The Roots
Words: Jonathan Osborne

What better way to bust wide open my hip-hop show cherry than a performance by it's greatest live act, The "Legendary" Roots. Widely known for their electrifying live shows (Rolling Stone named them one of the twenty greatest live acts in the world), they owned up to their reputation that night out at Club Underground. To kick the night off, MC Jean Grae romped onto the stage and tore it up for a slightly stiff crowd. I quickly tackled a virgin territory of mine, the waving of the hand in the air. Ms. Grae demanded I keep it there and rock to the beat with it and I wasn't about to disappoint. My hip-hop arm forced me to take a break at the bar. Good timing because a smooth set by a hip-hop violinist by the name of Miri Ben-Ari took hold of me. With the ladies well represented it was time for the boys to play.

From the darkness of the stage The Roots MC, "Black Thought", pumped the crowd up before the lights came on and they ripped into material off their dark new album Game Theory. When it came time to take a break one member would keep the music flowing until the others came back. Every Roots member had that virtuoso moment. The music never stopped until they were done with the set...then came the encore. With a clear plan to break down the house for good, it was a mad dash through a never-ending string of hits from "Shake, Rattle and Roll" to Kanye West's "Gold Digger". Frankly they could've covered Barry Manilow at that point and I would've been bumpin' and wavin' to it. When the smoke cleared, The Roots showed some love and tossed everything but the kitchen sink out to the fans, a hat, towels, a near endless supply of drumsticks, and even a cover from one of the drums that was passed around and signed. A hip-hop aficionado or not, you'd be hard pressed to find a better time.