Words by Jesse H.
I remember reading an issue of Rolling Stone (which has now successfully killed what little credibility it had left by putting that 12 year old Zack kid on the cover last month) review awhile ago on the Roots, and sadly the article contained very little research, piss poor understanding of Hip Hop, and glaring misconceptions.
It wasn’t that Rolling Stone got it dead wrong when it comes to their coverage of an important Hip Hop group that shocked me (they’ve successfully proven time and time again since the culture’s conception that they don’t know how to properly reflect Hip Hop’s increasingly important mass cultural voice), it was the constant brutality towards Black Thought in the article that surprised me.
Like I said, I don’t expect to read reliable Hip Hop coverage in that particular publication, but I do expect those who are paid to write about music professionally to give respect to those artists that deserve nothing less.
What really struck me as odd though, when I looked into it further, is that the sentiment that Thought is not a top-tier MC isn’t exclusive to the fading magazine…
Read the rest @ Stray Shots From The Smoking Section @ KING-Mag.com.
Listen to The Roots – “The Seed/Melting Pot/Web (Live On BBC Radio One’s Worldwide Show)” from Home Grown! The Beginner’s Guide to Understanding the Roots, Vol. 2.
The Roots Discography
Organix
Do You Want More?!!!??!
Illadelph Halflife
Things Fall Apart
Phrenology
The Tipping Point
Game Theory
The Roots Discography
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The Roots are very dope, I actually didnt get hip to them until I first heard “Things fall apart”. I think Black Thought is an excellent lyricist. Nice read and post
BEST “HIPHOP” CREW !
The Roots’ Roots of HipHop
A LIQUID FLOW IN YOUR EARDRUM
Listen … Real hiphop … Music, Lyricism
MUSICAL, SPIRIT, INSTRUMENTAL, RAP SHIT
ORGANIC, GENIUS, OLDSHOOLNEWSCHOOL SHIT,
UNIVERSAL ! Classicallll !
Peace Y’Allll
Tha RootS – All Roots
http://changetolink.com/npBws
Discography links; here! If you have problemz with your usercash opening
Alll With The Roots! Shyeah !
Great post.
I can’t wait until their next show.
Probably throw Gotty a nice little write up about it with some flix.
Thought consistently makes my Top 10…every year…for the past 12 now.
T.Dot – Holler
Roots show in NYC oct for vh1 honors… also today it was 2 years ago Hurricane Katrina
the draft room is open fellas.
they performed at depaul a couple months ago and the show was right up there with outkast/ludacris way back in the day at the aragon ballroom. tickets were limited to depaul students and it was a small performance outside in the quad but i got in from a friend that had an extra. it started to pour down rain right as they came on and even though everyone was getting soaked it just added to the experience. roots are the shit.
Riq’s dope…doper than dope, but unfortunately, he suffers from Grateful Dead syndrome and comes off as much more accomplished during the Roots’ live sets than he does on record. The whole band does, actually, which is why they are truly hip-hop’s Dead. Jay called himself “rap’s Grateful Dead,” but I still don’t know what that nigga was talking about. I’ve seen the Dead 27 times and I didn’t see Hov at none of those shows.
The Roots stay on the road 300+ days a year because it’s what they do best. I love their albums, but none of them compare to what they do live. And the one album that did – Phrenology – heads weren’t ready for. You hating fuckers. :)
So yeah, Thought is cold as a pure rapper, but the one-dimensional tag does have some merit. In order to get the respect he deserves, he needs to get back to the versatility he showed on Organix and the sick MCing shit he does live. He also should consider recording an album or some singles outside of the Roots setting. He’s comfortable with them, and while they’re pushing things somewhat as a group, he may need a different creative environment to help him dig deeper as an artist.
cc: King
I cosign what ronnie said. We need to see him work with other producers and rappers so that folks know he can hold his own. Honestly I think he kind of get overshadowed by the Roots as a brand. A solo project would do a lot to certify his position as a all time great.
T DOT they were just in Toronto last month(I think?) for the Rogers picnic. Them dudes always put on a nice show, man I must’ve seen them at least half a dozen times already. I also agree Black Thought do need to spread his wings and mess with other producers(Hi-Tek,Black Milk,Kayne,Needles,Nottz,OH No, Madlib….etc) u getz my point!!
i don’t know where i read it…but i read an interview somewhere with Tariq where he said
“every roots album is my solo album”.
i can’t co-sign enough on that. dude is a beast.
why work with other producers? what would that prove? it doesn’t always work (yes, i’m looking at you, Kanye and Common).
Holy f*cking canoly.
I needed them sh*ts.
A smile AND a smack on the ass to TSS:0
Conpermiso, that quote is all swagger. Thought is a beast, but why not give yourself other avenues in which to shine? Questo has his hand in so much other shit it’s hard to keep track of it all. Working with other producers would help Tariq open up his style on record and “breathe,” so to speak…literally and figuratively.
Shit, I could have lived with my parents until I was 40, but I chose to move out for a reason.
Listen to The Web from tipping point. Black Thought straight kills 9 out of 10 of your favorite MCs. The volume alone of classic music dropped by the Roots makes them untouchable.
I’m still cheesed that I missed them then.
Little Brother was with them.
Lupe and De La were down too for WakeFest.
Same weekend.
Too bad I had to work all that weekend.
But I caught them when they were in town before Game Theory dropped, and they played half the album. That was ridiculous.
M Deezy – Your Gravitar is distracting. :)
Black is the closest to ’90 Rakim that we have recording today. He’s a technical rap expert!