This past weekend, The Roots came to DC as part of one of the closing acts for the DC Jazz Festival. I became a Roots fan in 1999 when I first heard You Got Me. Between Black Thought's storytelling, Eve's response, and Erykah Badu's hypnotic voice flowing in between the two, I was hooked in a matter of minutes to the legendary Roots crew. Thanks to Groupon, I was able to get some well-priced seats for the show. The seats weren't my ideal spot for my first ever Roots concert but, the set up of The Kastles Stadium made every seat a pretty decent show. And, for $20, I couldn't really be mad.
Snarky Puppy, a Dallas/NYC Jazz collective, opened up the show. I had never heard of them before this event but they were pretty cool. Their sound is part jazz, part-rock, part-funk, and all fantastic. I'm definitely going to have to check out some of their work. And, perhaps, try to catch another one of their shows before the summer lets out.
The Roots were... better than I could ever dream. Hip-hop and live music are only two of my favorite things in the world so, as you can imagine, I was in heaven. Sousaphonist Damon "Tuba Gooding Jr." Bryson was probably one of my favorite part of the performance; his on-stage dancing really just made my heart happy. Questlove and Frank Knuckles on drums and percussion were everything you dreamed off. I didn't realized Cap'n Kirk was touring with The Roots so he was a definite pleasant surprise. He lent his vocals for the hook of "You Got Me" and did an amazing job. Of course, Black Thought was just as cool as cucumber and flowed in and out of every track with magic. The Roots put on an unbelievable show and I admonish everyone to experience it as much as possible! My phone died halfway through the show so I couldn't get a good recording of any songs but.. check out this snippet of my first favorite Roots song, 'You Got Me'.
The Roots were... better than I could ever dream. Hip-hop and live music are only two of my favorite things in the world so, as you can imagine, I was in heaven. Sousaphonist Damon "Tuba Gooding Jr." Bryson was probably one of my favorite part of the performance; his on-stage dancing really just made my heart happy. Questlove and Frank Knuckles on drums and percussion were everything you dreamed off. I didn't realized Cap'n Kirk was touring with The Roots so he was a definite pleasant surprise. He lent his vocals for the hook of "You Got Me" and did an amazing job. Of course, Black Thought was just as cool as cucumber and flowed in and out of every track with magic. The Roots put on an unbelievable show and I admonish everyone to experience it as much as possible! My phone died halfway through the show so I couldn't get a good recording of any songs but.. check out this snippet of my first favorite Roots song, 'You Got Me'.
I can't wait to attend my next Roots show!
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