Drummer Ahmir Thompson, also known as Questlove, and rapper Tariq Trotter, aka Black Thought, started The Roots when they were in high school in Philadelphia in 1987. Over the last thirty years, the band has released 17 albums. They’ve received a bunch Grammy nominations including three wins. They’re also the house band for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. In this episode, Questlove tells the story of how they made the song "It Ain’t Fair." It was created for the film Detroit, directed by oscar-winner Kathryn Bigelow, who also made the films The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty. Detroit is about the 1967 Detroit riots, centered around the events at the Algiers Motel, where police killed three young black men and beat and tortured nine others. The Roots recruited the singer Bilal to contribute vocals to the song, and they worked with The Dap-Kings, the backing band for the late soul singer Sharon Jones, to create a sound that evoked the music of 1967.
songexploder.net/the-roots
Mumford & Sons - Beloved
Phoebe Bridgers - Scott Street
Wonderly - The Daily (Theme)
Japanese Breakfast - Boyish
Hozier - Nina Cried Power (feat. Mavis Staples)
Yo-Yo Ma - Prelude, Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major
Re-issue: Thao & The Get Down Stay Down - Astonished Man
Fleetwood Mac - Go Your Own Way
Breakmaster Cylinder - Reply All
Empress Of - When I'm With Him
Big Boi - Order of Operations
John Carpenter - Halloween (Theme)
Janelle Monáe - So Afraid
Cat Power - Woman
Blood Orange - Saint
Re-issue: Patrick Carney feat. Ralph Carney - BoJack Horseman (Main Title Theme)
The Decemberists - Once In My Life
Re-issue: Mitski - Your Best American Girl
Christine and the Queens - Doesn't Matter
Neko Case - Last Lion of Albion
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Stuff You Should Know
On Being with Krista Tippett
TED Radio Hour
Planet Money
The Dinner Party Download