As a reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times, I cover arts, entertainment and community issues. My writing on race and gender has garnered awards from the National Association for Black Journalists, Society of Professional Journalists, Press Club of Cleveland, and the Ohio Associated Press Media Editors.
My articles have also appeared on Hapersbazaar.com, Billboard.com, Mic.com, HuffPost.com and TVLine.com. Some of my most memorable celebrity interviews include chats with Jeremy Allen White, Law Roach, Brittany Howard, Timbaland, Wyclef Jean, Common, Billy Dee Williams, Pam Grier, Lynn Whitfield, Dionne Warwick and Pat Metheny.
As a prominent Prince scholar, I have delivered presentations at New York University, the University of Minnesota, and the University of Salford in England. My essay, “‘Graffiti Bridge:’ Prince’s Sacred Triumph over the Profane,” was published in “Theology and Prince” (Lexington Books, 2019). I am finishing my first book, which traces the spiritual development of the legendary rock star.
I have appeared on the official Prince podcast and the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast, and conducted live interviews with John Cusack and Chevy Chase.
A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, I have a master’s degree in journalism from Ohio University’s acclaimed E.W. Scripps School of Journalism. I am also a former features editor for the Columbus Dispatch.
Erica Thompson 