Eric Darius facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Eric Darius
Background information
Born	(1982-12-03) December 3, 1982 (age 42) Livingston, New Jersey, U.S.
Genres	Jazz, contemporary jazz, smooth jazz, R&B, pop
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instruments	Saxophone
Years active	1982–present
Labels	SagiDarius, Blue Note, Shanachie, Narada, Higher Octave
Associated acts	Prince, Mary J. Blige, David Foster, Jamie Foxx, Carlos Santana, Babyface, George Benson, Brian Culbertson

Eric Darius (born December 3, 1982) is an American musician. He is famous for playing the saxophone. Eric is also a singer, songwriter, and producer. He has been making music for a long time, starting when he was very young!

Eric's Early Life and Musical Start

Eric Darius was born in New Jersey and grew up in Tampa, Florida. Music was a big part of his family. His dad plays bass, his mom and sister sing, and his older brother plays drums and trumpet. Eric listened to many different kinds of music when he was growing up, like Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson.

When Eric was nine years old, he saw someone play the saxophone in church. He loved the sound! For his birthday, his parents bought him his very own saxophone.

Joining a Band at a Young Age

Eric started performing when he was just 11 years old. He joined a band called Sonny LaRosa and America's Youngest Jazz Band. This band had kids from five to twelve years old. They traveled all over the world, playing jazz music by famous artists like Duke Ellington.

While performing at the Montreux Jazz Festival with this band, Eric decided he wanted to be a musician for his career.

Performing as a Teenager

At 13, Eric left the youth band. His dad became his manager, and Eric started performing with his own band in Tampa Bay. As a teenager, he played more than 100 shows every year!

He went to Howard W. Blake High School, which is a school for performing arts. He played in the school's jazz band. After high school, when he was 17, Eric released his first album on his own.

Eric later went to the University of South Florida. He studied both business and music there. He continued to play jazz and even performed at more big jazz festivals around the world. While in college, he signed a record deal with a music company called Higher Octave Music.

Eric's Music Career

Eric Darius released his first album with Higher Octave Music in 2004. It was called Night on the Town. This album did well on the jazz charts. Over the years, he released many more albums. Some of his popular albums include Just Getting Started (2006) and Goin' All Out (2008).

His song "Goin' All Out" even reached number one on the Contemporary Jazz chart in 2008! Eric's live performances are also very popular. He won an award for Best Live Performance at the Catalina Island JazzTrax Festival. He was also named Debut Artist of the Year by Smooth Jazz News.

Music You Can Listen To: Eric's Albums and Songs

Here are some of the albums Eric Darius has released and some of his popular songs.

Albums

Singles