The Roots' original lineup included Black Thought (MC vocals) and Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson (drums), who were classmates at the Philadelphia High School for Creative Performing Arts. As they began to play at school and on the streets, they added another MC named Malik B., bassist Leonard Hubbardand keyboardist Scott Storch. Another MC, Dice Raw, frequently made album appearances with the group from 1995 to 1999 before leaving to record a solo album. Scott Storch also left to pursue career as a producer following the Do You Want More?!!!??! album, He produced songs such as Still D.R.E. by Dr Dre. The Roots filled his void with another keyboardist, Kamal who is still a member. A beatboxer named Rahzel also joined the group and contributed from 1995-1999. Alongside Rahzel was vocal turntablist, Scratch who greatly contributed to The Roots' sound, most notably in live concerts. He left the group in 2003. Malik B. left the group in 2000. A guitarist, Ben Kenney, enjoyed a short stint with the group and contributed to their Phrenology album, but left to join Incubus. A percussionist, Knuckles, was added in 2002 and guitarist, Kirk Douglas (a.k.a. "Captain Kirk") repleaced Kenney. A vocalist, Martin Luther toured with The Roots in 2003 and 2004 and contributed to their album The Tipping Point. The current members of The Roots are Black Thought (MC vocals), ?uestlove (drums), Hub (bass), Kamal (keyboard), Knuckles (percussion), and Captain Kirk (guitar).
The Roots' debut album, Organix released in 1993, was actually a live recording from a concert in Germany that the Roots sold at their shows. The album earned enough industry buzz to earn the Roots offers from major record labels, and they signed with DGC records, which at the time was better known for its grunge music releases.
The Roots' first album for DGC, Do You Want More?!!!??! (recorded live without the use of samples), was a moderate hit on alternative radio. Their 1996 release Illadelph Halflife was the group's first album to crack the Top 40 on Billboard's album chart, spurred in part by MTV's airplay of the video for "What They Do", a parody of rap video clichés such as the "beatdown shot," and "Clones" which was their first to single to reach the top five on the rap charts.
In 1999, The Roots released Things Fall Apart (named after a novel by Chinua Achebe), their breakthrough album. The track "You Got Me", duet with R'n'B singer Erykah Badu, earned them a Grammy award for Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group.
In 2000, Dice Raw left the group to record his solo debut album, Reclaiming the Dead.
The Roots' reputation as a hip-hop live band made Jay-Z call on them for his MTV Unplugged album in 2002. The album featured good recreations of many of his great songs, played by the band with a little help from female vocalist Jaguar Wright.
2002's Phrenology introduced a more mainstream sound for the Roots, earning a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album. The album's sales were boosted by radio and TV airplay for two duets on the album, "Break You Off" (featuring Musiq Soulchild) and "The Seed 2.0" (featuring Cody ChestnuTT). The video for "The Seed 2.0" earned a nomination for the MTV2 Award at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards. "The Seed" was also featured on the soundtrack to the Mandy Moore movie Chasing Liberty. Phrenology was certified gold (signifying U.S. sales of at least 500,000 units) in June 2003.
The Roots' 2004 release, The Tipping Point, took its name from a 2000 book by Malcolm Gladwell. The album earned two more Grammy nominations: one for Best Urban/Alternative Performance for the track "Star", and another for Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group for the track "Don't Say Nuthin'". The album was an immediate hit, debuting at #4 on the Billboard album chart and selling over 100,000 copies in its first week of release.
On November 15, 2005 The Roots released two compilation albums, Home Grown! The Beginner's Guide To Understanding The Roots, Volumes 1 & 2. These two separately sold discs are a compilation of past hits, live performances, and rare remixes compiled by ?uestlove himself. They also feature 70 pages of liner notes written by ?uestlove. These two albums marked the Roots' last releases on Geffen Records.
The Roots' album, Game Theory, was released on August 29, 2006. The album, which features a track that samples the song "You and Whose Army" by Radiohead, was released on Jay-Z's Def Jam.
