Roland, Jr. (born August 3, 1963) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist and primary songwriter of the rock band

Collective Soul Collective Soul is an American rock band originally from Stockbridge, Georgia. Now based in Atlanta, the group consists of the brothers Ed (lead vocalist) and Dean Roland (rhythm guitarist), Will Turpin (bassist), Johnny Rabb (drummer), a ...

, along with his brother

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean * Dean Sw ...

, who also served as the band's rhythm guitarist. He is also active with his side project,

Ed Roland and the Sweet Tea Project The Sweet Tea Project is an American rock music, rock band from Atlanta, Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. History 2011–12: Early years Ed Roland, frontman of the rock band Collective Soul, formed the Sweet Tea Project in 2011 ...

Career

One of the first records that influenced Roland to explore rock music was

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

's ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be creat ...

'', which he purchased as a child. After finishing high school, Roland studied songwriting and guitar at

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

for one year. He was the lead engineer and producer at Real 2 Reel Studios in

Stockbridge, Georgia Stockbridge is a city in Henry County, Georgia, Henry County, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. As of 2020, its population was 28,973. Stockbridge is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. History The area was settled in 1829 when C ...

for eight years. In 1985, he joined a band called Ed-E and another during the late 1980s and early 1990s called Marching Two-Step. Marching Two-Step included future producer and music executive

Matt Serletic Matthew Michael Serletic II (born 1970 or 1971) is an American record producer, songwriter, and music executive. Career As a teenager, Serletic joined a band with members of Collective Soul – a group for which he would later produce. Serlet ...

, future executive Michelle Rhea Caplinger and longtime Collective Soul drummer Shane Evans. Roland released an

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media *Independent media, media free of influence by government or corporate interests *Indie art, fine arts made by artists independent of commer ...

album called ''Ed-E Roland'' in 1991, under the independent label Core, to showcase his abilities to compose, record, and produce his own original music. After using the name ''Brothers & Brides'' briefly, Roland changed the name of his band to Collective Soul with hopes of finding success in the music business. Not finding success, however, Roland became frustrated and almost gave up on the music industry. He had been active in the local

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

music scene since the early 1980s. Despite the initial rejections, Collective Soul independently released '' Hints, Allegations & Things Left Unsaid'' in 1993 on an independent label called Rising Storm. It was a compilation of some of Roland's songwriting demos created when he worked at Real 2 Reel Studios. This collection eventually caught the attention of WJRR 101.1 in

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

. Several other college radio stations began to play " Shine" and it became an underground hit. The popularity of the song and band was convincing enough that

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

signed Collective Soul in 1993 to a long term major label contract. ''Hints Allegations and Things Left Unsaid'' was re-released worldwide in early 1994. The band experienced a sudden rise from obscurity to fame. Roland's brother

is also a member of the band. Their father was a

Southern Baptist The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), alternatively the Great Commission Baptists (GCB), is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist organization, the largest Protestantism in the United States, Pr ...

minister which influenced their spiritual background; however, Roland has cited that Collective Soul is not a

Christian rock band Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus. This music is typically performed by Christian individuals. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly Chri ...

. Roland formed a new act in 2011 with a group of friends and musicians, titled

. In 2012, the Sweet Tea Project's

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

of "

Shelter from the Storm "Shelter from the Storm" is a song by Bob Dylan, recorded on September 17, 1974, and released on his 15th studio album, '' Blood on the Tracks'', in 1975. It was later anthologized on the compilation album ''The Essential Bob Dylan'' in 2000. Co ...

" was released on '' Chimes of Freedom: Songs of Bob Dylan Honoring 50 Years of Amnesty International'', a four-disc compilation of

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

covers. The Sweet Tea Project's debut album, ''

Devils 'n Darlins ''Devils 'n Darlins'' is the debut studio album by American rock music, rock band Ed Roland and the Sweet Tea Project. Track listing References

2013 debut albums 429 Records albums Albums produced by Ed Roland Ed Roland and the Sweet ...

'', was released on September 3, 2013. The album's first single, "Love Won't Bring Us Down," was released on August 13. On October 6, 2017, Ed Roland and The Sweet Tea Project released their second album, ''Alder Lane Farm''.

2014–present: ''See What You Started by Continuing'', ''Anniversary'', ''Blood'', and ''Vibrating''

Between February and October 2014, Collective Soul recorded their ninth studio album, ''

See What You Started by Continuing ''See What You Started by Continuing'' is the ninth studio album by American rock band Collective Soul. It was released on October 2, 2015, by Vanguard Records. The album represents a return to the classic guitar-driven rock sound that the band ...

''. The album was released on October 2, 2015, by

Vanguard Records Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the so ...

. In December 2014, Roland recorded a solo album with current

bandmates

Will Turpin William Ross Turpin (born February 8, 1971) is an American musician. He is best known for being the bassist of the rock band Collective Soul. He is also a solo artist, and tours with his backing band, the Way. His debut EP, ''The Lighthouse'', wa ...

and Jesse Triplett, along with former Collective Soul drummer Shane Evans and guitarist

Peter Stroud Peter Stroud is a US guitarist best known for his work with Sheryl Crow, Don Henley, Pete Droge, and Sarah McLachlan. He is cofounder of 65amps, a company manufacturing guitar amplifiers. Biography Peter Stroud was born in Greensboro, North ...

. The album, ''

Anniversary An anniversary is the date on which an event took place or an institution was founded. Most countries celebrate national anniversaries, typically called national days. These could be the List of national independence days, date of independen ...

'', was dedicated to Roland's wife, Michaeline, to celebrate their 10-year wedding anniversary. Collective Soul's tenth studio album, Blood (Collective Soul album), was released in 2019. "Vibrating", their eleventh studio album, was supposed to release in 2019 along with ''Blood'', but instead was released in 2022.

Personal life

Roland met his wife Michaeline Matteson when she delivered football tickets to his Atlanta apartment. Initially, Roland was intrigued by her and insisted they meet up at a local restaurant. They bonded off their mutual love for family and Michaeline admired how "

e showed E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plur ...

integrity, generosity and loyalty to family over all the things that could have easily trumped his value system." After dating for three years, the couple married on February 17, 2006. The date is significant to Roland because of its close proximity to his father's birthday on February 18 and his parents' anniversary on February 19.

Discography

References

External links