Black Thought on why the Roots Picnic is the Philly music festival that endures
‘The Roots Picnic is a brand that was ... carefully built in the city of Philadelphia. And I think the city is fiercely protective of that.’
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The Roots Picnic returns to the expanded campus of the Mann Center in Fairmount Park on June 1 and 2.
It’ll be the fourth iteration of the music and Black culture festival at the Fairmount Park site since the Philadelphia hip-hop and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon band made the move from Festival Pier in 2019.
This year’s lineup is impressive and wide-ranging. Headliners include Jill Scott, The Roots with Lil Wayne, Trombone Shorty, and PJ Morton celebrating New Orleans, and Nas on the 30th anniversary of his classic Illmatic.
Victoria Monét, this year’s Grammys’ best new artist, has canceled due to “health issues.” No replacement has been named.
But there are plenty more attractions, from OutKast rapper André 3000 playing the flute from his left turn of an album New Blue Sun, to Atlanta rapper Gunna, and smooth R&B crooner Babyface.
Philly bandleader Adam Blackstone will back up Muni Long and Fantasia, R&B and jazz pianist Robert Glasper performs with Yebba, and rising acts such as OT7 Quanny, BLK ODYSSY, and Sexyy Red will appear.
This month, Roots rapper Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter was awarded an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from Rutgers University-Newark.
“The collapse of the old world requires a new myth to be born that connects us all,” he told students. “You write it, discover it, calculate it, draw it, create it. … You are the mythmakers.”
Trotter, 52, chronicled his coming of age in South Philly and Mount Airy in his terrific 2023 memoir The Upcycled Self.
Sixteen years after cofounding it with bandmate Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, he spoke to The Inquirer about the Roots Picnic, and the state of The Roots.
Many music festivals are struggling. In the Philly area, both Made in America and Firefly canceled again this year. Yet the Roots Picnic is flourishing. How?
Benny the Butcher was one of the rappers who performed with me two years ago, as part of my Live Mixtape, as part of [Buffalo rap collective] Griselda. His music is super urban, and super masculine.
But that said, he hit me up the next day and was like, ‘Yo, I’ve never seen that many Black people together in the same place!’ He was blown away by that. And by how much of a family affair it is. The diversity of the bill. All of that contributes to why the Picnic is still here.
The Roots Picnic is a celebration that’s endured. And it’s Philadelphia-centric in a different way than Made in America. The Roots Picnic is a brand that was ideated and created and carefully built — gardened, and nurtured — in the city of Philadelphia. And I think the city is fiercely protective of that.
It’s a grown folks festival.
It is. I agree. But I also think there’s just as much value in how we’ve continued to cater to emerging artists that we break, how we plan it so there’s something for young people to be into as well. That’s what makes it a family affair. We leave no stone unturned.
The Roots has backed up a lot of artists at the Picnic, like Erykah Badu, Usher, and Mary J. Blige. This year, it’s bigger than that. It’s the music of New Orleans.
Part of The Roots’ brand is bringing together different elements, sometimes completely different worlds. We serve as connective tissue. And there’s a freedom there, to take a deep dive with Quest or [keyboardist] James Poyser as music director and really celebrate the history and the music and culture there.
Any special guests?
Oh yeah. There’ll be some surprises.
Go-go bands from Washington, D.C., have become a big part of the Picnic. This year, you’ve got the Backyard Band, plus Scarface and Amerie, whose ‘1 Thing’ is one of the greatest singles of the 21st century.
There’s a lot of musicality there. And there’s something in the music and the culture of the DMV that not only parallels hip-hop and Philadelphia culture, but also overlaps. The energy level is high. That’s become another mainstay of the Picnic. Go-go music is undeniable.
For the J. Period Mixtape this year, you got Method Man and Redman.
And I might bring a couple of Philly artists up, too. We’ll see. But at the very least, you’ve got two of the greatest entertainers of our time in Method Man and Redman.
Plus André 3000, playing his flute. It’s perfect that he’ll be here, because he first surfaced around Philly with his flute when filming ‘‘Dispatches from Elsewhere’ in 2019.
He almost became like a mythological figure, like what Bill Murray does, popping up in random places in other people’s photos. People were like ‘Yo, I ran into André 3000 outside the hoagie shop, playing the flute. Now he’s at the airport, or on the subway.’ This is the culmination of all that.
» READ MORE: Tariq ‘Black Thought’ Trotter’s memoir has two main characters: Himself and Philadelphia
You did an autobiographical audio project for Audible called ‘7 Years,’ and then your memoir. Do you have any more narrative projects in the pipeline?
I do. I think I can tell you about this, because if not, I’m going to get into trouble. I’m doing a documentary project for Audible on the MOVE organization. It’s a deep dive into the story.
You’re writing that?
No, I’m just the narrator. I teamed with writers out of Philly. The Roots did music a few years ago for a documentary Tommy Oliver did called 40 Years A Prisoner, about Michael Africa. I learned a lot then. I think this project is humanizing in a different way. There are going to be a lot of revelations and discoveries for people.
With the writers’ strike last year — and the 40th anniversary of hip-hop — The Roots got out and toured, rather than being cooped up in 30 Rock. How has that been for the band?
Last summer was awesome. Awesome, awesome, awesome. This summer seems to be shaping up in a similar way. We’re doing a Roots Picnic Experience at the Hollywood Bowl in late June. And then touring a lot, including Europe.
So that could be the start of a West Coast version of the Picnic to go with the one in Philly?
I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but that’s the idea.
Is there a new Black Thought record coming? And when will the next Roots album be out? It’s been 10 years since ‘...And Then You Shoot Your Cousin.’
Yeah, I’ve been in the studio most recently with Madlib, and with Danger Mouse, and with The Roots. By year’s end, there should be a new Black Thought solo endeavor, and the new Roots album should be next year.
The Roots Picnic is at the Mann Center for the Performing Arts, 5201 Parkside Ave., on June 1-2. Passes are available at therootspicnic.com.