The Roots next album 'Rising Down' was released on April 29th 2008. Features tracks with Common, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Saigon, and other greats.
The Make Me Songfacts reports that The Roots' eleventh album, undun, is their first concept album. It tells the story of a man called Redford Stephens who died in 1999 at the age of 25. We hear Redford retelling his life post-mortem and attempting to deconstruct what led to his undoing.
The Roots are also the house band on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon airing first on March 2nd, 2009.
Act Won
The Roots Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But we don't even come to see our own, man (take it from us)
Listen, Freddy, listen (I shall, whoa)
You know if we had to depend upon black people to eat
We would starve to death (everybody wake up, it seemed easy)
I mean, you've been out there, you on the bandstand
You look out there, what do you see? (There is no pretenders)
You see Japanese, you see, you see West Germans
Except our people, man it makes no sense
It incenses me that our own people don't realize our own heritage, our own culture
This is our music
That's bullshit
Why? That's all bullshit
Everything, everything you just said is bullshit
You're complaining about- I'm talking about the audience
That's right, the people don't come
Because you grandiose motherfuckers don't play (then distort up in your face like)
Shit that they like
If you played the shit that they liked then the people would come
Simple as that
Inevitably, hip-hop records are treated as though they are disposable
They are not maximized as product even, you know, not to mention as art
In The Roots's song Act Won, the lyrics illustrate the frustration of the singer, particularly about their lack of recognition from their own people despite their musical prowess. The singer suggests that their black audience frequently overlooks their music, which is particularly frustrating given that this is the group they wished to entertain the most. The singer notes that while one might see people from a wide range of backgrounds in their audience, including West Germans and Slobovic audiences, black people seem to make up a small percentage of the band's followers. The singer restates his plaintive assertions that if they had to rely on black people to eat, they would all starve to death.
Line by Line Meaning
And you are all
Referring to the audience or listeners in general
But we don't even come to see our own, man (take it from us)
Black people are not supporting their own music and culture
Listen, Freddy, listen (I shall, whoa)
A call and response to emphasize the importance of the following statement
You know if we had to depend upon black people to eat
We would starve to death (everybody wake up, it seemed easy)
Black people are not supporting their own music, which would lead to the failure of the industry
I mean, you've been out there, you on the bandstand
You look out there, what do you see? (There is no pretenders)
Musicians and performers are looking out into the audience and seeing only non-black individuals
You see Japanese, you see, you see West Germans
You see, you know, Slobovic, anything but (go ahead with yourself)
The audience is made up of people from different countries and cultures, but not black people
Except our people, man it makes no sense
It incenses me that our own people don't realize our own heritage, our own culture
This is our music
Black people are not supporting their own cultural heritage and music, which angers the singer
That's bullshit
Why? That's all bullshit
Everything, everything you just said is bullshit
The artist is calling out someone who disagrees with their statement as being wrong and untrue
You're complaining about- I'm talking about the audience
That's right, the people don't come
Because you grandiose motherfuckers don't play (then distort up in your face like)
The artists believe that musicians and performers are not giving the audience what they want
Shit that they like
If you played the shit that they liked then the people would come
Simple as that
The artists believe that musicians and performers need to cater to the audience's interests in order to be successful
Inevitably, hip-hop records are treated as though they are disposable
They are not maximized as product even, you know, not to mention as art
The music industry does not value hip-hop music as much as other forms of music and does not treat it as a serious art form
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Ahmir K. Thompson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mike Ball
on Proceed V (Da Beatminerz remix)
So after purchasing “Do You Want More” the day it dropped, my guy the upped me from jump (pass the popcorn obvi) found this join on a European release and pressed play…the rest is history. But there in lies my question…what IS the history, the story on how, where, when, this was created? I need to know for context. Drop a link if there is one out there PLEASE! V 5 is a masterpiece!