Biography
Roosevelt André Credit was born and raised in Oakland, California. His family was closely involved with the Evergreen Baptist Church and it is partly through this involvement that Credit developed an early interest in music performance. As a boy, Credit was also actively engaged with the Boy Scouts of America, ultimately attaining the rank of Eagle Scout.
Credit chose to attend Oregon State University in part because of his interest in studying engineering. After being cast in the role of Figaro in a university opera production, Credit changed his major to music education and started down a path that would lead to a career as a renowned music and stage performer.
Following his graduation from OSU in 1990 and subsequent graduate studies at Northwestern University, Credit moved to New York City to pursue a career in opera and the Broadway stage. Credit has been cast in Broadway productions of Show Boat and Porgy and Bess, touring the United States in support of both musicals. Credit was likewise a featured performer at President Barack Obama's 2009 Pennsylvania Inaugural Ball in Washington, D.C. and also contributed to the soundtrack for the Academy Award-winning movie 12 Years a Slave.
Credit is an accomplished music conductor and educator who spent five years as director of the Gospel Girls at the Nightingale-Bamford School in New York City. He remains active in the church, serving as Bass Section Leader and Soloist at Saint Peter's Church in New York.
In 2012 Credit was honored by his alma mater with the Distinguished Alumni Fellow Award for the OSU College of Liberal Arts.